The Export Credit Insurance Corporation of South Africa SOC LTD (ECIC) is urging all citizens to be aware of a scam doing rounds offering vulnerable citizens affordable loans. The modus operandi of this scam is to target unsuspecting individuals by luring them with fictitious offers of “affordable loans” through platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp. This is then followed by electronic communication purportedly containing the ECIC logo and name. The ECIC reiterates its role as export credit and investment insurance provider and confirms that the Corporation does not provide or offer loan funding. “We seek to distance ourselves from any of this phishing and spoofing cybercrime activities that involve fraudulent attempts to obtain personal information through the use of the ECIC’s name and logo,” states Kutoane Kutoane, ECIC Chief Executive Officer. “We urge the public to not respond and ignore such communication, and to report any such activity immediately and without hesitation.” Citizens are warned to refrain from sharing any personal, or financial information such as names, ID numbers, bank account details, pin numbers of bank cards, as well as internet banking login details to any person through any such platform. “Do not pay any loan application fees as the ECIC does not offer loans,” warns Kutoane. The ECIC urges the public to remain vigilant and not fall prey to ever-present cybercrime activities. Common points that may indicate the advertised post may be a scam are: · Any information relating to any form of loans by the ECIC · Legitimate sounding names that resemble that of the Export Credit Insurance Corporation of South Africa, or any of its employees · Request for upfront payment or banking details as part of a loan application · Contact numbers that are cellular numbers as landlines are ‘out of order’ · Email addresses that are non-business email addresses that do not contain the valid ecic.co.za domain · Request for private personal information · A letter not containing the ECIC’s FSP number To verify anyone claiming to be a representative of the Export Credit Insurance Corporation of South Africa, or to report any such suspicious activity, contact the anonymous ECIC TIP-OFF COMMUNICATION channels: 0800 20 35 75 (TOLL FREE) or ecic@tip-offs.com