Johannesburg – South Africans are being warned to remain vigilant as criminals increasingly target bank and card accounts through phishing, impersonation, remote-access scams and other social-engineering tactics.
According to BusinessTech, citing the 2025 Annual Crime Statistics Report from the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), account takeover fraud occurs when criminals unlawfully obtain a customer’s banking credentials and use them to manipulate accounts, payment mechanisms and funds.
“Account Takeover fraud usually begins when fraudsters obtain a customer’s banking or card credentials through phishing emails, malicious links or phone calls in which they impersonate bank officials,” SABRIC said.
The criminals can then persuade victims to disclose login details or one-time passwords (OTPs), giving them access to accounts and allowing them to make unauthorised transactions or transfer funds.
Remote-access software
SABRIC has also highlighted the growing use of remote-access software and screen-sharing tools. “Victims were persuaded to install remote-access software or enable screen-sharing functionality under the pretence of receiving technical support, fraud prevention assistance, or account verification services,” it said.
The warning comes as losses from account takeover fraud rise sharply. BusinessTech reported that credit-card account takeover losses increased by 66.7%, from R12.6 million in 2024 to almost R21 million in 2025, while debit-card losses jumped more than 325%, from R1.65 million to R7.02 million.
The wider card-fraud picture is also worsening. SABRIC data shows combined credit and debit-card fraud losses increased 18% year-on-year to R1.75 billion in 2025, compared with R1.48 billion in 2024. Card-not-present fraud remained the biggest contributor, accounting for R780.5 million in losses.
Smartphones
The threat is increasingly focused on smartphones and digital banking. MyBroadband recently reported that cybercriminals are targeting South Africans’ smartphones to hijack banking applications, while stolen browser data and credentials are also being used as tools in cybercrime operations.
“Phishing and social engineering can lead people to fake banking pages, while infostealers and mobile banking trojans are designed to capture credentials or other sensitive information,” the report quoted Boris Larin, chief security researcher at Kaspersky as saying.
Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting smartphones to hijack the accounts of people in South Africa through their banking apps.https://t.co/bjJXtAyljV
— MyBroadband (@mybroadband) August 16, 2026
Banks are responding with increasingly sophisticated fraud controls. Capitec, for example, said it blocked more than 394,000 fraudulent transactions in its latest financial year, preventing more than R642 million in potential losses, while also stopping more than 64,000 mule accounts used to move stolen funds.
“In the last financial year, Capitec has blocked more than 394 000 fraudulent transactions, preventing over R642 million in losses. Additionally, we’ve identified and stopped more than 64 000 mule accounts used to move stolen money quickly through the financial system,” the bank said on its website.
“These numbers show the scale of the threat, but they also show how fraud is changing. It is no longer only about breaking into systems. More and more, it is about influencing people. And this is happening across many industries.”
The issue has also drawn attention from regulators. ITWeb reported that the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) is working towards a National Scam Centre as part of efforts to establish a more coordinated response between banks, regulators and other stakeholders.
With fraudsters increasingly exploiting trust rather than directly breaching banking systems, consumers are urged to avoid clicking suspicious links, sharing OTPs or login credentials, and granting remote access to their devices.
Customers should also verify unexpected requests directly with their bank through official channels.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
