scorecardresearchThe RBI, Amitabh Bachchan and even Seinfeld are telling you one thing about

The RBI, Amitabh Bachchan and even Seinfeld are telling you one thing about your money. Will you listen?

Updated: 26 Feb 2023, 08:59 AM IST
TL;DR.

  • Fraudulently using someone else’s ATM PIN to withdraw all the money in their account is a problem that is faced by the First World too. That is why you are told when you open an account that your PIN is secret. You are not supposed to share it with anyone!

The Reserve Bank Of India has been posting warning messages on Twitter and Facebook to help the general public.

The Reserve Bank Of India has been posting warning messages on Twitter and Facebook to help the general public.

Elderly parents call excitedly, ‘Beta! You always wanted a car, didn't you? Well, I have good news!’

Some children will be happy, but others will feel the dread because they know what is going to follow. If you are a part of the second group, then you know what parents are about to say next. It is inevitably this:

‘I have just won a car! The bank called to verify! In two days the car will be delivered!’

You ask, knowing the worst is yet to come, ‘How did they verify it’s you?’

‘I had to give them my ATM PIN after they asked me for my account number!’

You just want to run to wherever your parents are located and hug them for being such decent but naive folk. They are happy because they think they have helped you fulfil your dream. But you know that they have been scammed! The scamsters now have easy access to your parents’ bank account and will withdraw everything. Before everyone panics and they lose all their life savings, you do exactly what the Reserve Bank Of India has been telling you to do: call the National Helpline on 155260 and report how an anonymous number has scammed your parents with an offer of a car.

Call the National Helpline!

Of course you will have to report this to the bank as well and have the card blocked and frozen. The National Helpline is very helpful and will advise you on the steps you should take if you want to recover the money (the scamsters are super quick in withdrawing money from the account. Sometimes, the withdrawal is a small amount, and other times, all the money is gone within minutes).

Your elderly parents are not the only ones getting scammed into losing their life savings, there are many young people too who fall for the offers that are too good to be true. And who better to warn the multitudes about this rampant scam than Amitabh Bachchan? The Reserve Bank Of India has been posting warning messages on Twitter and Facebook to help the general public.

Fraudulently using someone else’s ATM PIN to withdraw all the money in their account is a problem that is faced by the First World too. That is why you are told when you open an account that your PIN is secret. You are not supposed to share it with anyone!

Don’t even put the password on your phone, or save it as ‘Important Passwords’ on your computer. You can lose your phone and your computer can be accessed by anyone with a few extra skills. Thankfully, the helpline and the banks accept all kinds of complaints.

'Seinfeld' uses humour to give us this lesson. And who has not enjoyed a lesson if it is coated with a dollop of exaggerated humour? George Costanza, Seinfeld’s friend is extremely possessive of his ATM PIN. He knows that’s the rule, so he won’t share it with anyone. Not even with the woman he is going to marry.

Don’t Share the Password!

In episode 7 of Seinfeld’s seventh season, we discover just how much fun everyone has at the cost of George because he won’t share his ‘code’ with anyone.

Seinfeld calls him selfish for not sharing the password, ‘You are going to marry her, then why can’t you share the password?’

George has a point: Just because you are married, does that mean you have to share everything? Why can’t I just be me when it comes to a bank account? How is that selfish?

Kramer tries to guess the password: 'Birthdays are out because it’s the most obvious one. That brings us to your favourite foods… Because you look like you have a sweet tooth, it must be chocolate…’

Before smartphones became popular, phones had a keypad where you could type out alphabets (and hence words). George’s password is his favourite brand of chocolate syrup: BOSCO…

George admits that it is very difficult to keep a secret, but no matter how much his friends try, he refuses to give up his password. Since this is an over the top exaggeration, George is put in a situation where only his ATM card (and the code) can save someone’s life from a burning building. But if you are a fan of Seinfeld, you know that George is quite capable of walking away from the situation without sharing his password to save a stranger. You can watch what George really does when you watch Seinfeld which is playing on Netflix.

There are other hard-hitting shows like 'Jamtara' that also hammer home the point of never giving your account number and PIN to callers who claim to be from the bank (or calling you about a big win). But hard-hitting shows sometimes make people think that they are never going to get scammed, that ‘it happens to other people’.

But the threat is real. All you have to remember is: Be like George! Don’t share your bank details, especially your PIN with anyone! It’s supposed to be a secret!

 

Manisha Lakhe is a poet, film critic, traveller, founder of Caferati — an online writer’s forum, hosts Mumbai’s oldest open mic, and teaches advertising, films and communication. She can be reached on Twitter at @manishalakhe.

 

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How can customers withdraw money from ATMs without a debit card?
First Published: 26 Feb 2023, 08:59 AM IST