Beware of the bogus you

15 June 2015 - 14:35 By Wendy Knowler

If you lost your wallet or handbag, or had it stolen from you, would someone find enough information in there to steal your identity and open accounts in your name, or raid your bank account? The trouble with recording your account numbers, PINs and passwords in places where you can easily access them is that the information can easily land up in the wrong hands.Pretoria student Blossom Khoza didn't immediately link the R400 debit order activated on her bank account by Body Lab in April with the fact that she'd mislaid her purse earlier that month."When the debit order bounced I got an SMS threatening to take legal action against me," she said."I tried to call a Body Lab branch to find out who authorised the deductions, but I couldn't get any answers."Many people, including students, have claimed they were lured into a branch with offers of free training or special offers, and duped into signing a three-year contract, having been told it would only come into effect if they wanted to join at a later stage.Then come the letters of demand from debt collectors Bennett & Associates, which is an "affiliate" company of Body Lab.But Khoza said she had never set foot in a Body Lab gym, much less signed anything.She cancelled her bank card shortly after realising her purse was missing, but there was a lot of information in it which gave someone the ability to raid her bank account: her debit card on which, she says, a bank employee had written her account number, as well as a "contact card" bearing her name, cellphone number and address."I'm in a state of panic now about being blacklisted," Khoza told In Your Corner."Please can you contact them for me before it's too late."I contacted Nico Grobler, who is the general manager of Body Lab and also represents Bennett & Associates, outlining Khoza's experience and attaching an affidavit signed by her, confirming that she had not entered into the contract herself.Grobler said the contract had been opened and a debit order activated in April using Khoza's personal and bank details.As for how this was possible without Khoza's ID, given that the presentation of an ID is a basic requirement when entering into any contract, he said: "Her ID may not have been in her purse, but other documentation containing the ID number may have been."He confirmed that the fraudulent contract had been cancelled, which made Khoza happy.I advised her to register her details with the SA Fraud Prevention Service, to prevent whoever impersonated her at Body Lab from opening accounts in her name.It's a free service, which triggers an alert when someone presents your ID number and other details for a credit application.It means you have to carry an alternative form of ID to prove you're the real deal, but it's worth the schlep. Call the fraud prevention service on 0860-101- 248.The service's executive director, Carol McLoughlin, said the number of victims of impersonation reported to the organisation had dropped in the first four months of 2015, compared to last year, for the first time."Hopefully this is an indication that consumers are becoming more vigilant about protecting their personal information," she said.But the 200 to 300 cases of ID fraud per month being reported were "just the tip of the iceberg" in terms of the actual occurrence, McLoughlin said. Many cases such as Khoza's, where the company was not a member of the fraud prevention service and the consumer was not aware of the service, went unreported.CONTACT WENDYE-mail: consumer@knowler.co.za, Twitter: @wendyknowler..

There’s never been a more important time to support independent media.

From World War 1 to present-day cosmopolitan South Africa and beyond, the Sunday Times has been a pillar in covering the stories that matter to you.

For just R80 you can become a premium member (digital access) and support a publication that has played an important political and social role in South Africa for over a century of Sundays. You can cancel anytime.

Already subscribed? Sign in below.



Questions or problems? Email helpdesk@timeslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00.