RTÉ's Sarah McInerney shares experience of falling victim to text scam

The radio presenter received a scam text message regarding her e-flow account

Sarah McInerney shared her experience with Drivetime listeners.

RTÉ’s Drivetime presenter Sarah McInerney has shared her experience of falling victim to a text scam after her bank account was hacked.

The radio personality warned the public about similar scams, sharing advice on what to do if it happens.

Speaking on Thursday’s Drivetime, McInerney explained that she received a text that said she had not filled in the terms and conditions to allow her e-flow account to continue.

“I started absentmindedly putting in information and then realised I put in my registration number for my bank and my personal access code," she said.

"When I clicked send on the personal access code, I realised what am I doing? I tried to close the window, but it was too late and then I tried calling my bank online, of course, they were shut, because they only operate nine to five.

“Now I'm in a situation where I know that I've given my bank details and access to my online banking account to somebody and I don't know how to shut it down.” 

She said that she started to frantically Google what to do and checked her bank’s security page before eventually coming across the 24/7 lost or stolen credit card number.

“It said if you've lost your credit card, you can call this number and I just thought I'd try that because at least I get to talk to somebody in person who might be able to access my bank account."

The process took about 15 minutes and within that short time frame, the fraudster had already added a different phone number to her account and attempted to make a couple of transactions.

Niamh Davenport, Head of Financial Crime of the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI) said that fraudsters work quickly. If in a similar situation to McInerney, she advised listeners that they can freeze their card through their mobile banking app. If someone has given away bank account details as opposed to card details, they can call the 24/7 number for lost or stolen credit cards.

However, when McInerney rang her bank’s credit card fraud number, she felt it was not clear that she was calling the correct line.

“I think it's something we should probably take back to the banks to make sure that everyone is clear on what number to us,” said Davenport. “Every bank is slightly different so it is important that people realise what the number is.

“I would always say if in any doubt, there's a number actually on the back of your bank card, and use that number and they'll be able to help you 24/7.”