The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) is warning Americans about the rise in hacker attacks on mobile banking apps amid an increase in usage during the pandemic.
The FBI released a public service announcement on Wednesday raising awareness about the heightened threat of malicious cyber actors. The agency is also stressing the importance of caution with the use of smartphones and tablets.
“The FBI advises the public to be cautious when downloading apps on smartphones and tablets, as some could be concealing malicious intent,” the agency wrote in a statement released on Wednesday. “Cyber actors target banking information using banking trojans, which are malicious programs that disguise themselves as other apps, such as games or tools.”
With a 50% surge in mobile banking usage since the beginning of the pandemic, the FBI has reason to believe new mobile banking customers may be targets for exploitation.
“With city, state, and local governments urging or mandating social distancing, Americans have become more willing to use mobile banking as an alternative to physically visiting branch locations,” the FBI wrote.
The announcement continued, “The FBI expects cyber actors to attempt to exploit new mobile banking customers using a variety of techniques, including app-based banking trojans and fake banking apps.”
The federal agency also highlighted the existence of multiple threats surrounding mobile banking apps including trojans and fake, virus-filled applications overlaying the real mobile app.
Because trojans typically look like the real banking app, users are easily tricked into clicking on them, subsequently sharing their login credentials with hackers.
The FBI is encouraging mobile banking users to incorporate two-step authentication for logging into mobile apps. Users are also being encouraged to contact their financial institutions if they notice suspicious activity when using the mobile apps.
“If you encounter an app that appears suspicious, exercise caution and contact that financial institution,” the FBI emphasized. “Major financial institutions may ask for a banking PIN number, but will never ask for your username and password over the phone.”
