Online financial fraud in Pakistan increased by 63% in 2020: report

According to a new report, financial fraud cases in Pakistan have witnessed an increase of 63%. With the rise of digital transactions and online banking during the coronavirus pandemic, consumer complaints about banking services have also increased dramatically.

As per details in the report released by Banking Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Mohammad Kamran Shehzad, a total of 25,500 complaints were received from bank customers during 2020, out of which 84% were resolved and total relief of Rs598 million was given to the customers.

During a press conference, Mr. Shahzad revealed that he received 15,600 complaints in 2019 but in 2020 the number of complaints reached 25,500.

Digital banking has led to a significant increase in bank consumer complaints, which showed a 63 percent increase in one year. Moreover, the rapid increase in complaints during the first two months of this year has raised fears that the number of complaints will reach 40,000 this year.

According to the complaint data, 89% of financial fraud victims are men and 11% are women. Mr. Shehzad also said that Overseas Pakistanis are approaching the Banking Ombudsman as well. The portal received 10,000 to 12,000 complaints, with the bulk of the complaints concerning five major banks.

The Banking Ombudsman said that banks cannot adopt an inappropriate attitude for recovery, and warned that violating banks can be fined. He further stated that Internet banking should not be turned on without user request, and that banks should focus on spreading awareness among consumers. In fact, due to lack of public awareness, complaints related to the Internet and digital payments have increased by an incredible one thousand percent.