Close shave

Financial scams related to banking and payment apps are quite common in Pakistan, but in recent years, these activities have seen an unprecedented rise. I, too, was quite close to becoming a victim of such a fraud. Recently, I received a call from an unknown number; the person on the other end began talking in an emotional voice. He said that he had sent me money by mistake. He added that it was his hard-earned money and that he’d appreciate it if I returned the amount.

What was strange was that the person asked for the one-time password (OTP) that I had received during the call through an SMS. This was an immediate red flag for me because the message clearly stated that I should not share my OTP with anyone. I hung up the call immediately and called my bank’s helpline, which informed me that had I shared my OTP with the caller, I would have been scammed. People should learn more about such scams. They should never share such sensitive information with anyone.

Ammar Muzaffar

Karachi