Monzo has launched a new in-app feature called ‘status call’ to help customers identify whether they are receiving a call from authentic bank staff or a potential fraudster attempting to impersonate the bank.
Impersonation fraud, in which scammers pose as representatives from trusted organizations like banks to trick individuals into transferring money, resulted in 45,367 cases of financial fraud in the UK in 2022, leading to losses amounting to £177.6 million.
For instance, in May, a Santander Bank customer fell victim to a scam and lost £60,000 after transferring funds to someone impersonating the bank’s head of fraud, Chris Ainsley.
To combat such threats, Monzo’s new feature lets users check their ‘call status’ within the app, indicating whether a member of the bank’s team is currently engaged in communication with them. Priyesh Patel, lead for the financial crime and security team at Monzo, advises, “If the ‘Monzo call status’ shows that no one from our team is speaking to you, hang up immediately and report the incident to us.”
Customers utilizing this feature will see an orange icon with a crossed-out phone and a message stating: “We’re not talking to you; if someone claims to be from Monzo, hang up now.” In cases where users lack an internet connection, a grey icon with a crossed-out phone will display a warning: “No internet, don’t answer. It’s safer not to answer calls from anyone claiming to be from Monzo right now.”
Monzo emphasizes that it will never initiate a call to customers without prior arrangement through the in-app chat.