Panellists at an anti-fraud forum have urged the public to exercise greater vigilance when conducting digital transactions, as fraudsters increasingly adopt sophisticated technologies and psychological manipulation to deceive their victims.
They explained that the changing nature of fraud means education, professional status or familiarity with technology does not necessarily protect individuals, as criminals increasingly exploit trust, emotions, digital footprints and moments of distraction rather than directly attacking financial institutions’ security systems.
The experts made the call during a Fraud Awareness Live Panel Discussion dubbed; “Inside the Scammers’ Playbook: The Exploits You’re Ignoring,” held in Accra.
It was organised by GCB Bank PLC as part of activities to commemorate Customer Service Month 2026.
The session brought together representatives of the banking industry, cybersecurity and law-enforcement agencies to educate customers on emerging fraud schemes and measures to protect themselves.
Cases
The Acting Deputy Director-General in charge of Operations at the Cyber Security Authority (CSA), Stephen Cudjoe-Seshie, said the authority had recorded over 4,800 cyber incidents as of September, with more than 2,400 involving fraud and losses exceeding GH¢16 million.
He said investment and online shopping scams accounted for nearly 77 per cent of fraud cases, while AI was enabling criminals to analyse people’s digital footprints and develop personalised attacks that appeared increasingly credible.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Association of Banks, John Awuah, said the increasing migration of banking transactions to digital platforms had effectively made customers their own bankers, requiring them to assume greater responsibility for transaction security.
He advised against using free public Wi-Fi for financial transactions and cautioned customers against unnecessarily exposing accounts containing substantial funds online.
He equally cautioned educated and technologically knowledgeable people against assuming that fraud awareness campaigns were intended only for vulnerable sections of society.
The Head of Cyber Operations at the National Signals Bureau, Bernard Mwinyoglee, said fraud had evolved into organised crime involving specialised teams responsible for harvesting information, sending bulk messages, operating call centres and moving stolen funds.
He advised the public to distrust urgency, independently obtain official contact details and verify requests before acting.
The Chief Information Security Officer of GCB Bank PLC, Iliaso Zango, said fraudsters frequently exploited distraction, greed and kindness rather than weaknesses in banking systems.
He urged customers who disclosed an OTP or password to immediately contact their bank, block affected cards and change compromised credentials from a trusted device.
He said GCB could disable digital access and attempt to recall transferred funds, stressing that the bank would never request customers’ PINs, passwords, OTPs or CVVs.
The Director of the Child Protection Digital Forensics Laboratory and Cybercrime Unit of the Ghana Police Service, Chief Superintendent Emmanuel Eric Gyebi, said people aged between 18 and 38 were increasingly becoming victims of online fraud, contrary to perceptions that older people were the principal targets.
The Chief Marketing Communications and Customer Experience Officer of GCB Bank PLC, Cynthia Ofori, said sustained customer education was essential to reducing financial scams, hence the bank’s decision to use Customer Service Month to deepen fraud awareness.
