The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has warned of scams in which fraudsters bind victims’ payment cards, including ATM cards, to contactless mobile payment services and then make unauthorized transactions. It shared the methods used with banks and reminded them to remain vigilant and strengthen customer education. Fraudsters impersonate merchants or other organizations through phishing messages, fraudulent websites or phone calls, using pretexts such as compensation offers to obtain card details and ATM personal identification numbers. They then induce victims to approve card binding requests through mobile banking applications or two-way SMS messages. Customers should reject requests they did not initiate, avoid links from unknown sources, never disclose card or authentication credentials, and contact their bank and the police if they suspect fraud.
2026-09-04Hong Kong Monetary Authority
Hong Kong Monetary Authority warns of scams involving unauthorized payment card binding
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has warned of scams that bind victims’ payment cards to contactless mobile payment services, enabling unauthorized transactions. Customers should reject binding requests they did not initiate, never disclose card or authentication credentials, and contact their bank and the police if they suspect fraud.