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How To Block Facebook Ads + Pay Scammers!

Facebook Ads + Pay Scam Hits Many Bank Customers!

Many bank customers are complaining that they are being charged for fraudulent Facebook Ads advertisement campaigns!

They discovered that their debit cards were charged for Facebook advertisements that they never approved. Some have also stated that their credit or debit cards were used to purchase goods and services using Facebook Pay.

Stephanie Wong : I found out the money deducted from my bank acc through multiple continuous transactions yesterday, then I called Maybank customer service immediately. They helped me to cancel the card but then the thing happened again this morning.

@ruffleseed : I heard tens of millions of Ringgit were reported misappropriated through @facebook
on multiple bank over the past few weeks.

Delete your phone number from Facebook now and do not let @messenger handle your SMS. @MyMaybank has yet to answer us re: this intrusion.

@ItsNeoah : Banyak kali kena kat credit card ambank. Alhamdulilah call ambank dia mintak isi dispute form then tgok next cycle bil dah takde. Letih ngan scammer ni.

Translation : [My] Ambank credit card got hit many times. Alhamdulillah, after calling Ambank, they asked me to fill out a dispute form, then when I checked the next bill cycle [the charges] was removed. Tired of this scammer.

[/su_note]

How To Block Facebook Ads + Pay Scammers!

Here are some ways to prevent getting hit by the Facebook Ads scam, whether you are a bank customer in Malaysia or other countries.

Do NOT Use Debit Cards

First, you should NEVER use a debit card if you can help it. You should certainly not use a debit card online, or register it on any online or mobile payment platform, whether it’s for Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Facebook Pay.

It doesn’t matter if Bill Gates or Elon Musk or BTS endorses debit cards. DO NOT USE DEBIT CARDS!

You should certainly never use your debit card to fund Facebook advertisements. Always use a credit card, which offers you some protection against such fraudulent transactions.

Disable Your ATM Card’s Debit Card Function

Even if you have never requested for a debit card, you likely already own one – your ATM card likely doubles as a debit card! Banks have been forcing customers to take on debit cards, often by making ATM cards double as debit cards.

If possible, ask your bank to disable debit card function in your ATM card. But it is likely that they will refuse to do so – they make money from debit card transactions after all!

If your bank refuses to disable the debit card function in your ATM card, you can ask them to set the limit to ZERO. That will effectively block scammers from accessing your bank account!

Monitor Your Credit Card Transactions

Using a credit card to purchase products and services on online and mobile payment platforms offers you some protection against fraud, but you must always monitor the transactions and report any fraudulent transactions right away.

Depending on the country and card network, you usually have about 60 days to dispute credit card charges. So don’t wait. Report them as soon as you spot them! This will reduce the loss and reports you make, and speeds up the refund process.

Remove Your Credit Cards ASAP

If you register your credit cards for use with Facebook Ads or Facebook Pay, try to REMOVE them as soon as you are done.

Do NOT leave them registered to your Facebook Ads or Facebook Pay account, as a scammer or hacker who gains access to your Facebook account can make fraudulent purchases or run fraudulent advertisements using those credit cards without additional verification.

That appears to be the modus operandi of the Facebook Ads scam that has affected so many Maybank customers in recent weeks.

But if you have never registered your credit or debit cards with Facebook, or removed them after using, even if scammers hacked into your Facebook account or gained access through phishing attacks, they won’t be able to use your credit or debit cards!

Enable PIN For Facebook Pay

If you are using Facebook Pay, a scammer who gains access to your Facebook account could potentially use the debit or credit cards you registered earlier to make fraudulent transactions.

To prevent that, you should enable PIN confirmation for Facebook Pay:

Go to Settings in the Facebook website (not app).
Go to Account Settings, and select Orders and payments.
In the Orders and payments page, select Settings.
In the Security section, select Require PIN Confirmation.
You will be asked to enter a 4-digit number as your PIN.
Key in the 4-digit number again to confirm your PIN.

After that, you will be required to key in the 4-digit PIN whenever you make a payment, or change your bank account details, or connect your payment info with other Meta apps.

Turn On Two-Factor Authentication

To make it harder for scammers / hackers to gain access to your Facebook account, turn on two-factor authentication:

Go to your Security and Login Settings.
Scroll down to Use two-factor authentication and click Edit.
Choose the security method you want to add and follow the on-screen instructions.

When you set up two-factor authentication on Facebook, you’ll be asked to choose one of three security methods:

Tapping your security key on a compatible device.
Login codes from a third party authentication app.
Text message (SMS) codes from your mobile phone.

Once you’ve turned on two-factor authentication, you can get 10 recovery login codes to use when you’re unable to use your phone.

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Maybank FB Ads Scam : How To Recover Your Money?!

Facebook Ads Scam Hits Many Maybank Customers!

Many Maybank customers are complaining that they are being charged for fraudulent Facebook Ads advertisement campaigns!

They discovered that their debit cards were charged for Facebook advertisements that they never approved.

Stephanie Wong : I think i am a very cautious person as I did not link my card to any platform or make purchase through any unsafe website at ALL, but it still happens to me.

I found out the money deducted from my bank acc through multiple continuous transactions yesterday, then I called Maybank customer service immediately.

They helped me to cancel the card but then the thing happened again this morning.

@ruffleseed : I heard tens of millions of Ringgit were reported misappropriated through @facebook
on multiple bank over the past few weeks.

Delete your phone number from Facebook now and do not let @messenger handle your SMS.

@MyMaybank has yet to answer us re: this intrusion.

Maybank FB Ads Scam : How To Recover Money?!

Generally, you should NEVER use a debit card because it does not offer the protection a credit card does – money is withdrawn directly from your bank account, and the bank is not legally obliged to refund any money lost through scams.

However, Hafizah Ayko who was once a victim shared her experience on how she managed to recover money, even though the scammers used her debit card to run those fake Facebook advertisements.

To help you recover any money you may have lost to Facebook Ads scammers, I translated and “improved” her instructions for you:

Disable Your Debit / Credit Card

First, you need to quickly disable your debit or credit card. You can call up the bank, or in Maybank’s case:

Step 1 : Log into your Maybank2U account.

Step 2 : Go to Cards, and select Manage My Debit Card.

Step 3 : Select Debit Card – Replace, Renew, Activate & Block.

Step 4 : Select Block Debit Card. You will need to get a replacement card from any Maybank branch later.

If you feel that the above steps are too complicated, an alternative method would be to immediately transfer your money to another bank account, if you have one.

But please DO NOT transfer your money to another person’s account. Only transfer your money to another bank account that you own.

NEVER EVER transfer your money to a third party, especially they claim to be police officers or bank officers trying to help you. That is a scam!

Police departments and banks do NOT have special bank accounts to hold and protect your money during scams. And legitimate police and bank officers are NOT authorised to receive money, and will NEVER ask you to transfer money to their bank accounts.

Disable Facebook Ads

Next, you need to immediately disable all advertisements that the scammer has set up using your Facebook account. The longer they continue to run, the more you are being charged for them!

Step 1 : Go to your Facebook account, and select See all.

Step 2 : Select Ads Manager.

Step 3 : You should see a bunch of fraudulent advertisements running. Turn all of them off.

Ask Facebook For Refund

After turning off the fraudulent advertisements, you need to report them, and ask Facebook for a refund.

Step 1 : Go to Ad account settings, and select Report a problem at the lower right corner.

Step 2 : Select Ad Policy or Fraud. Then select Fraudulent Activity.

Step 3 : Explain your situation the best you can, and upload any screenshots you have, and send the report.

After that, Facebook should respond that they would issue a refund for the fraudulent transactions in 3-5 business days!

Alternatively, you can submit report unauthorised or unknown charges to Facebook using this online form.

Ask Your Bank For A Refund

You should also report the fraudulent transactions to your bank and request for a refund. This works for credit cards, but you should nevertheless give it a try even if the scammers hit your debit card.

Step 1 : Download the Maybank Dispute Form.

Step 2 : Print or directly fill in the information into the PDF form.

Step 3 : Email the form to disputemgmt@maybank.com.my, together with any relevant screenshots, within 20 days from the closing date of the billing period.

Again, banks are not obliged to refund fraudulent charges to debit cards, as the money is withdrawn directly from your bank account. But there is no harm trying.