Numerous entrepreneurs are the target of transfer fraud at the National Bank, including six others who have made contact The newspaper denouncing the situation, feeling ignored by their financial institution. The bank states that it is responsible for their misfortune but that they will receive compensation shortly.
• Also read: Dozens of National Bank customers were defrauded by hackers
“The bank made no attempt to get my money back,” complains Marie-Claude Normand from Les Constructions Richard. On September 7th she was robbed of $100,000.
On the morning of September 8th, she realized it immediately. The fraudsters had added a new beneficiary to his company’s bank account.
She had the name of the institution, the account number and the transit where the stolen money was located.
“I told them to get the money and call Scotia [où se trouvait l’argent]. Nothing has happened. I received the news on October 5 when I lodged a complaint with the banking ombudsman,” she protests.
But the worst part of the whole thing, says Constructions president Richard, is that “the bank is accusing us of clicking on a link and acting as if it was our fault”.
“They told me to clean my computer because I must have clicked on a link. I didn’t click on anything, hackers emptied my account,” the lady adds.
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Fear in the stomach
His story is in every way similar to that of the five other entrepreneurs Le Journal spoke to on Monday. Their stories complement those of the three entrepreneurs who testified on our pages on Friday.
Without exception, everyone felt blamed by the bank.
The owner of an auto body shop on Montreal’s south shore, who was also a victim of the scheme – $101,000 was stolen from her – even took extreme measures.
She paid $6,000 to a specialized firm to have her company’s computers and network audited. “They found nothing,” she assures us.
In Mascouche, Eve Blanchette reacted quickly when she noticed at 6:15 a.m. on the morning of October 9th that new recipients had been added to her company account during the night.
With fear in her stomach, she called the bank without hesitating for a second. “I was told to call back at 7 a.m. because the service wasn’t open,” says the owner of Distribution Fort-Mag.
When she finally got the line, no transfer had been made. Despite his warning, the bank failed to act and the theft occurred later on October 9th.
“They told me at 7:30 a.m. that they were freezing my account. This is not true because the transfers were made afterwards. And they tell me it’s my fault? Come on…” says the entrepreneur indignantly.
The customers’ fault
The National Bank broke its silence on Monday and defended itself by pointing out that “a few dozen customers had fallen into the trap” of fraudsters.
“In all the cases we are talking about here, people gave fraudsters access to their business accounts,” says André Boucher, head of information security at the National Bank.
With “very sophisticated methods,” adds her colleague and Vice President Geneviève Turbide-Potvin, who is responsible for all business accounts at the National Bank.
This can be done by giving them their password or two-factor authentication when they answer a call or click on an online link, Mr. Boucher adds, adding that “scammers are constantly refining their methodology.”
The Vice President of Economic Affairs also indicates that the bank has adopted measures available to customers to be able to support them during the investigation: “liquidity, margins and other elements”.
“The majority of victims have already received 100 percent compensation. We hope that in a few days this will be the case for all victims,” says Ms. Turbide-Potvin.
Finally, she says she is “very proud that the bank has already recovered the majority of the defrauded amounts and the majority of customers have already been reimbursed.”
Six testimonials
Some entrepreneurs want to remain anonymous to protect their reputation. Others fear that the bank will make them pay for public speaking. Here are six cases of entrepreneurs being defrauded.
Surname: Anonymous
Business: numbered real estate development company in Sherbrooke
Date of fraud: 13.september
Amount stolen: $12,900 (two transfers)
Police complaint: yes, to the RCMP
Quote: “This story made my breakthrough right from the start. My money was sent to a TD in Toronto. If I know that, imagine what they know at the National.”
Surname: Eva Blanchette
Business: Distribution Fort-Mag
Date of fraud: 9th October
Amount stolen: $39,000 (in 4 transfers)
Police complaint: Yes, Mascouche City Police Department
Quote: “Even if I try to call her, it’s no use. I noticed the scam at 6:15am. Their business service opens at 7am. That’s not serious.”
Surname: Anonymous
Business: Doctor, self-employed
Date of fraud: 5th October
Amount stolen: $0 (22 transfers, all canceled)
Police complaint: NO
Quote: “I’m lucky. But I thought I was the only one and now I see that there are dozens of us, maybe even more. I no longer have faith in the National.”
Surname: Anonymous
Business: a body shop
Date of fraud: August 31st
Amount stolen: $101,000 (two transfers)
Police complaint: Yes, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Police Department
Quote: “We have been in nowhere since September 1st. They say we clicked on something. It’s not that.”
Surname: Anonymous
Business: Pharmacist, self-employed
Date of fraud: September 18th
Amount stolen: $10,000 (three transfers)
Police complaint: yes, SPVM
Quote: “I feel like I’m in a madhouse. I haven’t received any news in a month.”
Surname: Marie-Claude Normand
Business: Richard Constructions
Date of fraud: 7th of September
Amount stolen: $98,079 (two transfers)
Police complaint: Yes, Repentigny police station
Quote: “They had transit, they just had to freeze the money. I notified them within five minutes. You ignored me for a month.”
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