Messages that promise rewards but demand you to urgently reply with private details in order to redeem said rewards are often a scam, says Fraud, Security and Crime Investigation Specialist, Ransford Nana Addo Junior.

He said messages of the sort are one of the sophisticated tactics used by scammers to access private information and account details of unsuspecting victims for their nefarious activities.

Describing messages that demand urgent action as a red flag, he said they are meant to play on the intelligence and emotions of victims in order to extract information the victims would otherwise not give out willingly.

Often, these messages, he said, play on the greed of individuals.

Speaking on JoyNews’ The Law, he said, “Typically, if this is one of those scams that they would impress on you, they will tell you that this offer expires. So a lottery that you have won, you have less than 24 hours to redeem because the scammer plays on your intelligence and your ability to trust them and not to think.

“When you talk to somebody, it reduces the opportunities that the scammer has, so they’ll usually put timelines to their messages for you to believe in them. So if it is a bank, they’re telling you that ‘hey from your bank your card has been compromised. Enter the details of your card on this link we have shared with you other than that your whole account will be blocked and you’ll have to reopen account all over again.’

“Your full card number, your date of birth, your expiry date, and these are the things that are used for shopping online. So immediately they put that sense of urgency on you, you have no other option, and if you believe them you need to part with that information that will be used in defrauding you.”