HDFC Account Suspension Spam Messages on the Rise, Is HDFC Data Breach the Reason?

An HDFC data breach has allegedly exposed personal details of several customers who claim that they have been receiving messages threatening them of their HDFC net banking account suspension. While the HDFC Data Breach issue has been defined by the bank, consumers have been taking to Twitter to complain about the increase in spam messages. 

The spam message reads: “HDFC customer your HDFC net banking will be suspended today please update your PAN Card now visit below the link”. This message is being sent from private numbers as opposed to AX HDFC or other known HDFC services. 

While the company has been responding to customers on steering clear of clicking on the links, consumers continue  to receive the messages. "Hi, we request you not to respond to unknown numbers asking for Pan Card / KYC update or any other banking information. HDFC Bank will always send messages from their official ID hdfcbk / hdfcbn and links in these messages will always be under http://hdfcbk.io. domain. Remember, bank will never ask for PAN details, OTP, UPI, VPA / MPIN, Customer ID & Password, Card No, ATM PIN & CVV. Please do not share your confidential details with anyone,” says HDFC bank on the spam messages.

The bank has also assured that action would be taken on the same in consultation with law enforcement agencies.

Is HDFC Data Breach the Reason for the Rise in Spam Messages?

Multiple reports have suggested that HDFC data breach has exposed the details of millions of customers of the bank. A hacker has allegedly posted samples of the customer data obtained through the HDFC data breach. However, the HDFC data breach issue has been denied by the bank. 

“We wish to state that there is no data leak at HDFC Bank and our systems have not been breached or accessed in any unauthorised manner. We remain confident of our systems. However we treat the matter of our customers data security with utmost seriousness and we continue to monitor bank systems and our ecosystems to ensure highest standards of data security and safety,” says the official statement from the bank,” says an official statement from the bank. It is also possible that this data may have been leaked by third party vendors. 

How Can Customers Identify Spam Messages?

While the HDFC data breach may not have occurred, consumers continue to receive spam messages. That said, the following few pointers that indicate that the messages are actually from scammers:

• The grammar of the messages are usually bad with little or no punctuations.
• The messages take a threatening tone, and aim at panicking the consumers into sharing information.
• Messages are sent from private numbers as opposed AX HDFC.

“Protect yourself from fraudsters! Always check that messages from HDFC Bank come from the official ID HDFCBK/HDFCBN & links start with http://hdfcbk.io. Do not click on links or respond to unknown numbers requesting PAN/KYC updates or other banking info,” says HDFC bank on the issue.