Vishing is where a fraudster uses voice messages or phone calls to try to steal identities, and financial information like your PIN, card details and Digipass code.

The term comes from the combination of ‘phishing’ and ‘voice’. Phishing is where fraudsters use email, regular phone calls and fake websites to dupe people into giving them personal details and financial information.

Vishing is specifically the use of a VOIP service (Voice Over Internet Protocol, or an internet phone service), which enables fraudsters to communicate with their potential victims via automated voice messages and the phone keypad.

Vishers can create fake caller ID profiles so that their phone number seems legitimate, and vishing requests sound urgent, to panic the victim into acting without thinking.

 Examples of vishing:

• Your bank account has been compromised
  You receive call from what appears to be Triodos Bank’s phone number. When you answer, you hear a recording pretending to be from Triodos, saying that your bank account has been compromised, and you need to call a freephone number to reset your security details. Calling this number, you would hear another automated message asking for your bank account number, Digipass code or other personal details via the phone keypad.
• You’re eligible for a loan
  You are offered loan or credit terms too good to be true (they probably are), and to receive the money, you just need to pay an upfront fee or provide your security details.
• You’re due a refund
  You receive a message that says you are due a refund. This is usually someone claiming to be from a trusted organisation. If you opt in – usually by pressing a number on your telephone - you will be redirected to a call centre agent who will attempt to defraud you or steal your information.
• Don’t miss this investment opportunity
  An automated voice message tells you about an investment opportunity too good to turn down. You’ll be encouraged to transfer money to invest in a company or service that doesn’t exist.
• You’ve won a prize
  Victims hear an automated voice message about a free offer or prize, and just need to pay postage, redemption or admin fees to claim. There’s often a deadline to hurry people into handing over their card details.

What you can do

If you receive an unexpected phone call with an automated response, hang up, search for the company’s genuine contact details online and check whether the call was legitimate. If it was, the company will be able to help you, and if it was a vishing attempt, letting the company know enables them to take action, and you will have protected yourself from fraud.

If the call relates to an investment opportunity, check the FCA register to see if the investor is regulated, and confirm the company exists by checking Companies House.

How to report a vishing scam

If you think you have been a victim of a vishing attack, call us immediately on 0330 355 0355. Then report to the FCA using their reporting form.

If you have lost money to suspected investment fraud, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.

You have various options for contacting Triodos to ask questions or request information. One of which is a secure messaging service which is accessed by logging in to your Internet Banking. You can send us a secure message and you will also receive secure messages from Triodos from time to time. When we do send you a message you will receive an e mail advising you to log in to Internet Banking to read it. Secure messages are responded to within our Contact Team opening hours, if your request is urgent please call us on 0330 355 0355 or (+44) 117 973 9339 if you are not in the UK. Our opening hours are published on our help and support page. 

Bank impersonation fraud is when a fraudster impersonates someone from the bank in order to trick a victim into making payments to a fraudulent account.

What a fraudster might do:

• A fraudster usually calls their victim, though may use email or another contact method. It’s likely they already know information about the victim, including their name and who they bank with.
• While impersonating the bank staff member, the fraudster might tell the victim their account is under threat and they need to make payments to a “safe account” or set up payments in order to “block the funds”.
• The fraudster might ask for details from the Digipass so they can access the account and make payments to the fraudulent account themselves.
• The fraudster might ask the victim to download screen sharing software so they can view or control the victim’s computer. This can make it easier to take control of the account.
• In any scenario, the fraudster will foster a feeling of panic in order to get the victim to comply with their requests as quickly as possible.
• Fraudsters might also impersonate other well-known, trusted companies such as Microsoft, Apple, BT or HMRC.

What Triodos Bank will never do

• We’ll never call you to tell you to log into internet banking or to make a payment to a “safe account”. If we believe your account to be under threat, we can block the account ourselves and do not need you to do anything from your end.
• We’ll never ask you for your full Digipass number or your Digipass PIN.
• We’ll never ask you to download any software onto your PC or mobile phone.

What you can do to protect yourself

• Never give out your personal details to someone who has called you unexpectedly.
• Never download any software onto your PC or mobile phone when asked by someone over the phone or by email – even if you think you are speaking to a trusted organisation.
• Never give anyone your Digipass number or your Digipass PIN. Triodos will never ask for this information.
• Do not let someone else use your Digipass – even a colleague or family member. Your Digipass is assigned to you as an individual and must only be used by yourself. If you leave your place of work, please let us know and we can arrange for your Digipass to be cancelled.
• If you are unsure about someone who has called you claiming to be from the bank or another company, hang up and call back on the company’s published telephone number.

You will need to complete a Change of Account Operator form. Please select the correct form depending on whether you have a loan, current account or deposit account. The forms can be found below, or we can send a form to you if you don’t have access to a printer. We will change these details when we receive the completed form signed by the existing account operator(s).

There are several ways to log in depending on what type of account you have.

Start by going to our website www.triodos.co.uk and in the top right-hand corner you'll see a link for "Log in" to Internet Banking.

If you’re a Personal Savings or Investments customer, you will only need your username and password.

If you’re a Current Account customer you will need your digipass (the green pin pad), the PIN to your digipass (which you set yourself), and details regarding the security word you set up when applying for the account. We've produced a short online video to show you how to set up your digipass and activate your online banking. Watch the video on YouTube now. 

Alternatively, if you have access to the Triodos Mobile Banking App, you can log into Internet Banking using your QR code reader. You can find more information on how this works here.

Log in to Internet Banking and go back to old Internet Banking via the green ‘Go to old Internet Banking’ button. Select ‘Account Information’ and ‘Standing Orders’. Here you can edit the amount or cancel.

Watch our how-to video on amending or cancelling a standing order.

If you do not already have Internet Banking, you can apply for it by downloading the Internet Banking application form and returning it to us. Due to security, we require a signature from you in order to give you access to Internet Banking.

If the text is from a sender you know, or from a shortcode (five to eight digits long):

• Reply ‘STOP’. You shouldn’t be charged for this, and it will let the sender know you don’t want to receive their text messages.
• If you’re unhappy about receiving the text or continue to receive them after asking the sender to stop, you can complain to the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) on 0303 123 1113 or online.

If the spoof text message (sometimes known as smishing) is from an unknown sender, or from an organisation you’re not familiar with:

• Do not reply or click on a link in the text. Responding confirms your number is active and could result in you receiving more messages or calls.
• Report the spam text to your network operator. Simply forward the text to 7726. An easy way to remember ‘7726’ is that they’re the numbers on your phone keypad that spell out the word ‘SPAM’. You may get an automated response thanking you for the report and giving you further instructions if needed, like forwarding on the number the spam text message was sent from. You won’t be charged for forwarding spam texts to 7726.
  

Fraudsters try getting money from organisations by sending fake emails and texts to gain access to their internet banking details. It can be difficult to spot a fraudulent email, but there are things you can check for clues it’s a fraudulent email.

• Check the sender email address
  Always check the sender’s email address to make sure it’s from the person you think. Fraudsters can change the ‘From’ name so it can look like it’s come from your bank, or a person’s name. If you hover over the name, the sender’s email address should be displayed. If it’s a company email address, an online search of the email address will often tell you if it’s a genuine address.
• Call the sender
  If you get an unusual request from someone you know, asking you to transfer money or download something onto your computer, and the email address looks genuine, there’s a possibility their email account was hacked. To be safe, it’s best to call them to make sure they sent the email and really made the request.
• Look for spelling mistakes
  Scam emails can often look odd, with a messy layout and spelling mistakes.

Common email and text scams to look out for:

• CEO fraud
  Fraudsters email employees pretending to be the owner or CEO of the organisation, asking them to make a payment or transfer.
• Supplier fraud
  Fraudsters pretend to be your supplier letting you know their payment details have changed.
• Invoice fraud
  Fraudsters send fake invoices claiming to be from a real business you work with. Sometimes they hack the emails of your supplier to send the invoice, so the email address is genuine, but the payment details are changed to those owned by the fraudster. It’s sensible to call your suppliers on the number on their website to verify their payment details before you pay new account details for the first time.
• Pretending to be a business
  In these messages, texts or emails, you might be asked to click a link that takes you to a fake website – for example, the website might claim to be the Triodos Bank website (See ‘How to check that a website is genuine’). On this site you could be asked to give your internet banking details. We will never send you a link to the login pages of internet banking.
• Spyware in links
  Some scam emails ask you to download something onto your computer or network – this could be a link to a website or an attachment. This tool could spy on your computer or lock you out until you pay a ransom or reveal your bank security details.
• Smishing (fraudulent text messages)
  These are text messages that appear to be from well-known businesses, claiming you need to click the link to update your details. Often the links are disguised with short links – like bitly links, e.g. https://bit.ly/2kwosxu. Tempting as it is to use the link, contact the company using the details on their website to verify that they sent the text, and that it’s safe to click on the link. Fraudsters will impersonate these companies to obtain your valuable information.
  

We’re bringing Internet Banking up-to-date to be simpler and easier to use. More touch screen friendly. Easier access to your day-to-day banking needs.

Development is ongoing so you may have to go back to old Internet Banking for some features and services, we will always tell you when this will happen.

Watch our video on the new Internet Banking to see the improvements that we have made.

If you receive a call from Triodos, we’ll be happy for you to question who we are and call us back on the number published on our website, just to make sure. If you can, call us back from a different phone, as an extra safety precaution. Fraudsters can clone numbers, so it may look like the number we use to call you.

We will never call you to ask you to transfer money or for your Digipass codes, and we will never ask you to download software onto your device. If someone calls pretending to be from Triodos, and they ask you to do these things, hang up immediately and report it to us on 0330 355 0355.

Once you have applied for an account online, and it has been opened (or once you've applied for Internet Banking access for an existing account) we'll send your username by email.

For security reasons your unique password will be sent separately by post. With this information you can then log in and start using Triodos Internet Banking.

If you have opened a Triodos Current Account, you will not have a password and username. Instead, you can log into Internet Banking with the Triodos digipass or using the Triodos Mobile Banking App.

If you hold Savings accounts only with Triodos you will use a username and password to log into your Internet Banking. If we are unable to match the information you have entered on our username reminder request page with the information we hold on record you will need to contact us. We will be able to send a username reminder email to your registered email address. When calling us, please have your account number and security details at hand.

If we are unable to match the information you have entered on our password reset page with the information we hold on record you will need to call our Customer Contact Team on 0330 355 0355 or (+44) 117 973 9339 if you are not in the UK. We will be able to send a new password to you by post, this will be sent to your registered address. When calling us please have your account number and security details at hand.

If you are trying to log into Internet Banking for a Business account you do not need a username and password but will have a Digipass and PIN. 

Our friendly, Bristol-based Contact Team is here for you. Our opening hours are published on our help and support page. 

If you need a new digipass because the battery is low (when it displays 5%) please let us know and we will send you a replacement. You should receive this within 5 business days.

We will replace your digipass free of charge when the battery level is 5% or less. In our experience when it proactively displays “Low Battery” it will still have quite a long battery life left. You can find out the amount of battery left on your digipass by following these instructions:

If you have the older style navy blue digipass:

• Turn it on by pressing the red power button
• Press the letter “T” button five times until the display shows “TEST BATT?”
• Press the “=” sign

The display will tell you what percent of battery you have left.

If you have the green digipass:

• Turn it on by pressing the OK button on the lower right of the digipass
• Press the “>” button four times until you see “5. Info” on the screen
• Press OK
• Press the “>” button three times until it states “4. Battery level” on the screen
• Press OK

The display will tell you what percent of battery you have left.

You can make a faster payment or CHAPs payment through Internet Banking or the Triodos Mobile Banking App. You’ll need to authorise the payment with either your digipass, your username and password or the Triodos Mobile Banking App. You can find more information about how to authorise payments in Internet Banking using the Mobile App, here.

In Internet Banking, go to ‘Payments’ in the menu.

In the Triodos Mobile App go to ‘Payments’ or click on the account you wish to make the payment from to proceed.

Do not respond to any email that asks you for information about your internet banking log in details. If you have received a suspicious email, do not respond and call our Contact Team as soon as you can during our opening hours on 0330 355 0355 to check if it is a genuine email.

Our opening hours are published on our help and support page.

1.         Go to ‘Payments’ tab

2.         Select your account you would like to make a payment from

3.         Enter recipient’s details and amount

4.         To save payee click (+icon )

5.         Select payment type – click on [i] to check daily limits

6.         Press complete payment

7.         Follow on screen instructions to authorise payments

8.         Select payment you wish to authorise

9.         Click ‘Authorise and submit’

Watch our how-to video on making a payment with your digipass.

Watch our how-to video on setting up a new payee.

You will have access to the features tour within new Internet Banking. There is also more support available at www.triodos.co.uk/help/internet-banking.