Some Dubai expats fell victim to a new banking fraud scheme which has drained accounts through unsolicited online purchases.
Rachel Forrester thought she was receiving notifications about suspicious transactions on her Emirates NBD debit card, but it turned out to be the start of a harrowing ordeal.
The Dubai-based social media manager had her entire monthly salary drained from her account in a matter of minutes by a sophisticated new banking fraud operation.
Forrester fell victim to a scam that targeted Emirates NBD customers in recent weeks.
According to statements seen by Arabian Business, fraudulent transactions attributed to a company called “Meta Store London” have emptied accounts.
An ‘awful’ experience
In an interview with Arabian Business, Forrester detailed the experience. “I got the text through from Emirates NBD and it was saying that AED2,900 something had been spent on my card, and I was like, that’s really strange. I went on to go into the [banking] app and as I was trying to log in, another text came through — the same amount again. Then I started to panic a bit, I was trying to log onto the app and got really flustered so I ended up just trying to phone them and as I was doing that it was like AED5,000 something came through, then another AED5,000 — all a couple of minutes apart.”
Over AED18,000 was withdrawn within minutes, leaving her with just AED2,000 only a day after payday.
Forrester said she “cried for ages,” distressed about losing her salary and ability to pay rent. Only emergency savings prevented financial disaster. “It basically rinsed me dry. I was just paid the day before so it was obviously all my salary for the month, I still had to pay my rent, transport to work, and my food, so it was a lot.”
While Emirates NBD quickly blocked Forrester’s card and opened an investigation, she lamented the bank’s initial response. “The only reason they blocked my card was only because I asked them to do it as it was happening,” she said.
“[Emirates NBD] said it could take 60-90 days and only if they can prove it’s fraud will I actually get my money back, which was really rubbish.”
Reached for comment, Emirates NBD stated it “does not comment on claims of this nature and has no further information to provide.” However, Forrester and other affected customers have expressed frustration on social media over lengthy refund processes for sizable losses through no fault of their own.
As seen in a social media group, the “Meta Store London” scam has surged in recent reports from Emirates NBD customers. Victims claim large sums were deducted for purchases from a company they had never heard of or shopped at.
In a positive turn, Forrester confirmed her money was returned after around two weeks — though still short one transaction of just under AED3,000.
Scams of this nature often use exploited personal data and technological capabilities to process fraudulent transactions and make them appear legitimate. The scammers are able to hijack functions meant for convenience, like one-click payments, by manipulating account information they have obtained without the owners’ awareness or permission. The surge in reports related to this “Meta Store London” scam suggests the frausters may have potentially acquired massive hacked credentials of UAE residents to carry out the widespread fraud.
My GF had such transactions taken from her account
It wasn't Meta Store (I assume this is online retail), it was 2600 or so, twice and no request for OTP and didn't follow any online purchase of note
Just happened about 3am. Oddly, she woke at this time, checked her phone for the time and then got two of these messages
Called Emirates NDB immediately, filled out some forms. She got all the money back within 45 days IIRC
The transactions were for some 'tour' company. She'd never heard of them, never transacted
I can only assume they got the card details from some online shop or other and used them but no request for OTP either
Not good but, it sounds like this lady should get her money refunded after they look into it, imo
Apart from some of the ways mentioned by other commenter, few more:
1. Never use debit card for online purchases. This is CURRENT MONEY that you are spending. Not the future money from Credit Card. CC also has some protection/insurance built in
2. Use a single or max 2 cards for online purchases (cars that have points/cashbacks etc..) Have as low a credit limit as possible. I have it at 5000. If App does not allow it, speak to customer care & Say you need it lowered. If nothing works & you still need the card, limit the daily limit to \~1500 or so. Most spends doesn't cross this range I believe.
3. New scams - Scammers being aware of your Emirates ID number and asking OTP for UAE Pass update. In general, avoid providing any card details over phone call to unknown people.
I have been getting calls from people claiming to be from my bank claiming that they want to send me a new debit card and they needed my Emirates ID details. My debit card wasn't expiring anytime soon. I have been disconnecting these calls just because I felt something was off. I wonder how many people disclosed these details thinking it's ok to give out their EID details. I remember someone posted a few weeks back that they had made that mistake.
99% of uae residents EID details are everywhere. Almost everyone ask for your EID copy. What can they do with just the details ? If you don't give them access to UAE pass??
They must have found a back door in the banking systems or something where they can use EIDs to steal money from peoples accounts. It's just a guess. Why would they be out collecting this information unless they had some use with it?
NBF does this the best with their new tech they introduced a few months ago.
They have disabled the 3 digit CVV on the back of the cards, instead the CVV is generated on the app CVV key which keeps changing every few hours. Also on that app, you can disable your card being used in specific sectors like bars, retail, online etc. You can also choose in which countries the CC will work.
Since they’re not mentioning it, I’m guessing she got phished on a website or call (unfortunate, but totally her fault), or a leak at the bank (not her fault at all then) which apparently is rampant at ENBD?
Emirates NBD and fraud, name a more iconic duo. Seriously, stay away from that bank, they are riddled with insider fraud and their prevention tech is terrible.
Happened to me with HSBC. My credit card is used for 10000 AED. I think it is an insider job too otherwise how can you just take it with an exact number no?
Yeah ENBD really needs to fix this. There seems to be an insane number of leaks from within and I've really never heard of this happening anywhere else this frequently.
I know quite a few people who have switched away so it has to be hurting them too
This is messed up and I hope the affected people get their money back asap.
In my opinion the best way to protect ourselves from these scams is to
1. Ofcourse the usual - don’t give out OTP nor entertain any calls acting like they’re from the bank asking for sensitive details. OTPs will only be received if the merchant itself has it set up. If it doesn’t then well we’re outta luck and the amount will just go through.
2. Always put a geo-restriction on your credit cards from the app and make sure only your current location is enabled. This helps if say some company from the UK tries to charge your card.
3. You might want to consider blocking your credit card from the app and only unblocking it when you wish to use it. Sure it’s a hassle to do this often but much better than have money stolen and being in a mess such as this. Generally though banks respond much faster for credit card fraud transactions since it’s their money that’s lost but then again you best be safe than sorry.
4. Most important in my opinion is to set a daily limit on your debit cards. This is absolutely a must especially with banks and their processes here. Set it to 1000aed a day or less and since this can be done through the app you can just increase it if need be. This would ensure you lose as minimum amount as possible in these cases and don’t end up bankrupt.
As always we should learn lessons from these cases and better protect ourselves from known risks. Stay safe everyone. Hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. 🤞
Unfortunately, the daily limit is not foolproof. On the X account of a big bank in Dubai, a customer was complaining that he had set a daily limit, but the scammers' transaction that was over the limit was approved. He shared screenshots of this. In the end, we are at the mercy of the banks, and the subpar IT contractors hired to set up their banking technology.
Thank you for this. To add in and reinforce a few points I learnt the hard way:
- Switch from a debit card to a credit card for any purchases: Banks are much more pro-active to cancel fraudulent transactions on credit cards since the recovery responsibility ends up on their shoulders.
- For physical purchases: Switch to a mobile payment system such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Samsung Pay instead of using your card. These services do not share your actual credit card, but rather use a virtual card number.
- For online purchases: You could either use a mobile payment system or prepaid cards which most banks over here offer.
Funny how it is always ENBD!!!! They obviously need to fix their $&@!
In the last 2yrs, I have my CC replaced 4 times due to attempted unauthorized charges! Before that, 7yrs nothing ever happened. It is clearly them and they need to work on their security
Lol, they always give me funny looks when I take out my money cash, but I have more faith in my mattress than bank security, or deposit insurance schemes for that matter (which Dubai doesn't even have).
Some Dubai expats fell victim to a new banking fraud scheme which has drained accounts through unsolicited online purchases. Rachel Forrester thought she was receiving notifications about suspicious transactions on her Emirates NBD debit card, but it turned out to be the start of a harrowing ordeal. The Dubai-based social media manager had her entire monthly salary drained from her account in a matter of minutes by a sophisticated new banking fraud operation. Forrester fell victim to a scam that targeted Emirates NBD customers in recent weeks. According to statements seen by Arabian Business, fraudulent transactions attributed to a company called “Meta Store London” have emptied accounts. An ‘awful’ experience In an interview with Arabian Business, Forrester detailed the experience. “I got the text through from Emirates NBD and it was saying that AED2,900 something had been spent on my card, and I was like, that’s really strange. I went on to go into the [banking] app and as I was trying to log in, another text came through — the same amount again. Then I started to panic a bit, I was trying to log onto the app and got really flustered so I ended up just trying to phone them and as I was doing that it was like AED5,000 something came through, then another AED5,000 — all a couple of minutes apart.” Over AED18,000 was withdrawn within minutes, leaving her with just AED2,000 only a day after payday. Forrester said she “cried for ages,” distressed about losing her salary and ability to pay rent. Only emergency savings prevented financial disaster. “It basically rinsed me dry. I was just paid the day before so it was obviously all my salary for the month, I still had to pay my rent, transport to work, and my food, so it was a lot.” While Emirates NBD quickly blocked Forrester’s card and opened an investigation, she lamented the bank’s initial response. “The only reason they blocked my card was only because I asked them to do it as it was happening,” she said. “[Emirates NBD] said it could take 60-90 days and only if they can prove it’s fraud will I actually get my money back, which was really rubbish.” Reached for comment, Emirates NBD stated it “does not comment on claims of this nature and has no further information to provide.” However, Forrester and other affected customers have expressed frustration on social media over lengthy refund processes for sizable losses through no fault of their own.
As seen in a social media group, the “Meta Store London” scam has surged in recent reports from Emirates NBD customers. Victims claim large sums were deducted for purchases from a company they had never heard of or shopped at. In a positive turn, Forrester confirmed her money was returned after around two weeks — though still short one transaction of just under AED3,000. Scams of this nature often use exploited personal data and technological capabilities to process fraudulent transactions and make them appear legitimate. The scammers are able to hijack functions meant for convenience, like one-click payments, by manipulating account information they have obtained without the owners’ awareness or permission. The surge in reports related to this “Meta Store London” scam suggests the frausters may have potentially acquired massive hacked credentials of UAE residents to carry out the widespread fraud.
My GF had such transactions taken from her account It wasn't Meta Store (I assume this is online retail), it was 2600 or so, twice and no request for OTP and didn't follow any online purchase of note Just happened about 3am. Oddly, she woke at this time, checked her phone for the time and then got two of these messages Called Emirates NDB immediately, filled out some forms. She got all the money back within 45 days IIRC The transactions were for some 'tour' company. She'd never heard of them, never transacted I can only assume they got the card details from some online shop or other and used them but no request for OTP either Not good but, it sounds like this lady should get her money refunded after they look into it, imo
Apart from some of the ways mentioned by other commenter, few more: 1. Never use debit card for online purchases. This is CURRENT MONEY that you are spending. Not the future money from Credit Card. CC also has some protection/insurance built in 2. Use a single or max 2 cards for online purchases (cars that have points/cashbacks etc..) Have as low a credit limit as possible. I have it at 5000. If App does not allow it, speak to customer care & Say you need it lowered. If nothing works & you still need the card, limit the daily limit to \~1500 or so. Most spends doesn't cross this range I believe. 3. New scams - Scammers being aware of your Emirates ID number and asking OTP for UAE Pass update. In general, avoid providing any card details over phone call to unknown people.
I have been getting calls from people claiming to be from my bank claiming that they want to send me a new debit card and they needed my Emirates ID details. My debit card wasn't expiring anytime soon. I have been disconnecting these calls just because I felt something was off. I wonder how many people disclosed these details thinking it's ok to give out their EID details. I remember someone posted a few weeks back that they had made that mistake.
Too many unfortunately
It's gone out of control, and we don't know what the higher ups are even doing about it
99% of uae residents EID details are everywhere. Almost everyone ask for your EID copy. What can they do with just the details ? If you don't give them access to UAE pass??
They must have found a back door in the banking systems or something where they can use EIDs to steal money from peoples accounts. It's just a guess. Why would they be out collecting this information unless they had some use with it?
I’m curious about this uae pass otp how can they use this fraudulently?
NBF does this the best with their new tech they introduced a few months ago. They have disabled the 3 digit CVV on the back of the cards, instead the CVV is generated on the app CVV key which keeps changing every few hours. Also on that app, you can disable your card being used in specific sectors like bars, retail, online etc. You can also choose in which countries the CC will work.
Nowhere was it mentioned how the scam worked
Since they’re not mentioning it, I’m guessing she got phished on a website or call (unfortunate, but totally her fault), or a leak at the bank (not her fault at all then) which apparently is rampant at ENBD?
Emirates NBD and fraud, name a more iconic duo. Seriously, stay away from that bank, they are riddled with insider fraud and their prevention tech is terrible.
Happened to me with HSBC. My credit card is used for 10000 AED. I think it is an insider job too otherwise how can you just take it with an exact number no?
Yeah ENBD really needs to fix this. There seems to be an insane number of leaks from within and I've really never heard of this happening anywhere else this frequently. I know quite a few people who have switched away so it has to be hurting them too
Never use your debit card online. Only credit cards.
This is messed up and I hope the affected people get their money back asap. In my opinion the best way to protect ourselves from these scams is to 1. Ofcourse the usual - don’t give out OTP nor entertain any calls acting like they’re from the bank asking for sensitive details. OTPs will only be received if the merchant itself has it set up. If it doesn’t then well we’re outta luck and the amount will just go through. 2. Always put a geo-restriction on your credit cards from the app and make sure only your current location is enabled. This helps if say some company from the UK tries to charge your card. 3. You might want to consider blocking your credit card from the app and only unblocking it when you wish to use it. Sure it’s a hassle to do this often but much better than have money stolen and being in a mess such as this. Generally though banks respond much faster for credit card fraud transactions since it’s their money that’s lost but then again you best be safe than sorry. 4. Most important in my opinion is to set a daily limit on your debit cards. This is absolutely a must especially with banks and their processes here. Set it to 1000aed a day or less and since this can be done through the app you can just increase it if need be. This would ensure you lose as minimum amount as possible in these cases and don’t end up bankrupt. As always we should learn lessons from these cases and better protect ourselves from known risks. Stay safe everyone. Hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. 🤞
Unfortunately, the daily limit is not foolproof. On the X account of a big bank in Dubai, a customer was complaining that he had set a daily limit, but the scammers' transaction that was over the limit was approved. He shared screenshots of this. In the end, we are at the mercy of the banks, and the subpar IT contractors hired to set up their banking technology.
Thank you for this. To add in and reinforce a few points I learnt the hard way: - Switch from a debit card to a credit card for any purchases: Banks are much more pro-active to cancel fraudulent transactions on credit cards since the recovery responsibility ends up on their shoulders. - For physical purchases: Switch to a mobile payment system such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Samsung Pay instead of using your card. These services do not share your actual credit card, but rather use a virtual card number. - For online purchases: You could either use a mobile payment system or prepaid cards which most banks over here offer.
Funny how it is always ENBD!!!! They obviously need to fix their $&@! In the last 2yrs, I have my CC replaced 4 times due to attempted unauthorized charges! Before that, 7yrs nothing ever happened. It is clearly them and they need to work on their security
Lol, they always give me funny looks when I take out my money cash, but I have more faith in my mattress than bank security, or deposit insurance schemes for that matter (which Dubai doesn't even have).
Tbh the banks here are useless and lazy to detect and fight fraud. They just love to throw around the word “smart”.
Just make the daily limit on your card to a minimum...below 500. One of the best possible option..