Vietnam banks warn against storing ID and card images on smartphones

Vietnamese banks and law‑enforcement agencies have warned that photographing personal identification documents, passports or bank cards with a smartphone creates a high risk of fraud. Scammers posing as police or court officials use counterfeit apps such as a fake VNeID service to convince victims to upload images of both sides of bank cards together with verification codes. In one reported case, a woman from Thanh Hóa province lost VND 70 million after following such instructions. The warnings advise users never to keep sensitive photos on mobile devices, avoid sharing them on social platforms, and be wary of unsolicited calls, messages or QR‑code links that request personal or banking details. Additional safeguards include not providing CVV numbers, OTP codes, or passwords to anyone, using chip‑and‑pin for in‑store payments, disabling online card functions when not needed, and setting appropriate transaction limits.