Vietnam Cà Mau police warn of new bank‑card chip‑swapping fraud

The Cà Mau provincial police in Vietnam have reported a new fraud technique that involves physically removing and swapping the chip on bank cards. Criminals pose as bank staff or transaction assistants, contacting cardholders by phone, text or in person and claiming to be checking, upgrading or replacing the chip. They exploit the opportunity to extract security data such as PIN, OTP and CVV/CVC, and may also install miniature data‑copying devices or hidden cameras on ATMs to skim card information.

Authorities advise the public not to hand over cards to strangers, never share PIN, OTP or CVV codes, and to conduct all banking transactions only at official bank branches or through personal use of ATMs. Cardholders should regularly monitor account balances, enable transaction alerts, lock any compromised cards immediately and report suspicious activity to their bank and the nearest police station.