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New allegations in Credit Suisse spying scandal: Swiss media

Fresh allegations over a major spying scandal that cost the head of Credit Suisse his job emerged on Sunday as Swiss media reported another alleged spying case.

Published: 24 October 2021 14:52 CEST

the front entrance of the headquarters of Swiss bank Credit Suisse in Zurich

Credit Suisse planned seven observations in recent years, according to Swiss financial watchdog FINMA. SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP

Credit Suisse chief executive Tidjane Thiam was forced to resign in February 2020 after revelations the bank had hired investigators to follow Iqbal Khan, head of international wealth management, because he had opted to move to arch-rival UBS.

It also emerged that Credit Suisse had spied on the former head of human resources.

READ ALSO: Switzerland’s Credit Suisse settles with star banker over spying scandal

On Sunday, Le Matin Dimanche and the SonntagsZeitung reported that the bank had also planned to have the ex-husband of Thiam’s partner followed.

Citing unnamed sources, the newspapers said it was not clear whether this actually happened, but added it was highly probable that Thiam knew about the plans.

Contacted by AFP, Credit Suisse said it did not comment “on specific FINMA enforcement matters nor on any speculation related to third parties, former or current employees.”

FINMA is Switzerland’s financial watchdog.

The fresh allegations come after FINMA announced this week that its probe “revealed that in the period between 2016 and 2019 Credit Suisse planned seven observations, most of which were carried out”.

“In two cases, members of the executive board were observed in Switzerland and, in addition, other former employees and third parties abroad.”

In its probe conclusions, FINMA identified “serious breaches of supervisory law”.

READ ALSO: Probe unearths second spying case at Credit Suisse

This week, the regulator imposed punitive measures on the bank, reprimanded two individuals, and opened enforcement proceedings against three others.

The scandal sent shockwaves through banking circles. According to reports, the surveillance also targeted the environmental organisation Greenpeace.

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How to avoid the 'police' phone scam in Switzerland

Switzerland’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has been monitoring the phenomenon of fake calls from alleged police authorities for nine months now.

But in the last three weeks, reports of this scam have almost tripled, the NCSC said, indicating just how widespread it is.

What is this about?

The scam begins with a call coming, allegedly, from police or another Swiss authority.

A voice, which the NCSC describes as ‘robotic’, informs the person who answers the call that their personal banking data is involved in criminal activities, or makes a similar alarming (but false) claim.

According to the NCSC, “it is not a person who calls, but a software The machine randomly tries Swiss phone numbers throughout the day. If the number is invalid, it simply moves on to the next one.”

“By using this software, the number of calls that can be made is virtually unlimited. It could go through practically all the phone numbers in Switzerland in a day,” the Centre adds.

After raising alarm about your bank account, the fake ‘policeman’ will urge you to “press 1” to be put in touch with a human being and obtain more information.

If you do this and, worse yet, divulge your personal data to the caller, you risk having your computer and credit card hacked.

What should you do (and not do) if you get this call?

The most obvious answer is to immediately hang up because, as the NCSC explains, “real police never play recorded phone messages. They also never ask for money or sensitive personal data over the phone.”

To that end, the Centre recommends that anyone receiving this call:

Should hang up as soon as you hear the recorded message
Not press 1, or any other numbers, during the telephone conversation
Not get drawn into a conversation.
Never grant access to your computer, not even via remote maintenance software.
Never reveal prepaid card activation codes.

A fake tax refund

While the ‘police scam’ is the latest attempt at extortion reported to the NCSC, it is far from a unique case.

Scores of them are reported to the authorities each year, including the one reported earlier in 2024.

It involved phishing emails about alleged tax refund entitlements.

However, the link in the email leads to a phishing page.

Here too, authorities advise to ignore these emails, not click on the link, and not enter any personal data on the phishing page.

READ ALSO : The common scams foreigners in Switzerland need to be aware of

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