Keep your digital safety
The digital era
Digitalization has pervaded nearly all aspects of our lives – we use e-mails and social networks for everyday communication, we use online banking services and we shop online. We are making use of the numerous benefits offered by modern technologies, but it is also important to identify and protect ourselves from possible abuse.
Internet safety is being constantly improved and enhanced, but there are also numerous steps you can take to protect yourself.
Protect your personal data
By protecting your personal data, you are protecting yourself from possible abuse.
- Familiarize yourself with information about personal data processing.
- Study the privacy policy before you provide any personal data on the internet or social networks; make sure you know what you are consenting to.
- Limit the information you publish on the social networks.
Learn more about personal data protection at https://azop.hr/naslovna-english/
Prevent identity theft
Identity theft can be done by e-mail (phishing), phone call (vishing) or SMS (smishing). These are the most common forms of attacks via social engineering – con artists will try to convince you to share your personal, financial or safety information.
- Be careful with messages from the bank – if you find them suspicious, report them to the bank.
- Do not reply to e-mails requesting you to provide personal data and payment card data.
- Do not open any attachments or links in suspicious e-mails (links that want to take you to a fake website or fake e-mail address in order to collect personal and financial data).
Learn more about how to recognize and protect yourself from the most frequent types of financial fraud.
Increase password strength
- Use more complex and unique passwords for different accounts.
- Change your passwords used to access web services and pages every few months.
- Do not share your passwords with other people.
- Use a secure computer with anti-virus programs that protect your data and passwords.
- Use a secure internet connection.
Social network fraud
One of the forms of social engineering is a type of social network fraud where the attackers exploit your feelings to obtain data that would allow them to steal your money. This type of fraud is not something you only hear about in TV shows – it could happen to you!
The attackers may use social networks to contact you and initially ask for financial support for a noble cause, for example a donation for some campaign, and then they persuade you to give them your username and password for online banking to speed up their transactions and easily achieve their goals. Do not trust them! If you can't do it on your own, ask for help!
This type of attack affects every aspect of your cybersecurity, but also your personal and psychological life.
Safe online shopping
- Look for reliable and well-known webshops (do not use links received via e-mail or social networks).
- Investigate the webshop if you are ordering from them for the first time.
- Only make payments via payment cards after you establish a secure internet connection.
- Do not send any card information via e-mail or other communication services (WhatsApp, Viber, Messenger, SMS...)
- Shop only in online places that use authenticity verification systems.
Learn more about safe online shopping and read our advice on safe shopping.
Secure online shopping
Online shopping today is ubiquitous, fast and easy. In order to protect your personal data and use the card responsibly when shopping online, read a few tips below that will make your purchase secure.
Checking the internet point of sale
If you have decided to buy a product or make a payment, check the internet point of sale where you leave the data by locating and typing the right web address into your internet browser. Check the availability of their customer service, the possibility of returning goods and shipping costs.
Fake or "phishing" emails
Do not respond hastily to offers received via social media, e-mail, or any other campaign that may be fraudulent.
Be careful on advertising pages
- You sell either goods or services through a web advertisement, never send the security data from your card (card number, validity, CVV / CVC, mToken code, etc.). Just send your IBAN.
- Do not authorize a payment transaction through the 3D Secure program or open links asking you to enter payment card information and its card amounts.
- Do not pay postage in advance because the Croatian Post will never ask for it.
- Please read the safety guidelines on the website carefully before posting the ad for your services or products.
Card information via link
Never enter card details via the link provided to you via your email.
Fake emails
Fake e-mails requesting the disclosure of users' personal and financial information is also a type of attack on users. Fraudulent sites often look convincing and are used by the names of famous sites like PayPal, Amazon, Netflix. Fraudsters can use fraudulent e-mails to request the renewal of your card details by presenting themselves as the point of sale where you normally shop, copies of your payment cards and security codes confirming your permission to conduct transactions.
Renew your user accounts
On the pages where you are normally logged in, the login should be done at the actual internet address of the point of sale by entering your username and password, never via the received link.
Card number and security codes
Be careful not to share your card information and security codes needed to make an online purchase via social media, text messages or emails.
Protect your computer
Recognizing fake messages in a timely manner, taking care to protect your computer and investing in antivirus programs, changing your password, and closing your browser properly when you shut down your computer are just some of the steps you can take that can greatly affect online shopping security.
Offers related to cryptocurrencies
Special attention should be paid to offers related to the purchase of cryptocurrencies. Take more time and check in detail such websites and point of sale contacts. It often happens that just when users leave their personal and card information via a fake link, the specified link and page disappear.
How can you recognize communications that are not from the bank?
Privredna bank Zagreb pays special attention to the security of your transaction accounts and personal data by using state-of-the-art protection technologies.
We contact our clients via e-mail or phone on a regular basis, but during such communication, NO ONE WILL EVER ask you to provide the following:
- access data for PBZ digital banking and authorization
- transaction account data (account number, limits, balance, etc.)
- PIN for card user authentication and the authorization of payment transactions
- to carry out a payment transaction or to enter data relating to the transaction accounts and payment cards via apps that are not the official apps of our Bank
- to repeat the authentication/authorization required to continue to use blocked online banking services or transaction accounts.
Due to preparatory activities before the introduction of the euro as the official currency in the Republic of Croatia on January 1, 2023 the Bank will NOT ask you to perform additional activities related to the conversion.
All your kuna funds in transaction accounts on the day of the introduction of the euro will be converted into euros with the application of the fixed conversion rate. More at the link.
Be informed!
Learn more examples of internet fraud and get advice on how to protect yourself on the following pages: