Phone stolen? What to do to protect your bank details and online wallet

Did you know that thieves these days are only looking for one thing once they get their hands on your cell phones? Your bank details. Not to mention that more and more people are opting for digital payment apps, it is not that difficult for smartphone thieves to gain access to these wallets. To give you an example: criminals in Sao Paulo, Brazil are said to have stolen iPhone phones not to resell them but to access the bank details of the owners of these devices and steal their money.

With incidents like this exposed, the only way to go is to be careful and follow these steps immediately if you lose your phone or if it is stolen.

Block your SIM card

The first and most important is to make sure that the phone number is not misused if or when you lose the phone. Blocking the SIM card also means blocking all phone applications accessible through OTPs. You can still get the same number issued on a new SIM card. It may take a while, but your privacy and mobile wallets are much more important.

Block access to mobile banking services

They are close at hand and it is therefore important to block access to these services. Your SIM card and mobile apps go hand in hand, as no transfer can take place without OTP to the registered number, but both should be blocked as soon as the phone is lost or stolen.

Disable UPI payment

A little delay can cost you dearly. Once access to online banking is denied, the thief can try to play with another feature, UPI payments, and so this too should be taken care of immediately. Disable it as soon as possible.

Block all mobile wallets

They made life extremely easy, but mobile wallets such as Google pay and Payment can be costly if your phone falls into the wrong hands. Contact the support department of the respective app and make sure that no access is granted to anyone until you set up the wallets again on a new device.

Go to the police, file a report

Once you’ve taken care of the aforementioned things, it’s crucial to report the matter to the authorities. Request a copy of the FIR, which you can then use as proof in case the phone is misused or your money is stolen despite all measures taken.

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