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The Minister of Finance Malusi Gigaba would like to warn South Africans about bogus letters or emails which purport to be from him and other senior public officials, and use what looks like the logos of National Treasury and other state institutions. These emails tend to ask for personal details of the recipient or request monies to be deposited into given accounts.

The Minister of Finance condemns the use of his name in what is clearly an attempt to con South Africans to part with their hard-earned money. He urges South Africans to report all suspected scams at the nearest police station.

The Ministry of Finance neither requires payments from anyone for its services, nor does it pay out funds to anyone. Origins of these scam notices and how individuals are targeted is continuously being evolved by criminals, and is an international phenomenon.

Should members of the public receive a communication purporting to be from the Ministry of Finance (or any other government department) that refers to payments to be made or to be received, it is clearly a scam and they should not respond to it.

HOW WOULD YOU RECOGNISE A SCAM?

The e-mail requestor asks for bank account information, credit card numbers, and driver’s licence number, passport number, information about members of your family, and other personal information.

The e-mail advises that you have won a prize – even though you are not aware of having entered any competition run by the prize promoters. It also advises that your investments are at risk and that you may lose money if you do not respond with your details.

The email may be personally addressed to you, but it has been posted using bulk mail sending facilities to many others locally and internationally.

Logos of the organisations mentioned in the letter (such as the prize-givers) may not seem correct or professionally drafted.

The names of persons used as senders of the e-mails are common.

Issued by National Treasury