Using Payment App? 5 Tips to Avoid Being Scammed by Yahoo Boys OnlineYour support matters. Sustain independent journalism in Nigeria – contribute to Legit.ng. The activities of cyber criminals popularly called Yahoo boys have increased in Nigeria recently. Their targets are not just high net worth persons who are based overseas but local people irrespective of status. Many Nigerians are more likely to send money to friends and acquaintances using a payment on the smartphone than write a cheque these days. Sending money via a payment platform is convenient and easy and for many, the method may reduce the hassles of having to enter the banking halls especially during this period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Recommended for you "No old notes yet from CBN": Banks ration cash as Supreme Court suspends wi... Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through info@corp.legit.ng! The major problem remains fraud perpetrated by criminals who have mastered sophisticated methods of scamming unwary people. Experts say fraud rates among mobile payment apps are three to four times higher than traditional payment methods and are being exploited by scammers. The scammers target people of colour and low-income earners who are at higher risk than other consumer groups. Mobile payment apps are very attractive to scammers, according to experts, since you generally don’t get the same fraud protection as they don’t get the same protection when using credit or debit cards. The criminals can link a stolen card to a payment app platform to buy something, set up transactions and cancel them before they go through or send an email saying you paid more than necessary for an item and you need to send the money back. Money transfers happen very fast through a payment app that makes it hard to trace or detect scam payments. Recommended for you CBN stops bank agents from using PoS terminals for transactions, along with... The good news about mobile payment is that it is instant but the problem is that is very hard to get your money back. You have to be sure of the person you are sending it to. The kind of online payment method you use may also have an effect n whether you are more or less likely to lose money if you are scammed. No matter which mobile payment app you choose, experts recommend these five tips to avoid being scammed: Recommended for you Finally, Peter Obi's lawyers begin inspection of 2023 presidential election... Legit.ng has reported that the Nigerian financial industry landscape is laced with interesting options, most of which give users the ability to make a choice that allows them optimal use. While some banks in Nigeria are paying higher interest to depositors for saving money with them, others are just there to make profits and post interesting figures at the end of their financial year. The minimum interest rate approved by a regulatory agency like the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is 1.5 per cent. Source: Legit.ng Nigerians have fallen victim to scammers who target them using online payment apps and have not had their money returned Online scammers, popularly called Yahoo boys have mastered methods of hacking or breaking into payment platforms to steal people's money Using tips like enabling face recognition, fingerprints, two-factor authentication on mobile phones can reduces the risk of falling prey to scammers Your support matters. Sustain independent journalism in Nigeria – contribute to Legit.ng. Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through info@corp.legit.ng! Legit.ng