Nav has discovered that around 40 of their users have had their bank accounts changed for payment, so that benefits such as pensions and disability benefits have been paid to someone other than the person who should have the money. They have now reported the case to the police. Vest police district is investigating the case, and a person with an address in the district has been charged. The police believe that those involved are abroad. They do not overlook the fact that several people are involved. The police are in dialogue with Nav and various banks to freeze the money that has been transferred. They also hope to be able to repay money that has ended up in the wrong account. Nav states that there has been a fraud of over NOK 1 million. – We now know that there are 40 who have not received their benefits. This mainly applies to those who receive a pension, but also some with other benefits, says Marianne Fålun, Director of Finance and Management at Nav. Discovered on Tuesday On the evening of 12 December, Nav discovered that some users have not received their payments because the users’ account numbers had been changed. – Then we suspected fraud and contacted the Directorate of Digitalisation, says Fålun. Nav then stopped the possibility to change the account number. They found that many of the changes came from the same IP address. – Now we hope that everyone who has not been paid their benefits will receive them before the weekend, says Marianne Fålun in Nav. – We take the case seriously and understand that it was a burden for the victims, says Fålun. Nav advises users who know they have been scammed to contact their own bank and report the fraud to the police. Nav has been in contact with Finans Noreg and its bank connections today. – Now we hope that everyone who has not been paid their benefits will receive them before the weekend, says Fålun. People who suspect that they have been victimized are advised to log on to Nav and check which account number they are registered with as a user. Nav’s helpline is closed after 3pm. According to Nav, it is possible to report on their website in writing. – We think we have an overview of many of the victims, but cannot rule out that there are more and expect that a few more will appear, says Fålun. Urges people to check bank accounts Police and Nav ask anyone who thinks they have been the victim of fraud to check on Nav.no that the bank account number for payment is correct. A warning has been posted on Nav’s homepage, where there are also tips on how to expose attempted fraud. A tipster has received this text message recently. Nav itself says that they never ask for social security numbers in text messages. We do not know if this message is related to the case. – Fraud attempts via SMS and e-mail are an increasing trend. It is very unfortunate with such campaigns which intend to deceive people, and which can have major consequences for each individual, writes Nav. Nav itself says that they know nothing more about the fraud method used in this case.
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The police are investigating ID theft from around 40 Nav users – one person charged – news Vestland
