Stolen bank details used to pay electricity bills

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Two men have been sentenced to three years in prison and fined BD1,000 each for using stolen bank-card details and one-time passwords to pay electricity and water bills for customers.

The High Criminal Court convicted a 40-year-old labourer and a 50-year-old site supervisor over the fraudulent use of BD1,531. The first defendant will also be deported after serving his sentence, while the second was convicted in absentia.

The scheme involved obtaining compromised card details and OTPs from unidentified accomplices and using them through an electronic payment platform to settle Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) bills.

The first defendant allegedly collected cash from customers who wanted their bills paid, then used bank cards that did not belong to him. One payment involved an EWA bill for a restaurant in Old Manama.

The second defendant was accused of using the same method to pay a BD1,770 EWA bill.

The scheme was uncovered after an anti-fraud inspector identified 19 suspicious transactions on the payment platform. The transactions were referred to the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security, which investigated the case.

The court found both men guilty of misusing electronic signatures and OTPs, unlawfully accessing bank accounts and using bank cards without their owners’ consent.

The people who allegedly supplied the stolen banking information and OTPs were not identified.

The case highlights the risks of sharing bank-card details and OTPs, which can allow fraudulent transactions to appear legitimate.