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A fraudulent email has been doing the
rounds giving new banking details for Joburg Water. But the utility has not
changed its account.
JOBURG Water has warned its customers that
a hoax email has been sent out claiming that the utility has changed its bank
account details.
Watch out for a hoax email
"There are people who called our customer
services centre and told us about an email claiming that our account details
have changed," said Baldwin Matsimela, Joburg Water's marketing and communication
manager.
To look official, the email has City of Johannesburg and Gauteng
provincial government logos and a picture of Executive Mayor Amos Masondo. It
also gives new banking details for water and sewerage service payments.
But the details are a hoax. "Customers are
advised not to deposit or make payments into the fake account," said Matsimela.
Joburg Water's bank account details have
not changed, and are still:
Bank: Absa
Account number: 405 439 4809
Branch code: 637956
Matsimela pointed out that the utility would
normally send any important information to its customers with their monthly
statements. "If there are people who have paid money into this account they
need to go to their nearest police station and open a case."
The fake letter was the work of individuals
or parties who were trying to defraud unsuspecting customers. "This is not only
malicious and unethical but criminal and a disservice to residents of this
city."
Joburg Water and the City will investigate the
email to find its source. Anyone who may know anything about it are encouraged
to contact the company's 24-hour call centre on 011 688 1500 or call 0800 150
000, an anonymous tip-off service, to report the offenders.
"We urge people to be vigilant, call our
customer services centre and ask questions when they are not sure what to do," Matsimela
said.
This is not the first time fraudsters have
tried this tactic. A similar warning
was
issued by Joburg Water in February 2008.
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