Nick Harris explains how scammers use panic to override logic, and why pausing in the moment is one of your strongest defences.
Growing up in South Africa, there was a certain kind of humour that just worked. Practical jokes, hidden cameras and ordinary people put into completely unexpected situations.
If you've ever watched one of Leon Schuster's classic prank movies, you'll know what I mean. One moment everything is calm. Then something unexpected happens and suddenly nobody behaves like a rational adult anymore. A fake snake lands in the room and logic walks out the door. People jump, shout and run – even the calmest person there gets overtaken by instinct.
It's funny because from the outside, you can see exactly what's happening. From the inside, it feels completely real.
Fraud works the same way – we panic under pressure. And when we panic, we stop thinking clearly. Picture this. You get a call. "This is the bank. There is fraud on your account right now." Or worse: "This is SAPS. We are investigating suspicious activity linked to your details."
Your brain shifts immediately. You panic because your money is at risk.
Fraudsters take advantage of this panic. They’ll say things like: "You need to act right now. I'll guide you through securing your account.", "You need to move your money to a safe account" or "Stay on the line while we fix this."
At that point you're in your own version of the prank scene. Your heart is racing, your focus narrow. You don’t stop to think: "Is this legitimate?" Instead, you're asking "How do I make this stop?"
That's exactly where the scam works.
No legitimate bank, SAPS official or real authority will ever ask you to move money, make a payment or share your banking details to secure your account while you're on a call.
So what do you do?
When a fraudster pressures you to act, don’t react faster. Give your brain enough space to start working again.
End the call. If someone contacts you claiming to be your bank or SAPS, you're allowed to hang up. You don't owe them anything. Take a breath and give yourself a minute to move from reaction mode back into thinking mode. Then call back using the official number on the back of your card or SAPS's published channels. Never call the number that contacted you.
As South Africans we've all seen how fast calm can turn into chaos – a prank, a near miss on the road or someone shouting something unexpected at a braai. We know how quickly instinct takes over.
Fraudsters are just using a financial version of that same moment. The difference is, you don't have to react. You can pause, hang up and check.
In the next article we'll look at vigilance, why scams look so convincing, and why the small details are worth paying attention to.
Written by Nick Harris, our Head of Financial Crime.
