Deception (social engineering): Private individual, Switzerland 2026
Between 26 and 29 January 2026, a supposed employee of his bank called a 65-year-old man, claimed there was fraud on his account and offered help in getting the money back.
- Incident · 01.2026 · Canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland
- Evidence: confirmed by an authority
- Deception (social engineering)
- Fraud
- Account takeover
As of
What happened
During the second call, the man was asked to install the remote maintenance program AnyDesk. This gave the perpetrators access to his computer and his bank account; the loss amounts to more than half a million francs.
- Affected
- Private individual (anonymous)
- Industry
- Private individual
- Loss
- CHF 500'000
- Figure given by the source
- more than half a million francs
- Business interruption
- unknown
- Ransom demanded / paid
- unknown / unknown
- Data affected
- unknown
- Bankruptcy
- no
- Entry point
- Call from a fake bank employee, followed by installation of AnyDesk
What would cyber insurance have paid?
That depends on the terms. Whether those affected were insured: unknown.
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Social media, email or shop taken over
Mostly no information 14 of 29 private products cover it fully, as an add-on or with limits.
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Misuse of card, Twint, e-banking
Strangers pay with your money
Mostly limited 25 of 29 private products cover it fully, as an add-on or with limits.
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Hotline and advice before anything happens
Mostly no information 14 of 29 private products cover it fully, as an add-on or with limits.
Overview based on public policy terms, as of 06.11.2026. Only your policy and its general terms and conditions (GTC) are binding. No confirmation of cover.
What we can learn
No bank asks you on the phone to install a remote maintenance program; if you hear that, hang up.
Sources
- Kanton St.Gallen: Betrugsmasche richtet grossen Schaden an (opens in a new window) Kantonspolizei St. Gallen · 10.02.2026
«Keine Bank, keine Behörde und keine Polizei verlangt jemals Fernzugriff, Passwörter, Codes oder andere persönliche Daten.»