By Islamiyyah Adekanbi
The circulation of a fake notice claiming that fintech company OPay would suspend its operations has highlighted the need for members of the public to verify financial information before acting on or sharing it.
The notice, which circulated on WhatsApp and other social media platforms, urged OPay customers to withdraw their funds ahead of an alleged shutdown. OPay subsequently dismissed the notice as false and advised customers to rely on its verified communication channels.
The incident also triggered reactions among some users and point-of-sale (POS) operators, with some customers transferring funds from their OPay accounts to other banks after seeing the notice.
A POS operator, Adeyemi Samuel, who operates at Iyana School, LASU Road, said the notice caused some customers to rush to move their money from OPay.
“Many of them emptied their OPay accounts completely because they were afraid the platform might actually shut down,” Samuel said.
He said the development affected his business because customers wanted to withdraw their money as physical cash, leaving him with limited cash for other transactions.
Samuel said he became suspicious after noticing differences between the official OPay logo and the logo used on the alleged shutdown notice.
He advised customers to remain calm and verify financial information through official company channels before taking action.
For Kokumo Kafayat,a student who came across the notice on WhatsApp Status after receiving it from a relative, the situation produced a different response.
Kafayat said she did not act on the information but instead tried to verify it. She said she felt relieved after discovering that the information was false and subsequently tried to inform others about the fake notice.
Cybersecurity Analyst and Instructor at MiazTech Academy, Josiah Zion Mauton, said members of the public should pay attention to the source and content of financial messages circulating online.
According to him, messages that create unnecessary urgency or panic should be treated with caution, particularly when they pressure users to take immediate action.
Mauton identified suspicious links, unusual sender details, poor grammar and unprofessional formatting as some of the warning signs users should look out for.
He also warned against messages that instruct users to contact private numbers, download software or provide sensitive personal information.
He advised users to first “kill the panic and sense of urgency” before acting on suspicious messages and to contact financial institutions directly through their official customer-care channels.
A software engineer specialising in web and mobile development, Abdullahi Raji, also advised users to verify major announcements through the official website and verified social media accounts of the organisation involved.
Raji said screenshots and forwarded messages should not automatically be regarded as evidence because they can easily be manipulated.
He advised users not to click suspicious links or provide sensitive information such as passwords, PINs or one-time passwords (OTPs) based on unverified messages.
According to him, false financial information can trigger real financial actions, including unnecessary withdrawals, transfers and payments, while also exposing users to scams and other security risks.
Raji further advised anyone who had already interacted with a suspicious link to stop further activity and contact the affected financial institution through an official channel. He said anyone who had disclosed credentials should change them immediately, while unauthorised financial transactions should be reported without delay.
The experts urged members of the public to verify information from its original source, cross-check major claims through credible channels and avoid sharing messages that cannot be confirmed.
A data analyst, Afolayan Marvellous, advised members of the public to adopt a simple approach when dealing with information received online: “Pause, Check, Confirm.”
According to him, users should pause before reacting, check the original source and confirm the information through the organisation’s official channels and other credible sources. He advised that information that cannot be verified should not be shared.
The OPay incident serves as a reminder that the speed at which information spreads online can also make it easier for false financial claims to trigger unnecessary panic and financial decisions.
The post Opay closure hoax: How to identify fake financial messages, avoid online scams appeared first on Vanguard News.