Hong Kong’s financial regulator and de facto central bank has warned the public about an email purporting to have been sent from Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong).

Hong Kong’s financial regulator and de facto central bank has warned the public about an email purporting to have been sent from Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong).

The email asks customers to use an embedded hyperlink to connect to a fraudulent website, Hong Kong Monetary Authority said in a statement yesterday. The hyperlink asks people for personal information such as date of birth and credit card information.  

Standard Chartered has explained it has not sent these e-mails to its customers and has no connection with the fraudulent website, the HKMA said.

Anyone who has provided his or her personal information to the website, or has conducted any financial transactions through the website should contact SCBHK at 2886 8868 and any local police station or the Commercial Crime Bureau of the Hong Kong Police Force at 2860 5012, the statement from the watchdog said.

"Members of the public are reminded not to access their Internet banking accounts through hyperlinks embedded in e-mails, Internet search engines or suspicious pop-up windows.  Instead, they should access their Internet banking accounts by typing the website addresses at the address bar of the browser, or by bookmarking the genuine website and using that for access.  In addition, banks are not expected to send e-mails asking their customers to provide their account information (e.g. Internet banking logon passwords) or verify their account information online.  If in doubt, they should contact their banks," an HKMA spokesperson said.