Know the threats
Scam types
How the most common scams in Ethiopia work: the playbook scammers follow, the warning signs, and how to protect yourself.
Hacked account
Scammers take over a Telegram, WhatsApp, or Facebook account and use it to beg the victim's contacts for money.
Social engineering
Scammers use pressure, urgency, and trust to talk people into sending money on someone else's behalf.
Impersonation
Callers pretend to be your financial institution, Telebirr, or Ethio Telecom to extract codes or 'fees'.
Phishing for banking credentials
Fake messages and look-alike login pages harvest your banking usernames, passwords, and card details.
Account or identity takeover
Criminals get into your banking, or open accounts in your name, using stolen codes, SIM swaps, or identity documents.
Card fraud
A lost, stolen, or skimmed debit/credit card is used before the owner can block it.
Unauthorized transfers & transactions
Money leaves your account through transfers or scheduled payments you never approved.
Loan & credit fraud
Loans taken in your name with stolen identity details, or fake lenders charging 'fees' for loans that never arrive.
Reversal & refund scams
A fake 'mistaken payment' pressures you to send your own money back to a scammer.