A Portalegre Court Jails 12 and Suspends 43 Sentences in Two MB WAY Scam Cases: The App's Own Rules for Keeping Your Account Safe

A court in Portalegre has convicted 55 people in two separate cases over what prosecutors call "burlas MB WAY" (MB WAY scams): tricks that use Portugal's most popular payment app to empty strangers' bank accounts. Twelve were given prison terms to serve, the longest nine years. The other 43 received suspended sentences on condition that they pay back the money taken from their victims.

The Ministério Público (Public Prosecution Service) announced both rulings on Monday 19 October through its regional office in Évora. Both were handed down on Friday 16 October by the Juízo Central Cível e Criminal de Portalegre (Portalegre Central Civil and Criminal Court).

The two cases

In the first case, seven defendants were convicted of burla informática (computer fraud) and falsidade informática (computer forgery). Their single combined sentences, all to be served in prison, were:

• nine years for one defendant;
• six years for one;
• five years each for two;
• four years and six months for one;
• two years and six months each for two.

Twenty-one more defendants in that case received suspended prison sentences, on condition that they repay the sums taken from the victims. Nine were acquitted. The prosecutors say no evidence could be produced against them because the victims could not be found to give testimony.

In the second case, five defendants were convicted of the same two crimes and given prison terms of between two years and three months and seven years, to be served. Twenty-two more got suspended sentences, again on condition of repaying the victims, and one woman was acquitted for lack of proof. According to the prosecutors, the court took into account "the social alarm" caused by MB WAY scams, given how many there are and how often they happen.

Together, that makes 55 convictions (12 to be served in prison and 43 suspended) and 10 acquittals. The case numbers show that the investigations were registered in 2019 and 2020. The prosecutors' releases name no defendants and give neither the number of victims nor the sums involved. They also do not say whether the rulings are final. A first-instance ruling in Portugal can be appealed, and defendants are presumed innocent until a conviction is final.

How the scams work, and the rules that stop them

MB WAY is run by SIBS, the company behind the Multibanco cash machine network. It links a phone number to a bank card or account, so money can be sent to a phone number, paid in shops and online, or drawn from an ATM with a one-time code. Our guide to MB WAY and Multibanco explains how it is set up.

The warnings published by SIBS and the Bank of Portugal show how such scams usually depend on persuading the victim to do something themselves: link a stranger's phone number to their own account, share a code, or accept a request for money, often while following step-by-step instructions from someone they do not know. The prosecutors' releases do not describe the method used in these two cases. SIBS's own security page for MB WAY sets out the rules that defeat this kind of trick:

• Never add a phone number to MB WAY that is not your own, or one you do not recognise.
• Never share your six-digit MB WAY PIN, either as a form of payment or as a guarantee. Like a card PIN, it is personal, and anyone who has it can make transactions from your bank account.
• Never follow a stranger's instructions to join MB WAY or to make a payment with it.
• Never accept a request for money unless you are sure you know the person who sent it and that they really mean to ask you for it.
• Keep ATM withdrawal codes to yourself. The "Levantamento MB WAY" (MB WAY withdrawal) option creates a code that lets anyone take the chosen amount from any Multibanco machine, so give it only to someone you want to have the cash.

SIBS also advises never giving personal or confidential details by email or text message, never following links received that way, and checking bank statements regularly.

The Banco de Portugal (Bank of Portugal), on its Portal do Cliente Bancário (Bank Customer Portal), gives similar advice for payment apps. When joining an app such as MB WAY, add only your own phone number. Never share the app's password or the codes used to approve transactions. Read every notification in full before approving an operation. The central bank also reminds customers that their bank will never ask for their app or online banking login details by phone, email or text message. It warns that fraudulent contacts usually come with a tone of urgency, so that the victim hands over information without time to think.

If it happens to you

The Bank of Portugal's advice is to contact your bank or payment provider immediately if you get a notification of an operation you do not recognise, and to tell it as soon as possible if your card or app login details have been stolen or misused. If the phone carrying the app is lost or stolen, cancel the app or remove your card or account from the device. The central bank notes that even when the app is run by a third party, as MB WAY is, your own bank remains ultimately responsible for carrying out payments made through it correctly.

A scam is a crime, and it can be reported to the police. If your bank does not deal with a complaint properly, you can complain through the livro de reclamações (complaints book), on paper or online, or directly to the Bank of Portugal.

These rulings follow other recent cases of fraud aimed at ordinary residents, including fake ASAE and Judicial Police inspectors calling from what looked like real police numbers. For what happens when a bank blocks an account or refuses to cover a fraud loss, see our piece on bank complaints to DECO.

This article is general information, not legal or financial advice.