19 votes

Voice phishing scams are getting more clever

5 comments

  1. [3]
    Algernon_Asimov
    Link
    Exactly. I have occasionally received legitimate phone calls from my bank or other organisations that I conduct secure interactions with (i.e. with passwords/PINs) - and, as soon as they start...

    If call has you worried that there might be something wrong and you wish to call them back, don’t call the number offered to you by the caller. If you want to reach your bank, call the number on the back of your card. If it’s another company you do business with, go to the company’s site and look up their main customer support number.

    Exactly. I have occasionally received legitimate phone calls from my bank or other organisations that I conduct secure interactions with (i.e. with passwords/PINs) - and, as soon as they start asking me for any personal information, I clam up. My response is that I do not need to prove my identity if they are calling me. If I am calling them, I absolutely need to prove who I am, but I shouldn't need to prove who I am if they have called me.

    They then respond by asking me to call them back, which I do. I call the organisation's public phone number, get myself put through to the customer service section, and start out with "One of your colleagues called me about something...?" I then prove my identity, they tell me what the issue is, and Bob's your uncle!

    I simply won't give out private information to anyone who calls me, even if I'm 99.9% sure they are legitimate (as they always have been so far). I've read too many scary stories about people being scammed like this. Reading this story has just confirmed my paranoia. Ain't noone nor nothin' gettin' my personal data by calling me!

    12 votes
    1. [2]
      Weldawadyathink
      Link Parent
      This is what I have always been told, but I have never been in that sort of situation. Just to add though, I have heard that there is a way for a scammer to redirect a redial number. So you...

      This is what I have always been told, but I have never been in that sort of situation. Just to add though, I have heard that there is a way for a scammer to redirect a redial number. So you shouldn't just confirm that their number is the same as what your card has and hit redial, you should type it manually into the dialer

      3 votes
      1. Algernon_Asimov
        Link Parent
        Yeah, I always dial the number myself.

        So you shouldn't just confirm that their number is the same as what your card has and hit redial, you should type it manually into the dialer

        Yeah, I always dial the number myself.

        1 vote
  2. [2]
    Soptik
    Link
    How many scam calls do you get per week? I've never received any scam/spam call and I wonder how big problem this is in USA. How do they even get people numbers? Are the publicly listed or they...

    How many scam calls do you get per week? I've never received any scam/spam call and I wonder how big problem this is in USA. How do they even get people numbers? Are the publicly listed or they just bruteforce it?

    1 vote
    1. arghdos
      Link Parent
      I'd say 75% plus of phone calls from numbers I don't recognize are spam or otherwise unwanted (e.g., the cable company telling me how much money I could save if I only paid more money total... at...

      I'd say 75% plus of phone calls from numbers I don't recognize are spam or otherwise unwanted (e.g., the cable company telling me how much money I could save if I only paid more money total... at least once a week). Often the numbers they are coming from will look like your own (same area code and similar ending) which leads me to believe they pick a fake number and bruteforce those above and below it. I don't have actual numbers, but I'd estimate from my call log that I get at least 2-3 spam calls a week

      1 vote