COMMON PHONE SCAMS YOU SHOULD BE AWARE OF
As
you may know, the internet can be a dangerous place sometimes. Scammers never
rest, and they are out to get your money, personal data, or both. So if you
ever receive an email from a Nigerian prince asking for your help in
transferring a gazillion dollars out his country, don’t reply to it. As
much as you would like to believe that you’ll get rich overnight with the help
of a stranger, the chances of that happening are slim to none. Sorry about
that.
But
the internet isn’t the only place where scammers prey on innocent victims. Some
of them still like to do things the old fashioned way, calling people up with
some made up stories that might get you to reveal your financial or other
sensitive data.
In
this post, we’ll take a closer look at some of the most common phone scams
today. We’ll also give you a few tips on how to know when the person you’re
talking to has bad intentions and how to protect yourself. Without further
delay, let’s get started and take a closer look at the most common phone scams.
The
most common phone scams
1. The Department of
Homeland Security scam
The
Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General has issued a
warning about phone scams in which its hotline number is being used
— 1-800-323-8603.
Here’s
how it works. A scammer calls you and pretends to work for the US Immigration
office and alters the caller ID to make it look like the call is coming from
the number mentioned above. You’ll then hear all sorts of stories including
that you have been a victim of an identity theft and must verify your personal
data over the phone.
This
data includes your Social Security number, date of birth, as well as credit
card info. The information provided is then used by the scammer to steal your
identity and get access to the funds in your bank account.
2. The FBI scam
With
this phone scam, the fraudster is trying to scare you by pretending to be an
FBI agent, saying that you’re in a lot of trouble. You’ll be accused of
breaking the law in one way or another and then demanded to pay a fee right
away. If you don’t, the FBI will come to your door, arrest you, and take you to
jail.
To
make sure the call looks legitimate, the scammer spoofs the phone number of the
local FBI office to make it look like that’s where it’s coming from. The
majority of people probably won’t fall for this one, as getting a call from the
FBI demanding you pay up for something you probably know you didn’t do seems
too strange to be true.
However,
some people get scared quickly once they hear the possible consequences and
decide it’s probably just best to stay on the safe side of things and pay the
fee. Don’t be one of them!
3. The IRS scam
This
one is actually quite similar to the FBI scam described above. The main
difference is that the caller will pretend to be IRS representative. You’ll be
told that two certified letters were sent to your address but were returned
back as undeliverable.
The
story is that you owe the IRS a certain amount of money and you have to pay up
immediately to avoid an arrest and going to jail. The fraudster demands you
provide your credit card info over the phone, which is then used to drain your
bank account.
The
scammer will try to scare and pressure you into paying the fee with various
methods, so it is important that you stay calm and really think things through.
Some of these guys are good and can be very persuasive, trust me. You’ll also
likely be told not to contact an attorney or your local IRS office, which is a
clear sign that this is a scam.
4. The call back scam
This
is a clever scam that will quickly take money out of your pocket if you’re not
careful. Here’s how it works. The scammer will dial your number, wait for your
phone to ring, and then quickly hang up. Alternatively, the fraudster just
might wait until you actually answer before hanging up.
Because
you’re a curious person and want to find out who exactly called you and why,
you decide to call back. That’s what normal people do, right? Well, in most
that’s true, but not in all of them.
The
problem is that the phone number you call back is actually international and
you’ll be charged a premium connection fee and rate. The scammer will also try
to keep you on the line as long as possible with a few transfers and other
sneaky methods.
5. The “Can you hear
me?” scam
This
is one of those phone scams that is kind of hard to avoid, as it’s performed
If
you’re like most people, you’ll just say “Yes” without thinking too much about
it. The problem is that the fraudster actually recorded your response and might
be able to use it against you. The scammer likely already has your financial
details that can be used to make purchases with. If you dispute the charge,
there’s a recording of you saying yes that makes it look like you have
authorized the transaction.
This
is one of the latest scams out there and is quite common in the US, UK, as well
as other countries including Australia. The FTC has issued a warning saying
that if someone asks, “Can you hear me?” when you pick up the phone, don’t say
a word and hang up immediately.
6. The bank scam
When
it comes to phone scams, the bank scam is an old and a popular one. The
fraudster will call you up claiming to work for the bank you do business with.
Different scammers will use different stories, but all will have the same end
goal in mind.
The
most common story is that something is wrong with your account and that to stay
on the safe side of things, you have to confirm some basic information. You’ll
be asked about your credit card information and maybe even the login details
for your online bank. If you give the fraudster all the info requested, you’ll
soon realize that your bank account has been drained.
The
bank scam is also very popular online. Fraudsters go as far as setting up a
website that looks identical to that of your bank but has a slightly different
URL. You get an email or even a text message to your phone with a link to the
website saying that you should sign in and check something important. Once you
do, the scammers have your login info and can transfer the money from your
account into theirs.
7. The free vacation
scam
Everybody
wants a free vacation, right? That’s why this phone scam likely has a pretty
high success rate. You get a call from someone saying that you entered a raffle
and were selected as the winner. The main prize is a free vacation to some
tropical island for your whole family that’s valued at a few thousand dollars.
The
fraudster then wants to paint a picture in your mind and get you excited by
saying you’ll be staying in a luxury five-star hotel right next to a beautiful
sandy beach. However, to get the prize, you have to pay a standard tax of
“just” a few hundred dollars.
Of
course, after you pay up, you realize that the whole thing was a scam. You know
what they say, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
8. The Microsoft tech
support scam
This
is one of the oldest phone scams in the book. The fraudster, pretending to be a
Microsoft employee, calls you up saying that your computer has been sending
error messages and has a virus.
The
fraudster will ask for remote access to your computer to try to figure out
exactly what the problem is and how to fix it. This might give him access to
any sensitive data you have stored on your PC. The scammer may also try to
convince you to buy software that will fix your non-existent PC problems and to
share your credit card info over the phone.
There
are many different ways criminals try to take advantage of you with this scam.
One of them has recently called a senior security researcher from Malwarebytes
who obviously knows all about it and has decided to play along. What’s more, he
recorded the whole thing, which you can check out in the video below.
How to protect yourself
Now
that you are familiar with some of the most common phone scams out there, it’s
time to talk about just how you can protect yourself if a fraudster decided to
give you a call.
The
first and most important rule is not to give personal, financial, and other
sensitive details to anyone over the phone. It doesn’t matter who they claim to
be, if someone asks you for your credit card info, simply hang up the phone.
Banks, government agencies, and other institutions will never ask for your
personal details over the phone.
You
should also try to stay as calm as possible during these calls. Some of the
fraudsters will try to scare you by saying that you did something wrong and
will be arrested, while others want to get you excited by offering free stuff
such as a vacation. Being scared or excited can cloud your judgment and make
you do things you normally wouldn’t do.
Another
great tip is that if you get a call from someone claiming to work for a certain
company or organization, you can always check it by asking for the caller’s
name, hanging up, and then calling the company back on the number listed in the
phone book. That way, you can verify if the story you were told is correct, or
if it is just another scam.
Also
go online and check to see if others have received similar calls by Googling
the phone number. If it’s a popular scam, you’ll likely find something online.
Final thoughts
Please
keep in mind that these are just some of the scams that are quite popular among
fraudsters. There are plenty more phone scams going around. Although they might
seem to be quite different from one another at first, all of them have the same
goal, which is to get your personal or financial details.
So
do stay safe by keeping the suggestions listed in the “How to protect yourself”
section above in mind when you get a suspicious phone call.
