Tech Talk: A Very Sophisticated Scam
 | Author:
Victor Sample
Vic Sample: MT43 News Treasurer |
A Very Sophisticated Scam
Victor Sample
I was asked to do a “Safe Surfing” adult-ed class last April. One of the people attending the class told us about a very sophisticated scam that she fell for – fortunately, she found out she was scammed before they could do anything and got it corrected.
As many of you know, I receive a tech newsletter every weekday morning that covers a variety of topics. I recently read an article about a rise in the number of people reporting the same scam.
The scammers have become very sophisticated. They learn (probably from hacked information) about companies or services that the target victim uses. The article I read related a story about a woman that received a call from a bank that she uses. The caller said that there was a problem with her debit card – it had been compromised and the bank was detecting what looked like unauthorized activity.
Her phone identified the call as coming from a bank she uses so she had no reason to believe it was not a valid call. The caller told her about the unauthorized use and verified that it was not her using the card. Due to security protocols, the caller told the victim that they could not access her account without her.
The caller said that as they walked through the security protocol she would receive texts with security codes. She needed to verify the security code with the caller to ensure that she was indeed the account holder and not someone else.
So, as the caller walked through the process of accessing her account she received several texts with security codes – which she dutifully notified the caller of the codes. The caller took the information and worked through accessing all of her accounts.
The caller then changed her password for her and assured her that everything was taken care of and that her account was protected from unauthorized activity and that she would not lose any money.
When the victim tried to access her account later, the new password she was given did not work. After several tries she called her bank – and found out that the bank had no knowledge of any unauthorized activity on her account and the bank did NOT call her.
The scammers spoofed the bank's phone number so that the call LOOKED like it was indeed from her bank – of course, it was not. After walking her through the access to her bank accounts and changing the password to one they could use they cleaned out her accounts.
She lost everything she had saved!
Never, Ever trust your phone to correctly identify the caller. The scammers can spoof anything. If you get a call from someone representing a bank or a company that you use, never give them account numbers, bank information, social security numbers, etc.
Even if you think it is from a bank you use or a company that you use do not divulge any information. Call the business back using a phone number that has been provided to you on actual business documents. Credit Card companies have their hotline numbers on the cards; businesses always list their numbers on documents or bills. Always call the company back using those numbers to verify that the call you received was a valid call.
Most of us find it annoying to have to get text or phone messages with codes that we then have to enter to access an account. But there is a reason for those security measures. Don’t be fooled into giving those codes to someone else to access your account.
ALWAYS BE ON GUARD!
