Phone Scams

Many people trust phone calls, especially if the person on the other side of the line knows even a small piece of information. Like email, phishing attempts can yield surprising results. Other fraud takes the form of involuntary commitment and contract approval.

Here are a few tips to recognize a phone scam:

  • Never give out your credit card number on the phone unless you initiated the call to a reliable company that you know.
  • Always ask for written information before you agree to anything.
  • If you suspect that “something’s not right”, get off the phone right away.
  • Don’t provide information that the company calling should already know.
  • Avoid high-pressure sells.

Land Line Telephone Vishing & VoIP (Internet Phones) Vishing

Vishing, (Voice Phishing) also called “VoIP phishing for Internet phones,” is the voice counterpart to phishing. Instead of being directed by e-mail to a Web site, an e-mail message asks the user to make a telephone call. The call triggers a voice response system that asks for the user’s card number or other personal or financial information. The initial bait can also be a telephone call with a recording that instructs the user to phone an 800 number or another area code within or outside of the United States.

In either case, because people are used to entering card numbers over the phone, this technique can be effective. Voice over IP (VoIP) is used for vishing because caller IDs can be spoofed and the entire operation can be brought up and taken down in a short time, compared to a land line telephone.

Text Message Phishing

Smishing (SMS Phishing) is the mobile phone counterpart to phishing. Instead of being directed by e-mail to a Web site, a text message is sent to the user’s cell phone or other mobile device with some ploy to click on a link. The link causes a Trojan to be installed in the cell phone or other mobile device.

Protect Yourself

County Federal Credit Union will never call you to verify your account information. Be sure to use only the phone numbers that you know to be true for the Credit Union when responding to phone messages. If you have responded to a phone scam and provided any confidential account information, please notify us immediately.