Article: Phishing attacks now using phone calls

USA Today reports Phishing attacks now using phone calls

Phishing is the scam where a fake email or Web site is used to try to scam an unsuspecting consumer into revealing personally identifiable information that can be used for identity theft or credit card fraud.

“And the victims are no longer just the usual targets, including customers of AOL, eBay, PayPal, Citibank and Bank of America. Early this year, phishers began preying on customers of regional banks and credit unions.”

“The deceptive e-mail messages and websites have also gotten much craftier. One recent phishing attempt actually warned customers about phishing and asked them to update their information for security reasons. To assure wary users, the legitimate 800 phone number of a targeted company was included in the e-mail.”

For several years, legitimate companies have tried to educate their customers not to reveal personal information online and encourage them to call customer service if in doubt.

Savvy fraudsters are now setting up fake telephone numbers in the attempt to trick consumers. In some instances, they are actually calling consumers directly trying to con them out of some piece of information. Wary consumers who hesitate are often bullied into revealing more than they should.

It happens all to fast. A skilled con man can set a person at ease with polite tone and a scrap of information about his mark to gain trust. Over the course of innocent conversation, the victim will reveal little bits that can all be pieced together.

Key take aways:

• Scrutinize everything, whether online, mail or telephone.
• Be cautious when clicking links in emails. Better yet, if you weren’t expecting the message, just delete it.
• Don’t allow any stranger on the phone to bully or pressure you into providing any information you are not comfortable about.

Be wary, stay safe, and don’t be afraid to say no.

-Roland

Roland Reinhart is an interactive marketing professional concerned about how companies handle personally identifiable information. His observations can be found at Chaos365.com and AdMadMan.com.

©2006 Roland Reinhart. All Rights Reserved.