Security

Phone Phishing Scam Steals Money from Your Pocket

It happens in Sydney

By Bogdan Popa, Security and Search Engines Editor

30th of April 2008, 13:58 GMT

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We've seen a lot of phishing scams in the recent few weeks and it seems like this avalanche of attacks is not even close to its end. The NSW Fraud Squad officers

today warned the Sydney residents that a phone phishing scam attempts to lure them into disclosing private information such as financial details and bank accounts. An automated phone call received by lots of residents asks them to press a certain phone button in order to talk with an official of the District Court. If they follow the advice, consumers are then talking with someone claiming to be Colin Dyson from the Fraud Squad who asks for all sort of private details including bank accounts.

According to the NSW police dept., the victims of the scam are being told that they are the targets of identity thefts so they must move their money to other accounts in order to be sure that the said attacker doesn't manage to get them.

"I want to make it clear that I did not, and would not, make such calls. Furthermore, the NSW Police Force would not contact a person and tell them to transfer money into another bank account. A Fraud Squad strike force is investigating this scam which, based on our intelligence, emanates from a similar scam which has been operating in New York," the real Detective Superintendent Colin Dyson commented.

"If you have already been contacted and have provided your bank account details, it is suggested you contact your financial institution immediately and report it to police. If you are contacted by a person requesting your personal details, we recommend that you verify the caller's authenticity prior to giving them any information. However, it is important that you don't use the number supplied by the caller and instead look it up to verify it yourself. Our advice is very simple - if you are in any doubt, don't give your details out and contact police immediately."

This is not the first time when such attacks occur because the number of phone phishing scams is continuously growing in the recent period. Moreover, attackers are now turning to SMS scam in order to get free airtime minutes from their victims who are being told that they have won valuable prizes at lottery contests. In order to claim their prizes, the victims are asked to buy airtime minutes and to transfer them to certain numbers.

TAGS:

security | phone scam | attack | phishing

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