The FBI cautions that most individuals with smartphones are at serious risk from a new, terrible scam that has surfaced.
A new fraud involving a specific phone call and some clever computer tricks has federal authorities on edge.
Although scam calls are not new, this one is especially egregious since, according to the FBI, many Android and iPhone users may find it difficult to recognize the scammer as they approach.
This is because the scam can be quite convincing because the con artists have been able to “spoof” the caller ID number. It poses as a technical support line, a bank, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), or even your local police department.
The victims are then deceived into transferring funds from their account or setting up harmful software on their device.
To give you less time to ponder, the scammer would, as is common with such attacks, make you believe the situation is urgent.
Furthermore, eliminating malware could be a daunting task, even if you are aware of its existence.
Consider this officer’s stern caution regarding QR codes. A stranger can get full access to your phone with only one scan of an apparently harmless code. That includes your phone numbers, photographs, credit card information, and internet banking details.
In any case, it’s very easy to follow the FBI’s guidelines to safeguard your equipment and yourself from a costly error.
Hang up the phone if you get an unsolicited call from someone you haven’t called first, even if it appears like a reliable source.
According to the FBI, there is so little probability that such a call is genuine that the danger is not worth it.
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Scammers may get in touch with you and claim that your bank account is being targeted or that you must provide money to prevent police arrest.
These kinds of scenarios have arisen for police agencies from Virginia to New York, as victims have reported that scammers have been calling them pretending to be local law officials and forcing them to give money.
Forbes reports that authorities have warned that “this type of scam has occurred throughout the region, including Alexandria, and across the country” and that the latest scam campaign has been ongoing for a few weeks.
The force continues, “Scams have variations, but generally the caller will identify themself as a law enforcement officer and tell the victim, falsely, that a warrant has been issued because they missed a court date, did not show up for jury duty, have an overdue fine, or something similar, and they will be arrested unless they pay right away.”
Though scammers have been known to “use the names of actual deputies or police officers” and have been able to conceal their phone numbers “to make it look like they are calling from a local enforcement agency,” officials insist this scenario doesn’t occur.
Similarly, the FBI advises you to hang up and call your local law enforcement to describe the situation if you get a call from a police officer requesting money or making some other strange request.
Similar warnings have been sent by the CBP on a “spike in phone calls” from worried individuals who received calls from con artists impersonating CBP staff members “seeking information about suspected illegal activity.”
CBP said it “will not call a suspect or a victim requesting money or social security numbers’ nor make calls ‘threatening citizens that law enforcement is on the way or promising money for information.”
