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Real People In Fake Call Centers
/ Categories: Scam Watch

Real People In Fake Call Centers

An on the rise trend in cybercrime, is the use of cybercriminal-controlled call centers to trick you into providing your banking and/or credit card information. Cybercriminals will use real people in fake call centers to convince you that this scam is, in fact, legitimate.

In a recent call center scam, an email begins the attempt with what appears to be an invoice for a large, alarming purchase. What is not transparent about the email, is what company the invoice is from, or even what was purchased, but the payment amount is listed numerous times. The email has a phone number listed at the beginning and end, asking you to call them if you did not authorize this transaction. Once you dial the phone and make the call, you will be on the line with a ‘representative’ who will be more than happy to offer you a refund. However, they first need your bank information or credit card information to do so. If you continue and go through with handing over your information, you have just given the criminal access to your funds which they will use for whatever they wish.

Tips on how to keep yourself safe from this social engineering attack:

  • The hacker sends this email/invoice specifically to cause alarm and frustration. Cybercriminals are going after an emotional response so that you respond quickly and impulsively. Think before you click.
  • A real phone number doesn’t mean that an email is also real. Cybercriminals can lie just as easily over the phone as they do in an email.
  • To protect yourself, reach out to your financial institution or credit card company to begin the process of verifying whether the transaction has actually occurred. If there has been any unauthorized purchases, your bank or credit card company can help you correct the issue.
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