SCAM ALERT

How to Protect Yourself Against Mobile Scams

How to Protect Yourself Against Mobile Scams

Avoiding mobile phone scams is now part of our digital lives, especially since fraudsters are continually coming up with new ways to try and trick people. However, some scams aren't always obvious, so it's essential to keep on top of new scams. This is because it's sometimes not easy to recover your accounts when they've been compromised.

What Are Phone Scams?

Mobile phones are among our most valued property nowadays, and cybercriminals know this. We always have them with us, and we use them to access some of the most private information in our lives. We've linked banking, emails, and other sensitive data to our phones, making them a perfectly centralized target for identity theft and fraud.

Mobile phone scams are aimed at deceiving you into voluntarily infecting your device or handing over private information. Common types of mobile scams include:

• Mobile phone virus scams

• SMS phishing (Smishing)

• Voice mail scams (Vishing)

• One-ring scams

What are Mobile Phone Virus Scams?

Mobile phone virus scams give false alerts claiming a virus has been discovered on your phone.

While browsing the web on your phone, you may have seen a page appear with this kind of alert. It will say that a scan of your phone has revealed a virus infection, urging you to take immediate action.

The scam then gets you to download an "anti-virus" app that is actually malware or spyware. Once the malicious code is on your smartphone, scammers can infect other devices or hijack yours. The easiest way to protect yourself from these kinds of attacks is to make sure you have cybersecurity on your phone, like Anti-virus for Android.

What is Phone Vishing?

Vishing, also known as, "voice phishing" involves cell phone scam calls that urge you to take action — normally by calling you or leaving a voicemail.

Vishing involves scammers trying to impersonate an authentic person or organization to gain your trust. They may pose as part of an official company or government service, convincing you that you must provide personal information or money.

These scams usually try to get you to act during the phone call. That’s because they rely on the urgency, and hope you'll panic react into giving them what they want. That's why scammers will pressure you to pay or share information on the call itself, rather than ask you to perform a follow-up action (once they've hung up).

What is SMS Phishing?

SMS phishing, also known as “smishing”, involves a scammer getting you to act via text message. Malware SMS links can be sent in these messages, and if you open the link, your device can become infected with malware or spyware.

Sometimes the criminal will deceive you into taking a different action though. These other actions might include calling a pay-per-minute phone number, tricking you into a subscription, or coercing personal information from you.

What are One Ring Scams?

One ring scams are calls from an unknown number that only rings once, with the intention of getting you to call back. This scam works because fraudsters are usually betting that curiosity will override your critical judgment. Here’s the scam though: you get charged fees when you make the call, and the scammer profits. These calls tend to be from an international area code, which is part of how they cause the fees. Sometimes a voicemail will be left to increase the chance that you will take action. Be wary if you get a call or voicemail from a number you don't recognize or expect a call from.

How to Avoid Mobile Phone Scams

Every scam has its unique features but generally they share a few common goals and sometimes methods. Since new types of scams appear regularly, you'll have to be prepared. Avoiding these mobile scams requires you to pay attention to what they are asking you to do…

How to Identify Mobile Phone Scams

Scams of any kind are usually a play on your emotions and an effort to establish trust. Some emotional motivations behind scams may include the following: