Warning: Five phone scams to avoid

Oct 12, 2010 3:10 PM
Filed under Telco/ISP

ACCC and ACMA advise Australians to "hang up" on scammers.

Fraudsters posing as Microsoft technicians are among the five most concerning telephone scams listed by competition and telecommunications regulators today in an attempt to warn users to be more vigilant.

The ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) and ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority) released a joint statement today urging Australians to "immediately hang up the phone" on telephone scams.

Reports of scam telephone calls to both regulators have skyrocketed from 200 per month to around 2000 in recent months.

The regulators were particularly concerned about scams that involved:

Callers advising that the person's computer is infected with a virus and requesting credit card details to fix the problem. Today, the Western Australian Department of Commerce warned that over 150 people in the state had been duped into paying between $125 and $220 by fake Microsoft technicians.
Callers offering products, services or cash under fake government grants. Legitimate information is available on government web sites and rarely administered through outbound call centres.
Callers seeking bank details in order to process a bank fee refund or tax refund - a classic phishing technique also used by fraudsters via email.
Callers offering to place the person's number on the Do Not Call Register for a fee. The register is free.
Recorded messages asking consumers to 'dial 9' for a 'free' holiday.

The regulators advised those receiving "a cold call from someone claiming you are entitled to a refund, have won a holiday or have a virus on your computer" to "hang up immediately."

Those that feel they may have been duped are urged to contact legitimate sources of information (such as their bank) immediately.

"Consumers can stop themselves being scammed by never disclosing any personal or financial details to these callers," said ACCC Chairman, Graeme Samuel.

"Cutting off the lifeline is the best way to disrupt scammers."

4 comments in this discussion

"The upsetting surprise of unexpected charges for cellular phone customers could be over soon, thanks to new “bill shock regulations” advocated by the FCC. Mobile users have been ambushed for years ..."

By maxxineC

Tags

phishing, phone scams, accc, acma, microsoft, technician

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Comments: 4

FLashy Oct 12, 2010 10:42 PM	"Hello this is the Society for helping deaf people get new hearing aids." As my mobile display had shown an unknown caller, I used Speaker Phone. Answering I said "HELLO", again came the spiel from this guy about supporting his Society for the deaf. "HELLO" "I can hardly hear you, please speak louder" "Are you sure you can't hear me?" "Is that you Jim? My batteries are a bit flat, I can't visit today" This banter continued for at least 5 minutes until my fellow workers were rolling around laughing with tears in their eyes. Finally this guy just gave up, it was so much fun. He probably wondered why I even bothered to answer the phone.
tomhad Oct 12, 2010 11:45 PM	Ye there is a company out there called Opera Telecom, beware the dial 9 scam results in them sending you unsolicited texts which they will then get telstra put on your mobile bill. Telstra denies complicity in this and says they are just the "billing" service for Opera Telecom. tThis company has been fined in Ireland for misapproriating mobile numbers from a charity event. They are stilloperating in Australia beware.
X_Selectar Oct 13, 2010 1:40 AM	iTnews said: Quote: Read the story here: Warning: Five phone scams to avoid What do you think? Join the discussion. I was really surprised to get a call a few days ago, "apparently" from Microsoft, the caller saying my Computer was sending a lot of Data and I need a techician to guide me over settings on my System. I replied, " You are from Microsoft ?" The Indian accented woman kind of crumbled, under stress it seemed, and I just said please don't call again. It was shocking however, but very unconvincing.
maxxineC Oct 16, 2010 4:37 PM	The upsetting surprise of unexpected charges for cellular phone customers could be over soon, thanks to new “bill shock regulations” advocated by the FCC. Mobile users have been ambushed for years by surprise charges, but the issue came to the forefront last month when Verizon, under Federal Communications Commission pressure, agreed to refund customers about fifty million dollars for bogus fees. Cell phone corporations aren’t' taking the new regulations lying down and have unleashed lobbyists to fight against Federal Communications Commission bill shock restrictions that could be posted for public comment starting Thursday. And when you think about how many people over the years have taken out a just to pay their bill, it becomes that much more frustrating. The days when cell phone users' budgets are blown because of unpredicted charges could come to an end after “bill shock” rules are enacted by the Federal Communications Commission. Last month Verizon was in the spotlight after the Federal Communications Commission ordered the business to refund its customers to the tune of $50 million in charges for services neither wanted nor ordered-a practice that has gone on for years.