During National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Information Technology Services urges you to keep your personal information safe by knowing the signs of “vishing,” or phone-based scams. Vishing is similar to phishing but relies on phone conversations or voicemail messages to trick you.
Vishing calls often include unsolicited offers for credit and loans, exaggerated investment opportunities, notification of overdue or unpaid taxes, charitable requests for urgent causes, and extended car warranty scams. Here are some of the clues:
The call is unexpected. Be suspicious of calls that come from an unknown number, even from a local area code, or arrive unexpectedly. If you don’t know anyone who would be calling from Welch, chances are it’s a vishing scam.
The caller uses scare tactics and emotional manipulation. Vishing calls or messages often ask you to do something immediately before the offer expires or to fix an issue. The call may threaten serious consequences if you don’t act.
The caller may appear to be official. Scammers often scrape social media accounts such as LinkedIn and use that data to pretend to be a supplier, delivery person or vendor.
How can you guard against vishing scams? The less you share to the caller, the better.
Never answer a call from an unknown number. Let the call go to voicemail. If the call is legitimate, the person will leave a message and you can call them back.
Always protect your information. Legitimate companies will never ask you for your username and password, credit card number, or bank account number via phone because they already have that information.
Take your time. If you receive a suspicious call that could be legitimate, investigate the issue. Hang up the phone and call the vendor’s number on their website to confirm whether a payment is required.
For more information about phone scams and what to do if you have fallen for one, visit the Federal Trade Commission website.
For more ways to keep yourself and your devices safe, search "Defend Your Data" in ENEWS.