Other Forms Of Fraud
Some fraudsters attempt to commit fraud through fraudulent telephone calls. They pose as legitimate financial institutions and ask for your personal and account information.
Examples Of Telephone Fraud Include:
Vishing is the criminal practice of using social engineering and Voice over IP (VoIP) to gain access to private personal and financial information from the public for the purpose of financial reward. The term is a combination of "voice" and "phishing".
When the victim answers the call, an automated recording, often generated with a text-to-speech synthesizer, is played to alert the consumer that their credit card has had fraudulent activity or that their bank account has had unusual activity. The message instructs the consumer to call the following phone number immediately. The same phone number is often shown in the spoofed caller ID and given the same name as the financial company they are pretending to represent.
Consumers should be highly suspicious when receiving messages directing them to call and provide credit card or bank numbers. Rather than provide any information, the consumer is advised to contact their bank or credit card company directly to verify the validity of the message. Remember, however, that there are legitimate reasons SunTrust may attempt to contact you to verify the authenticity of a transaction.
More Telephone Fraud
Be wary of telephone scammers. If you receive a call from someone asking for personal and account information, call the company back using a phone number you know is legitimate. Here are some examples of recent fraudulent telephone activities:
Gift of $10,000 Cash: The caller tells clients that they've won a gift of $10,000. Clients are asked to confirm their account and routing numbers so that the money can be transferred to their accounts by wire.
Verify Possible Fraudulent Card Information: Clients receive a voice mail and are asked to verify possible fraudulent activities on their cards. The voice mail includes bogus phone numbers for clients to call.
Mobile Phone Security/Smishing
Smishing is a form of criminal activity using social engineering techniques similar to phishing. Smishing victims receive SMS messages. Known as "smishing," these text messages might ask you to register for an online service – then try to sneak a virus onto the users' device.
Some messages warn that the consumer will be charged unless he/she cancels the supposed order by going to a Web site that then extracts such credit card numbers and other private data.