Think of all the scam calls you ever had... perhaps more than 99% of them are often detectible within seconds just due to the usual sounds of delay, bad line, foreign accent, unbelievable company and personal names used, language and mispronunciation.
But there seems to be a rise in a type of scam call made by Brits targeting Brits...
Some of them are very sophisticated and professional scam calls with what seem to be clear UK accents without voice changers, i.e. Their true voices are used openly to enhance the trust value in the call.
I know what you are thinking. You can spot one a mile away and will never get done. I thought the same until I recently had one...
I was off guard. Right in the middle of something and tired. Whilst none of that is an excuse, I can't tell you why but I went along with the call from "Halifax". He seemingly knew a lot about me. Spoke with a Scottish accent - common when dealing with Halifax / RBS call centres - and was very, very professional. I was genuinely convinced I was on the phone to Halifax. Had my address and card details - most likely harvested from an online breach/hack, more on this later* - and just before calling me, had sent a couple of texts about online breaches. I just saw the breaches pop up as I went to answer the call from an unknown number. I don't usually even pick up unknowns at all, but they rang twice in quick succession and with the texts as well, I thought I best pick up. During the call I then got other texts from the ACTUAL Halifax about setting up my card on googleplay and some other random places in Europe. Here's the thing though, they talk you through these "breeches" and what to do, in order to basically get you to give up pass codes etc. The multitude of texts got confusing and it all helps you to simply follow instructions and mix the fake up with the ACTUAL Halifax ones that get generated. He knew the text system well and used language and scripts extremely realistic like a true bank teller, doing "security checks" in a very similar manner. I would almost say it was like he was an ex teller.
In some of the scams, the fraudsters are able to convince people that a new current account is being made for them and that they need to transfer all of their money over to the new one. Whilst these sound laughably obvious, the manner in which they talk this through and convince people with calm, professionalism is actually quite scary. Many elders will fall for this.
It seems these organised crime groups are growing in size.
I was lucky and caught it just in time. What gave it away... asking me to read back codes and him asking me to answer YES it was me otherwise the account would get "fully locked down" etc. When I said I'll call my bank back he hung up, which confirmed it.
What should I have done and others too?
Don't pick up unknown numbers.
If you do treat carefully and immediately establish who and why they are calling. Ask several questions.
Do the above anyway even if it pops up with your bank name or a saved contact as your bank. Treat all calls MADE TO YOU as suspicious.
Even if you do feel it could legitimately be your bank, or someone important and you fear for the safety of something financial to you, hang up and phone them yourself, finding the number yourself, possibly even using a different device. Call a friend first to ensure you can establish a good line first without your calls being redirected by a scammer.
Never read back anything from a text (especially codes) or reply to any texts. Even the YES it was me or NO it wasn't ones. If any confusion, just ring your bank for advice. Don't login on any device until you've rang your bank.
*Card details harvest
The card details obtained have only been used at a small number of places in the last couple of months. (Less than 10).
I have a suspicion as to what vendor it could have been but can't prove it. I think it could be a compromised website. The website shows as secure but I know this doesn't mean it is not compromised. I won't link to the website as I don't want to bring harm to them if it is not them. It's somewhere I never bought before, UK based smaller specialist business.
The below youtube video shows an example of one guy who has a channel dedicated to this kind of thing it seems. The scammer he speaks to he ends up calling out, scammer gets initially annoyed, but then actually chats to him for a bit claiming this is him "working". There's another one, with a very convincing UK accent "Lucy" who does a similar one.
TLDR = When off guard and not thinking straight, a lot could fall for these by forgetting to hang up and ring back yourself. I haven't had a scam call in so long that I forgot basic ****. The vids online are the less convincing, "let's setup a mirror account ones", but these gangs do other better ones like the one I got just asking you to verify codes to STOP the unauthorized stuff, which is in fact them trying to make the transactions whilst on the phone to you.
But there seems to be a rise in a type of scam call made by Brits targeting Brits...
Some of them are very sophisticated and professional scam calls with what seem to be clear UK accents without voice changers, i.e. Their true voices are used openly to enhance the trust value in the call.
I know what you are thinking. You can spot one a mile away and will never get done. I thought the same until I recently had one...
I was off guard. Right in the middle of something and tired. Whilst none of that is an excuse, I can't tell you why but I went along with the call from "Halifax". He seemingly knew a lot about me. Spoke with a Scottish accent - common when dealing with Halifax / RBS call centres - and was very, very professional. I was genuinely convinced I was on the phone to Halifax. Had my address and card details - most likely harvested from an online breach/hack, more on this later* - and just before calling me, had sent a couple of texts about online breaches. I just saw the breaches pop up as I went to answer the call from an unknown number. I don't usually even pick up unknowns at all, but they rang twice in quick succession and with the texts as well, I thought I best pick up. During the call I then got other texts from the ACTUAL Halifax about setting up my card on googleplay and some other random places in Europe. Here's the thing though, they talk you through these "breeches" and what to do, in order to basically get you to give up pass codes etc. The multitude of texts got confusing and it all helps you to simply follow instructions and mix the fake up with the ACTUAL Halifax ones that get generated. He knew the text system well and used language and scripts extremely realistic like a true bank teller, doing "security checks" in a very similar manner. I would almost say it was like he was an ex teller.
In some of the scams, the fraudsters are able to convince people that a new current account is being made for them and that they need to transfer all of their money over to the new one. Whilst these sound laughably obvious, the manner in which they talk this through and convince people with calm, professionalism is actually quite scary. Many elders will fall for this.
It seems these organised crime groups are growing in size.
I was lucky and caught it just in time. What gave it away... asking me to read back codes and him asking me to answer YES it was me otherwise the account would get "fully locked down" etc. When I said I'll call my bank back he hung up, which confirmed it.
What should I have done and others too?
Don't pick up unknown numbers.
If you do treat carefully and immediately establish who and why they are calling. Ask several questions.
Do the above anyway even if it pops up with your bank name or a saved contact as your bank. Treat all calls MADE TO YOU as suspicious.
Even if you do feel it could legitimately be your bank, or someone important and you fear for the safety of something financial to you, hang up and phone them yourself, finding the number yourself, possibly even using a different device. Call a friend first to ensure you can establish a good line first without your calls being redirected by a scammer.
Never read back anything from a text (especially codes) or reply to any texts. Even the YES it was me or NO it wasn't ones. If any confusion, just ring your bank for advice. Don't login on any device until you've rang your bank.
*Card details harvest
The card details obtained have only been used at a small number of places in the last couple of months. (Less than 10).
I have a suspicion as to what vendor it could have been but can't prove it. I think it could be a compromised website. The website shows as secure but I know this doesn't mean it is not compromised. I won't link to the website as I don't want to bring harm to them if it is not them. It's somewhere I never bought before, UK based smaller specialist business.
The below youtube video shows an example of one guy who has a channel dedicated to this kind of thing it seems. The scammer he speaks to he ends up calling out, scammer gets initially annoyed, but then actually chats to him for a bit claiming this is him "working". There's another one, with a very convincing UK accent "Lucy" who does a similar one.
TLDR = When off guard and not thinking straight, a lot could fall for these by forgetting to hang up and ring back yourself. I haven't had a scam call in so long that I forgot basic ****. The vids online are the less convincing, "let's setup a mirror account ones", but these gangs do other better ones like the one I got just asking you to verify codes to STOP the unauthorized stuff, which is in fact them trying to make the transactions whilst on the phone to you.
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