Companies almost never make unsolicited phone calls to their customers. So,
in theory, it should be easy to avoid being defrauded this way.
Unfortunately, scammers can be well rehearsed in making you believe that
their phone call to you is a special case: that on this particular
occasion, they really are who they claim to be. They’re good at keeping you
talking and gaining your trust, and will make the situation sound urgent so
you don’t have time to take a step back and start doubting their
authority.
Examples
Some common scams that begin with a phone call include:
- The caller says they’re from a well-known technology company, like
Microsoft or Apple, and that your computer is at risk or has some other
fault. After tricking you into allowing them remote access to your
computer, they show you irrelevant errors and warnings to back up their
false claim. In the end, they ask for money to put things right. To
reiterate: Microsoft and Apple simply don’t call their customers like
that; these calls are always bogus.
- The caller says they’re from your Internet provider, and that your
connection is faulty or even that it’s been used illegally. They might try
to overwhelm you with technical jargon. Again, none of what they say is
true; and their goal is to have you pay for a ‘solution’ to a non-existant
problem.
- The caller says they’re from Amazon. They say that your Prime membership
is due for renewal, and that it’s a reduced price if you pay now over the
phone. Or they say they’re investigating a fraudulent purchase on your
account. The scammer’s goal might be to access your Amazon account and
make a fraudulent purchase themselves.
Coincidences
Sometimes, a scammer will get lucky by mentioning something that does apply
to you. For example:
- They’ll say they’ve noticed your broadband has been slow recently.
Broadband faults aren’t uncommon, and people often think their connection
ought to be faster, so this can make convincing bait for a scam.
- They’ll start with “You know those roadworks near your house…”, and go
on to say they’re from the utility company and have been asked to
compensate you for the inconvenience. There might well happen to be
roadworks in your neighbourhood on the day the scammer calls!
Number spoofing
Scammers may ‘spoof’ their caller ID to be that of a genuine organisation.
The telephone system was not designed to prevent this sort of behaviour, so
it’s possible to receive a scam call that shows up as the number of a
company you trust.
For example, a scammer pretending to be from your bank might ask you to
look on the back of your debit card where, sure enough, you’ll find the same
phone number they appear to be calling from.
Summary
Remember: whenever you receive an unsolicited phone call about a problem
with one of your devices or accounts, or where the caller asks for private
information, you should assume it’s a scam.
In the unlikely event you hang up on a genuine caller, you’ll find out
sooner or later via other means. Equally, a genuine caller shouldn’t be
offended if you’re initially doubtful and challenge their authenticity, or
take steps to verify that what they’re saying is true.