As of: April 7, 2024, 6:32 a.m
By: Nico Reiter
Comments
Press
Split
Spam callers repeatedly try to use creative tricks to obtain sensitive data. Scammers hide behind these numbers.
Bremen – Many people become cautious when calling from unknown numbers. But although awareness of phone rip-offs is increasing, fraudsters are managing to obtain sensitive data using clever tricks. A new scam aims to have callers pretend to be consumer protection centers. In the past, fraudsters had posed as consumer protection centers under the pretext of checking the electricity meter reading.
Scammers are currently pretending to be consumer protection centers on the phone (symbolic photo) © Fotostand/K. Schmitt
Scammers try to steal data: Top 5 spam phone numbers
In March 2024, spam calls (calls aimed at collecting data) fell by 12.9 percent,
Clever Dailer reports.
As more and more people know about the phone numbers, the rate at which they are blocked increases by 13.1 percent. The website names the five numbers from which spam calls most frequently originate (as of March 2024):
Top 5 Spam Phone Numbers |
Location |
069 87003110 |
Frankfurt am Main |
05681 8090264 |
Homberg Efze |
02237 6922894 |
Kerper Rhineland-Turnich |
05681 8090265 |
Homberg Efze |
+44 7762 833647 |
Mobile |
Other numbers that should not be trusted are known. However, many people still fall victim to scams. Some of the callers already have personal information and use it to increase their credibility. It is not initially known where they get this data from.
New rip-off – fraudsters pretend to have a lottery subscription and call as a consumer protection center
Now a new scam is circulating that aims to extract data from victims. The callers pretend to be employees of the consumer protection center, as revealed by
Clever Dialer
. On the phone they claim that they are deleting the victim from a lottery subscription. To do this, you would need personal data, such as bank details. Those affected are also asked to compare other information.
Some details have made those affected suspicious, as can be seen from Clever Dialer reports. Most of them were only addressed by their first names. Some people who are asked to cancel their lottery subscription have never played the lottery. A person affected from Homberg reported a call: “A male voice called Kevin Müller answered in broken German. Questionable. I was only addressed by my first name. Dubious. It was about my data relating to lottery competitions (I have not and do not do so) and its deletion.”
Even during the supposed data comparison, some of the information provided by the fraudsters was incorrect. “The caller wanted a data comparison, some of the existing data is incorrect. But what’s interesting is that they have the account details,” writes another who exposed the rip-off.
My news
Lost prototype turns up on Ukraine front: Russian army digs up “tank monster”
Long imprisonment threatens: proceedings against Scheuer regarding the toll disaster probably shortly before the decision is read
Tax return 2023: From this amount onwards, pensioners have to pay taxes
Citizen's benefit recipient receives dismissal during probationary period: boss saw him sick on social media
This is how high the pension is if you have never worked read
Founded by Romans: The oldest city in Germany is in Bayernlesen
How should consumers react to telephone scams?
The Bremen consumer advice center provides tips on its website on how to generally take action against telephone scams. The focus is on three aspects:
Recognizing the stitch.
Responding vigilantly to the call. The consumer advice center advises: “Personal data and especially no account number should never be revealed to strangers or callers who appear dubious. Very important: Do not make any promises over the phone and never transfer a requested amount to an unknown recipient.”
The action against the criminals: A criminal complaint should be filed with the police.
A senior citizen from Diepholz also outwitted the telephone scammers. She helped the police track down the criminals.
(No)