Chances are you’ve been the victim of a scam phone call before, but in case you haven’t, or it’s been a while, CTV News Toronto’s Pat Foran was recently on the end of one himself and decided to hit record.
A popular scam going around right now sees criminals impersonating Amazon employees pretending the customer they’re calling has an expensive order on their Amazon account that they never made.
This week, Foran got a phone call from someone claiming his credit card had been compromised and he needed to act immediately.
“Thank you for reaching Amazon. This is Kevin how can I help you?,” the scam caller asked.
“I got a call saying there’s something wrong with my Amazon card,” Foran responded. “I think it said I ordered an iPhone, but I didn’t do that.”
The caller then said they needed Foran’s personal information and a six-digit authorization code they sent to his phone.
“Right now, I’m going to send you the six-digit verification code into your text messages,” the person on the other end told Foran.
“I don’t think I’m supposed to give out codes that are sent to me,” he responded.
“I’m supposed to verify the code first. There is a main reason I’ve sent you the code,” the scammer replied.
Eventually, Foran told the person on the phone he thought the call was part of a scam. That’s when the caller got offended and used vulgar language before hanging up.
“I think you’re a scammer,” Foran said.
“All right, you are a motherf*****. You are,” the scammer said before he disconnected the call.
Staying safe from scam calls
Cybersecurity expert Ritesh Kotak told Consumer Alert that people looking to hack into user accounts may have already harvested some information from the dark web.
“Once hackers are able to get access to your account they are able to make purchases that can be shipped to various locations,” said Kotak.
To avoid phone scams, Kotak advises to be wary of calls with a false sense of urgency, those seeking personal information, those asking for banking, credit card or login credentials, or ones that claim there are unexpected orders that need to be cancelled.
“They are trying to gain authorized access into your accounts and when you give that code to verify your identity, you are really giving fraudsters access to your accounts,” said Kotak.
Scammers could also call saying they’re with Revenue Canada, a bank, or that someone’s won a free trip or prize.
Anyone concerned a call could be illegitimate should hang up and call the company back at a number sourced and found on your own.
It’s also best not to pick-up if an unknown number calls, because it shows the phone number is active, which could lead to more scam calls.
