Everyone has had the experience when their phone calls and they don't know who it is, yet they still answer. The person on the other end of the call is friendly, greets you by name, and begins to inquire about your personal or financial situation.
While some unsolicited calls—like those from telemarketers—are more bothersome than dangerous, others may be frauds that cause serious financial loss or identity theft.
Because of this, exercise caution.
Here are some guidelines from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to help consumers prevent phone scams and eliminate nuisance robocalls:
• Refuse calls from unidentified numbers. If so, end the call right away.
• If the phone number on an incoming call is "spoofing," or deceptively disguised to deceive you into answering, you might not be able to tell straight away. Note: Just because Caller ID displays a local number, it doesn't guarantee that the caller is from the area. Additionally, hang up the phone if the person you expect to answer doesn't.
• Hang up if you answer the phone and the person calling—or a recording—asks you to press a button to end the call. This tactic is frequently used by con artists to locate possible victims.
• Avoid answering "yes" to any inquiries. It may be possible for con artists to capture the answer and utilize it as a voice signature to approve fictitious charges over the phone.
• Never respond to unexpected calls or provide any personal information—including account numbers, Social Security numbers, mothers' maiden names, passwords, or other identifying information—if you have any reason to suspect fraud.
• To confirm the legitimacy of a request, hang up and call the number shown on your account statement, in the phone book, or on the website of the company or government agency if you receive one from someone claiming to represent them. Generally, if a caller is requesting payment, you will receive a written statement in the mail before you receive a call from a reliable source.
• If someone is pressuring you for money or information right now, proceed with the utmost caution.
• Make sure you set a password for any voicemail accounts you may have with your phone provider. Certain voicemail providers are programmed to grant access in the event that you call from your own number. If you don't set a password, a hacker could use your home phone number to access your voicemail.
• Check into apps that you can download to your mobile device to block unsolicited calls, and speak with your phone provider about any call-blocking features it may offer.
Unwanted calls rank as the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) most common consumer complaint, and phone scams are getting more inventive and prevalent.
So remember these pointers the next time your phone calls. You should always err on the side of caution to safeguard both your identity and your pocketbook.
