Picture this: you’re on your phone and you receive a seemingly exciting text. Congratulations! You’ve won a $1000 Walmart gift card. Click on this link to claim now! How lucky of you to be chosen for this prestigious Walmart gift card. Think of all the possibilities of things you could buy with $1000 at Walmart! And the only barrier between you and the $1000 gift card is a simple click of a link. It’s so tempting, but something tells you that you probably shouldn’t click the link. Yet, the temptation and anticipation are far too high. So, you do what any sensible person would do and you click the link. To your (slight) surprise, you, unfortunately, have not won $1000 from Walmart, but rather the link may prompt you to enter your personal information. A classic example of phishing, but you may have only noticed it until you filled out the form…
Most of us experienced technology users and cynics would immediately delete the message and move on with our days. But some people would unknowingly click on the link, provide their personal information, and face the multitude of consequences that come with giving your information online to hackers.
Spam calls have been on the rise in the past few years. According to CNBC, “the average number of spam texts a person receives per month is 16.9, up from 14.7 in 2020, 10.6 in 2019 and 8.5 in 2018.” And with the increase in these spam calls, “nearly 60 million Americans (23%), a record-high, lost money to phone scams. Each scam resulted in an average loss of $500, totaling about $30 billion overall.”
Of course, with the increased sophistication of technology and the improved creativity of hackers, people are more susceptible to hacking. Gone are the days that the “Nigerian prince” will ask for your bank account details because they’re in trouble. These days, hackers resort to more seemingly-normal scenarios, posing to be “customer service personnel, department stores, big-name enterprises like Apple or Amazon or major phone carriers like T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T.” If not spam texts, hackers also employ spam calls from car insurance companies, banks, the IRS, and other accredited organizations.
Although hackers are smart, you can always be smarter. Here are some ways to protect yourself from phishing scams and prevent you from losing personal information.
- Don’t pick up sketchy phone calls.
If you receive a suspicious phone call from an unknown number, let the call go to voicemail. If the caller leaves a voicemail that seems legitimate, call them back!
- Do not click on suspicious links
If you receive a strange text from a customer service hotline, a large company, a bank, or other consumer facing businesses, report it to the Federal Trade Commission.
- Sign up for the FTC’s “Do not call” list
Signing up for this list should allow you to not receive service/telemarketing calls and allows you to report any unwanted calls.
- Download a spam blocking app
Today, there are many apps available for download on the App Store and Google Play. Some examples of apps are Truecaller or Whoscall, which help you identify spam calls.
- Contact your phone carrier
Often, mobile carriers will have an implementation of a framework called STIR/SHAKEN. This will monitor calls and try to mitigate the number of spam calls you receive.
If you’ve already fallen victim to a scam, don’t worry. Immediately contact your state’s Consumer Protection Office. Make sure to keep evidence of the text, voicemail, or call, as this will be the evidence that will support your case.
Technically Speaking is an Opinion culture column used to discuss topics relating to technology, such as pop culture, trends, social media, or other relevant subject matter.
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