Warning: Many Vish Swim in the Digital Sea

You’ve heard of “phishing,” in which scammers try to steal your information via computer.

Now, voice phishing, or “vishing,” is an emerging threat in which scammers seek to get your information through one of the most trusted forms of communication—the telephone.

 “The best way to prevent falling victim to a vishing scam is simple: do not give your credit-card number, verification code, PIN or other sensitive information to an unsolicited or unknown caller,” said Chief Administrative Officer Phil Stevens, who oversees the Exchange’s IT Directorate.

“You never know who’s on the other end of the line.”

Beginning with a phish

Some legit organizations use telephone calls to verify account and billing information. Consequently, some phone targets of scammers let their guards down, which they wouldn’t for emails.

“You never know who’s on the other end of the line.”

–Phil Stevens,
chief administrative officer

Many vishing attacks begin with simple phishing e-mails or phone text messages, urging recipients to call a toll-free number.

Using multiple contact methods establishes an innate sense of trust in the recipients, and makes them more likely to fall victim to the scam, Stevens warned.

Appealing to fear

Additionally, vishing appeals to a person’s feelings of urgency and fear.

The most common vishing schemes begin with an automated message: “Your account has been compromised” or “We have detected a fraudulent charge.” The recipient is told to call a number to update account information.

Going ‘bohoing’ in the night

Phishing and vishing also acquire trust of their targets by mimicking a real organization or person. This is called pretexting or bohoing.  A vishing scam can copy the caller ID information of a real organization, making the call appear legitimate.

Many voiceover IP (VoIP) services have more relaxed policies regarding caller ID than telephone companies, so vishers using these services can pretend to be anyone.