Vishing
Voice phishing, or vishing, is a technique used by scammers who pose as a representative of a public authority, a company or a bank. The caller will often claim to be calling in order to help the victim, say the matter is urgent and try to gain the victim’s trust.
The aim of the scammer is to get the victim to use their online banking credentials or to reveal them during the call. The purpose of the vishing call is to access the victim’s online bank in order to transfer money or to get the victim to confirm payments with their online banking credentials or transfer money to a ‘safe account’.
Safe account scams
Safe account scams are a form of vishing where scammers try to get you to move your money to a ‘safe account’. The caller may pretend to be from a collection agency, public authority or bank. Before the call, you may get a phishing message in which the scammer attempts to steal your online banking credentials and potentially other sensitive information.
The scammer will claim that your money is at risk and that you need to transfer it somewhere safe. They will attempt to manipulate you into transferring the money to another bank account and even installing remote access software on your computer. In reality, this ‘safe account’ is controlled by the criminals. Banks, public authorities and other organisations will never ask you to move your money to such bank accounts.
Tech support scam
Tech support scams involve a phone call from scammers claiming to be working for a well-known tech company, such as Microsoft. The scammers will often speak in English.
The victim is told that their computer has possibly been infected with a virus and it must be cleaned. During the phone call, remote access software is installed on the victim’s computer. At the end of the call, the victim must pay for the service, but will be charged hundreds or even thousands of euros from their account.
The National Cyber Security Centre Finland and the police have warned about tech support scams, urging people to be vigilant.
Tips on how to avoid vishing scams:
- Never reveal your personal online banking credentials or account details over the phone even if the caller demands it or claims to be asking for them for your own security.
- Remember that representatives of the police, your bank or the authorities will never call to ask you for your online banking credentials.
- Vishing calls may also come from Finnish phone numbers. If a call seems suspicious, you should hang up. You can verify with the customer service of the service provider in question whether they have tried to contact you.
- Large companies such as Microsoft don’t call their customers. If you receive a phone call from someone claiming to be a Microsoft employee, you should hang up.
- If there are problems with your computer, contact the technical support for the device.
- Never allow anyone to install remote access software on your computer or phone. The authorities and trustworthy companies don’t use them as part of their customer service.
- Never move your money to a ‘safe account’. Hang up the call and contact your bank.
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