SMARTPHONE owners should be on the look-out for a dangerous type of text scam.
An official EE security memo warns users of a clever con that arrives via text message.
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There are endless types of scams that can turn up in your iPhone or Android text inbox.
But one particularly nefarious scam involves getting you to make a simple phone call.
You’ll be texted a message with some kind of urgent matter, and then asked to call a number – but you must never do it.
“Don’t call the number in the text message as you may be charged at premium rate,” EE warned.
This clever trick can earn money for scammers by keeping you on a fraudulent premium phone call.
You’ll be unaware that your phone bill is slowly growing – earning quick cash for crooks.
Another version of this scam involves crooks leaving a missed call on your phone.
And when you call it back, you end up being charged.
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“If you have a missed call from a number you don’t recognise, think twice before returning the call, and check whether it is a chargeable number,” EE said.
Of course a phone number appearing in a suspicious message isn’t the only way to spot a scam.
There are plenty of signs that a message you’ve received is “spam”, according to EE.
“It asks you to provide sensitive personal or financial information, passwords, or to make transactions by following a link in the message,” EE warned.
“It asks you to call a certain number that is unknown to you. If in doubt, contact the company via a reputable source like their website or contact number on statements.
“The sender uses an urgent tone, telling you to ‘act now’.”
