How to protect yourself from call forwarding scams: tips and more
In the online world, with the proliferation of mobile phones in countries including India, the call forwarding scam has been around for quite some time – scammers have found new and unique ways to trick their victims.
There are a few ways you can prevent falling victim to these scams. But before we learn the ways, let’s understand how the call forwarding scam works.
According to Truecaller, scammers can call you pretending to be your mobile operator or Internet Service Provider (ISP) – claiming that your account has been compromised or that there is a problem with your SIM card. Then they may ask you to dial a specific number that starts with 401. This function activates call forwarding, allowing the scammer to access your calls and receive OTPs for your bank accounts and other sensitive information.
Follow these tips to prevent this scam:
- Users can install apps like TrueCaller to protect themselves from call forwarding scams by verifying the caller’s number. Users should avoid answering calls from unknown numbers claiming to be customer service representatives, especially numbers marked as spam or scam.
- Never dial codes or send text messages from your number if someone you don’t know asks you to, and check with your service provider before doing so.
- Never share sensitive information like OTPs with random callers who may be scammers pretending to be from your ISP or mobile network provider.
- You can also contact the authorities to report a particular scam. If you are scammed and the scammers end up forwarding your calls, contact your mobile operator (like Jio, Airtel etc) and ask for help in removing call forwarding.
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