What is VoIP Phishing? How Does It Work?

Phishing is the term used to define the attack carried out by malicious programs that breach the data privacy of individuals who end up giving up their personal data after mistakenly activating the programs. Phishing is becoming rampant for VoIP users and it has extended to such an extent that people have given it a new name: Vishing.

How Phishing Works?

Data thieves have invested an innovative way of stealing data from unsuspecting users of various digital services. Data theft is a popular way of harming an individual by getting illegal access to their personal data. There are a number of victims who gave away vital information to the data thieves without even realizing the consequences.

Phishing is a pretty simple yet powerful trick and it works something like this:

Users of VoIP and other digital service receives a voicemail or an e-mail informing that there is some kind of a problem with their PayPal, bank account, eBay etc. In order to resolve the issue, they require their personal data like credit card details, PayPal account information. Once the unsuspecting users give this information, data thieves can have a field day. There are many users who are easily tricked into providing them information pertaining to their credit cards, expiration date, security code etc. that can be easily used to create a clone of the credit cards. Users are easily robbed off their hard-earned money.

Examples of Phising Attacks

Here is a list of ways (not conclusive) that can be used to steal your personal information, in case you are the target of the phishing attack:

1. You receive a mail from eBay, PayPal or similar companies that informs you of some irregularities on your part and requests you to provide account details to resolve the issue. They also inform you that your account has been frozen and the only way to restore it is to provide them with the necessary personal information.
2. You receive a voice mail from your Internet banking company that your account password has been tampered with. They also inform that you will have to provide your personal information in order to stop the account from being misused.
3. You receive a phone call from your bank and they inform you that some fraudulent or suspicious activities have been identified on your bank account. You will have to provide your internet banking details to ward off the threats and stop the malicious activities.

VoIP and Phishing

Prior to the advent of VoIP, the Phishers targeted unsuspecting users by sending them emails or calling them up on their PSTN phones. The same trick has been now toned to target the VoIP users wherein the users often receive calls from the Phishers who ask them to furnish their personal details at the pretext of saving them from some kind of a potential financial threat.

Now, VoIP is a vulnerable communication medium as most of the users are not aware of the security threats that it is prone to. PSTN lines were much securer than the VoIP and this is why a number of Phishers are trying to use the loopholes in the communication system to target the users.

Some steps that you can take to ward off the Phishing attacks are as follows:

• Increase awareness of the threats that VoIP users are prone to. This is the easiest and the best way to protect your personal details.
• It is imperative that you do a thorough checking about the caller before furnishing them with any vital personal information.
• Use your call manager to track the calls that are repeated from unknown numbers so that you are aware about the caller prior to taking the calls.

About PhoneAM

PhoneAmerica Corporation is a leading supplier of advanced telecommunication systems for small and large business environments. A total service company, PhoneAmerica serves as a single point of contact for today’s growing communication needs, offering a wide range of telephone equipment, wiring, surveillance systems, telephone cost accounting systems, and voice processing systems.

Please call (800) 836-3601 for a free evaluation of your current system and the system you will need to carry your business into the FUTURE.