A new, disturbing twist on a spoofing scam call could do a number on you.
By now, you’ve likely heard of scams calls spoofed from a real number where that person has no clue his digits are being used. But what about seeing your own number pop up on your caller ID?
Kiara Milks got a a call Monday night from her own number, and was curious.
“So I answered and they said hey this is so and so from the phone company and I’m just calling to tell you that your account has been hacked and I want to verify a few things with you to let you know.”
Those few little things: your social security number and telephone account number.
“It definitely would be one of our top scams, spoofing, it sounds like it’s pretty easy for scammers to do. And it’s pretty easy for consumers to fall for,” said Vee Daniel with the Better Business Bureau.
She is specially concerned about seniors falling for this latest twist, one that’s blanketing the area.
“Some of my friends from church had also had an encounter last night around 10:30,” said Milks.
And through social media she found out, in recent days people have been getting that call across the Upstate.
Imposter scams, including this latest spoofing call, account for nearly 50 percent of the 1400 scams reported to the Department of Consumer Affairs last year alone.
Some other scams to watch out for right now:
– bogus job offers that try to steal your personal information.
– rental scams that post stolen photos of real homes, and make off with your down-payment.
As for Milks, they might have known her number, but she wasn’t about to let the scammers do a number on her.
“It’s kind of scary to be honest because you don’t know how many people are actually giving their account information,” she said.
