COSENZA – “Chi mom! My phone is broken. This is my new mobile number, send me a message on Whatsapp! A thousand thanks’. But not just the mother, since in the scam message the person could be the father! In both cases, pay close attention to these SMS that arrived “from alleged children” which invite you to call back on a new number: it is a scam that peaked between October and December last year but for some time now it seems to have struck again. There have been several reports, for example, in recent days in Cosenza. One arrived at our editorial office. These are criminals who usually target elderly people as in the case of the fake accident or fake members of the police force.
How the SMS scam works
As we have seen people receive an SMS message on their cell phones which invites unsuspecting people to send a message to the new phone number. The hacker hides, therefore, behind the figure of the alleged son, justifying the new number for theft phone/number not working/other and convincing you of their identity. After a while, a contact request follows via a messaging app (usually WhatsApp) with which you ask for a sum of money. The aim of the scammers is always the same: to put pressure on the sensitivity of those who do not understand that it is a scam to steal money. In some cases the scam includes a message with a link attached: if the victims click vThey are redirected to scammers who, posing as their children, ask for personal data or help paying bills or university feesie, taking advantage of the trust and concern of parents.
What to do
LThe first thing to do is obviously not to call suspicious numbers and do not click links that we are not fully aware of ignoring the received SMS message. Then, immediately call a relative or friend, or to verify situations that appear dubious or anomalous and immediately report it to the postal police on 112 providing the fake scam telephone number that has reached you.
The State Police advises “to Always check with family members before replying to messages like “Mom I lost my phone, this is my new number” or “Hi dad, I dropped my phone. This is my new number. Please, can you send me a WhatsApp?”. In any case mNever send your IBAN or sensitive data when you are not sure of the identity of the person on the other end of the phone.”
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