With the growth in VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technology, a new phishing trend has followed. Still coming in the form of an email, (most notably claiming to be the victim’s banking establishment) the victim is prompted to call a customer support phone number instead of clicking on a link to a look-alike site. Most people associate calling a telephone phone number as being more secure than clicking a link to a website. This false sense of security has encouraged phishers to use this method since it has great potential for victimizing a large number of people.

Using the latest low-cost and hard to trace VoIP technologies, the criminal makes his or her move. When the victim dials the local or more specific “800″ number, the VoIP provider is transferred to a VoIP server on the Internet. Here, an Interactive Voice Response System will prompt the victim to use buttons to answer some general questions and then to provide personal information. Afterwards, the victim may be put on hold “until an operator becomes free.” When no one comes, the victim generally becomes frustrated and hangs up, forgetting they have just provided highly personal information. In some instances, a person will speak with you and inform you about problems or the closing of an account if you don’t respond with the information they need to “ensure that doesn’t happen.” Either way, the criminal has collected their information and the caller has become a victim of identity theft.

To help protect yourself from this type of scam:

• Treat all unsolicited emails or calls with skepticism
• Call the establishment you are in question about, stating that you received an email and are inquiring.
• Before making a phone call, investigate unfamiliar area codes to avoid being charged an international or long distance fee for what you thought was toll free.
• Check the establishment’s Web Site and your statements or other information to match phone numbers against those in the email.
• ALWAYS report suspicious email to the FBI, Federal Trade Commission, or Anti-Phishing Working Group (all can be contacted via their individual Web Sites) to help put a stop to these scams.