Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
‘NUMBER SPOOF’ ALERT
Caller ID tech used to trick bank customers
A NEW elaborate phone scam known as “number spoofing” has hit Northern Ireland.
Fraudsters trick customers into believing they are talking to their bank by using technology to modify the number that appears on the caller ID.
A Belfast man was among those targeted in an “elaborate hoax” and received a 30-minute call on Thursday evening. It claimed to be from Danske Bank concerned about “a suspected fraudulent transaction” on his account.
His daughter said he checked the number on Google where it was listed as a legitimate Danske number.
She added: “The person originally rang my dad’s mobile number and then was able to ring IT may not have been Budapest but George Ezra rocked Belfast all the same last night.
The English singer drew thousands of happy punters to Custom House Square to kick-off the venue’s annual summer festival.
The 25-year-old had revellers on their feet right from the opening track, setting the house phone without us providing the number.
“They said [the suspicious transaction] had been caused by a virus so they would have to close the account and open a new one.”
The woman said the caller then tried to persuade her dad to transfer his money into the new account. But a mistake in the the tone for what was to follow. Rag’n’bone Man, Kasabian and Travis are among the other acts set to jet into the city for upcoming CHSQ gigs with DJ Ben Nicky on stage tonight.
They have a high standard to follow after last night’s stunning show which, by George, turned into a night to remember for everyone there. “security text” put them on alert. She added: “It was from ‘Dan ske bank’ which made it look professional, but the gap in the sender of the text made us wary.”
Danske’s fraud manager Paul Brown said: “This is a ‘number spoofing’ scam. Caller ID shouldn’t be trusted.”