Scotia Accounting

There have been some breakthroughs. In recent headlines, the man behind a major lottery phone scam—with origins in Jamaica—Lavrick Willocks, was sentenced in the U.S. to six years federal prison and ordered to pay US$1.5 million in restitution. According to the FBI, there are hundreds of victims—including Canadians, and many elderly [See Seniors too ashamed to report financial fraud, say experts]—who were convinced they had won millions of dollars, and could claim their prize if they wired over a processing fee.

It’s no surprise for the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC). According to the CAFC, almost 22,000 complaints were received in 2017 about direct call scams with  more than $21-million being reported lost. That’s up 33 per cent since 2015. And this number is likely on the low-side, as CAFC estimates that only five per cent of mass marketing fraud victims actually report the incident. [See 5 scams that took the lost money out of Canadian pockets last year]

“Regardless of where the scam is coming from, the key thing is to be on top of what scams are happening,” says RCMP Sgt. Guy Paul Larocque, acting officer in charge for CAFC. “The more you know, the better equipped you are to not follow through. Education is the best way to combat the issue.”

So how can you protect yourself? Read on for a few trending phone scams and how to avoid getting duped.

THE SCAM: CAN YOU HEAR ME?

Callers pose as service providers (think mortgage lenders or utility companies) and ask, “Can you hear me?”, shortly after the call is answered. The caller records the recipient’s response “yes” and hangs up. Jackpot! They’ve got what they need—a voice signature that can be used to authorize fraudulent charges to personal accounts and credit cards via telephone where voice authentication is permitted. (Yes, the scammer may have already obtained personal information such as credit card numbers or account information, which is used with the voice recording to authorize charges.)

The voice recording can also be used to facilitate “cramming”, a form of fraud which commonly occurs when telephone service providers permit third-party vendors to add charges to customers’ bills. As a result, the victim’s phone number is treated like a credit or debit card for the “fake” vendor. Unauthorized charges usually appear as additional features to a mobile phone or payment for services like daily horoscopes. For scammers, it’s as easy as picking an active number from a telephone directory.

The use of a voiceprint by scammers is likely to increase, say experts, with the advancement and introduction of voice biometrics software as a form of identity verification.

“Just using the technology as a new option to satisfy the customer is not enough,” says Dr. Arash Habibi Lashkari, assistant professor and R&D co-ordinator for the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity (CIC), faculty of computer science at the University of New Brunswick. “We should think about the security as well, which is one of the main issues.” [See When choosing AI, think of the client’s privacy first, says expert Chantal Bernier]

FRAUD PREVENTION TIPS:

• Don’t answer any calls from unknown numbers. Let it go to voicemail.
• If you do answer the call, do not respond to any questions asked by a recorded voice, or a live voice. If you are asked “Am I speaking with Mr. or Mrs/Ms. (insert your name) do not say “yes”, “yes, this is” or any variation of, but instead, hang up or ask who it is that is calling you? From there, be wary of saying anything further, and do not provide any personal information.
• Be vigilant about checking your bill statements to ensure there aren’t any suspicious or unknown charges.