VTB warned about fraudulent clones of Russian phone numbers
VTB: scammers have become more likely to call instant messengers from clones of Russian numbers
Fraudsters have become more likely to call via messengers from foreign numbers similar to Russian ones, the press service of VTB reported.
“VTB records calls from foreign numbers similar to Russian ones in order to mislead users and fraudulently gain access to their accounts. Most of these calls go through instant messengers,” the message says.
It is noted that scammers register accounts on virtual SIM cards of both Russian and foreign operators, but, as a rule, calls come from foreign numbers, for example, +84 95 ххххххх or +49 хххххх. These incoming calls from messengers are visually similar to a regular call from a Russian landline or mobile number, and on the screen of an iOS smartphone they look like a regular call from a mobile operator.
An additional danger is that most instant messengers allow you to specify any name of the subscriber when registering a number. “Scammers use this trick and sign the Central Bank, the Bank Security Service, the Investigative Committee, and so on. Clients see this on the smartphone screen during a call and start a conversation, providing the attackers with personal information,” the message says.
The bank recommended paying attention to the number of digits in a mobile phone number: Russian numbers have 11 digits, while foreign ones similar to Russian ones have more than 11. At the same time, a call from Russia begins only with 8, and from a Russian number in the international format – from +7 .
According to VTB, today every second call of scammers is accounted for by instant messengers, and by the end of the year, bank specialists predict this share will grow to 80%.
