The Daily Times’ phone number used as part of phishing scam: An Abney Associates Tech Blog

A phone number on a Maryville man’s caller ID that appeared to be from The Daily Times ended up being nothing more than a phishing scam.

The scam is described as con artists using techniques such as phony caller ID numbers to solicit personal information and money.

The man, who asked not to be not identified, said that he received a call early Tuesday evening from what looked to be The Daily Times, according to his caller ID. When he answered, the caller offered to give information on how to reduce his credit card rate.

The man was suspicious and ended the call. When he called the number back, the number was not in service.

He then paid a visit to The Daily Times and showed them the number on his phone. They informed him that the caller definitely did not represent the newspaper.

According to Scambusters.org, the callers are able to convince victims that they’re receiving a call from a bank or credit card company, and try to acquire sensitive personal and financial information, or even money, from their victims.

Scammers’ philosophy

The philosophy of the scammers is that few people would think that the names and phone numbers appearing on their caller ID screens were not genuine. Therefore, scammers are already using phony caller IDs and are posing as representatives of banks and credit card companies.

The Internet offers a number of legal online services that supply fake caller ID numbers.

Internet sites, email accounts and regular mail are also used regularly as part of phishing scams.

“I get hounded with these calls from telemarketers from India and Timbuktu and everywhere else,” the man said Wednesday. “I always look on my caller ID, and I just hang up because it’s something I don’t want to hear.

“I looked to see the number and saw ‘Daily Times,’ the man continued. “Since it was a Maryville number, I thought it should be legitimate. I answered the call, and someone who wanted to give me a deal where my interest rate would be lower. I’ve never paid interest in my life. I saved the number and took my phone to the (Daily Times) office. I thought they should know about it.”

Source: Thedailytimes.com