Consumer Alert: New Trick In Mobile Balance Transfer Scams
Yaser Awan posted this consumer alert about a new way of balance transfer scam. Balance transfer has been a favorite for con artists. In the first phase of balance transfer scams, the fraud was carried out through misleading text message and when one replied to such sms, that person would lose balance. Now the criminals have come up with new tricks. Many of these scams can be defeated if there is a requirement of on-screen verification by the user before the actual transfer happens. Mobilink and Telenor offer this feature. Yaser praises Telenor for adopting the safety precaution of keeping balance transfer option disabled by default.
Have you or anyone you know lost balance on their phone?
Here’s an excerpt from Yaser’s blog. Read full post for details.
The scale (of balance transfer fraud) is so big that during Warid’s balance share launch almost everyone was getting fake messages of getting their balance doubled (asking them to send messages having balance transfer string). Thanks to Warid, the service couldn’t work during initial few days and it saved us all the pain. Even though actions against these numbers involved in this fraud are taken, there is still room for minor structural changes.
Here’s how it works
- You receive a business card (also known as vcard) with a female name ( Shazia, Nazia or some name starting with letter A).
- Majority of people get curious and after saving , call the received contact.
- The received contact doesn’t have a phone number in its number field rather the balance transfer code (i.e. *100*PhoneNumber*150#).
- There you go, you have lost the balance.
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Ha Ha Ha .. what an idea.. Tharkee WE
Yaser is very right about Telenor, because whenever you will buy a new Telenor Sim Card, You need to spend atleast 175 rupees and then call 345 for activation which is free of cost ;-).