Phone porting fraud: First, scammers steal your number—then your money

It’s a nightmare scenario. You wake up, grab your phone and discover that you have no service. You can’t call or text. But you still have WiFi, so you check your email—and see a message from your bank saying someone just transferred thousands of dollars from your account to an account you’ve never heard of.

What just happened? You’ve become a victim of phone porting fraud, a rapidly growing scam in which hackers call your carrier and pretend they’re you, then ask the carrier to port your phone number over to a mobile account that they control. Or they steal your number by calling your carrier and asking for a replacement SIM card to be sent to them.

With your number in hand, scammers go to town

The scammers do their homework. To prepare, they go online and gather up your personal information, from your name, address and birth date to your pets’ names and the last four digits of your Social Security number. All of this is easily found on the internet. Or they might email or text you, claiming to be a business you’ve transacted with, and ask for “confirmation” of your personal details. Scammers with more nerve will call you directly.

Once they have your phone number, scammers can go to town. They can reset your usernames and passwords, access your bank accounts and transfer money out. They can get into your credit card accounts.

Because the scammers now have your phone number, the security measures intended to protect you from fraud now work for them. They get all the texts and calls intended for you, so they can verify any transactions they make. Sure, they’ll be asked security questions. But remember that personal information they’ve collected? Armed with this, they’re able to correctly answer a wide range of questions that might be put to them.

Here’s how to protect yourself

Take these steps to prevent port out fraud.

• Protect your account with additional security: If you don’t already have a password you use to verify your identity when you call your carrier about your account, ask your carrier to add one.
• Be alert: If you haven’t opted into email and text notifications from your bank and other financial institutions, do it now. If you get a message notifying you of a transaction you don’t recognize, contact the company that did the transaction immediately.

[For CREDO Mobile Customers Only:  CREDO Mobile will email you if port out activity is initiated on your account. Be sure to check notifications from CREDO Mobile. ]

• Don’t share too much: Scammers comb the internet, especially social media, for personal details they can use to impersonate you, like your phone number, birth date, address, names of your pets, even the make and model of your car. Don’t put any of that information online. And don’t use any of it in your username and password.
• Don’t answer: If you get a call, text or email asking you to supply personal information, don’t give it. If you think the request could be legitimate, call the company asking for your information directly.
• Move fast: If you lose service on your device, that’s the first indication your number has been ported away. So take quick action. Contact your carrier, your bank and other financial institutions. Also ask for a fraud alert on your credit card reports.

CREDO Mobile Port Lock prevents port out fraud

Port Lock is a free feature we offer to keep scammers from porting out your number behind your back.  If you’re already a CREDO Mobile customer, call us at 1-866-306-2900 and ask for Port Lock to be added to your mobile number.

If you’re not a customer, please consider joining CREDO Mobile, the only phone company that cares as much about our world as you do. To date, we’ve donated over $95 million to nonprofit groups fighting for climate action, reproductive freedom, LGBTQ+ rights and other progressive causes. Groups like Friends of the Earth, Planned Parenthood and the National LGBTQ Task Force.

Join us today and you’ll get all you want in a phone company: competitive plans, great deals on new devices and the country’s top-rated, most reliable network.

You’ll also get an easy, effective way to make a difference, just by using your phone. Because each time you do, you’ll generate donations for nonprofit groups dedicated to the causes you believe in. These donations cost you nothing—but they mean everything to the groups that rely on us.