Anti-spam system
Vodafone warns of fraudulent calls ahead of Christmas
It’s ringing, an unfamiliar number on the phone is unknown – will you answer it? If so, there may be someone who doubts it. Cell phone providers urge caution.
To ensure that mobile phone users do not fall victim to fraudsters, mobile network operator Vodafone has sent out massive warning messages. “Attention: possible fraud!” The Düsseldorf company announced that it was featured on mobile phones on around 41 million calls in Germany between late April and mid-November. There are an average of about 210,000 alerts per day. Recently, the number of daily warning messages has increased slightly. This warning is intended to ensure that those called are careful and do not reveal any personal information or even allow themselves to be persuaded to hand over money. Police also warned against fraudulent calls.
This is mainly about foreign numbers, but also German numbers. In most cases, the person you are calling doesn’t even answer the call. Based on information, the reception rate for the 41 million warning messages was only 12 percent. For comparison: According to Vodafone, the acceptance rate for anonymous calls – that is, calls without a number appearing on the screen – is 60 percent.
The risk of fraud increases as Christmas approaches
“The threat of fraud on the internet and telephone is everywhere,” said Vodafone Germany boss Marcel de Groot. Technology can protect against this. “But this is also clear: That is not enough – in everyday life we all have to pay close attention to who we are dealing with on the other end of the phone.” As Christmas approaches, when there are usually more fraud attempts, managers warn to be careful. “Especially in the lead up to Christmas, this means: To protect yourself, it is important to remain vigilant, not reveal any personal information and ignore suspicious calls or messages.”
When issuing warnings, Vodafone uses its own database that stores questionable numbers. For example, there are hotlines that intrusively advertise products and services even though they do not have the consumer’s consent to make the call. Criminals also include callers who want to know personal information during a conversation or want money for unclear reasons.
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Competitors do not yet offer warning systems
These figures are reported to telecommunications companies, among others, by those contacted. However, Vodafone’s database of scam numbers does not claim to be complete – as fraudsters frequently change numbers, it is possible that in future calls from them may not trigger a scam alert and Vodafone customers are not warned.
All mobile phone users whose mobile phone contract partners use the Vodafone network are warned – not only Vodafone itself, but also companies such as 1&1, whose customers in most parts of Germany are connected to Vodafone antennas as part of a national roaming contract. Rivals Deutsche Telekom and O2 Telefónica have not activated spam warning systems for mobile phone customers.
Consumers may submit complaints about misuse of telephone numbers to the Federal Network Agency. Vodafone is only allowed to block German phone numbers on the orders of the Bonn supervisory authority. But if the number comes from abroad, things get tricky: The Federal Network Agency then contacts the responsible foreign authority, but rarely anything happens after that.
Reporting options to the Federal Network Agency
dpa
