I'm sure you've heard that VoIP can save you lots of money in telecommunication cost, but did you know that VoIP inadvertently helps out phishers? In a current scam, phishers are sending emails to individuals asking them to dial a number and enter in personal information to get to their financial information
In the article Phishing Attacks Cast Shadow over VoIP, Cloudmark, a provider of messaging security solutions, warns that "VoIP services can reduce the costs associated with conducting such
attacks, providing the perpetrators with less risk of discovery." By using new technologies, Cloudmark has been able to identify and block these "spoofed-number attacks."
The lengths that these phishers are willing to go to deceive individuals is amazing. Adam J. O'Donnell, Ph.D., senior research scientist at Cloudmark, is quoted in the article as saying:
"We've seen two separate VoIP attacks hit our network this week, the first we've been able to analyze in detail. In these attacks, the target receives an email, ostensibly from their bank, telling them there is an issue with their account and to dial a number to resolve the problem." Callers are then connected over VoIP to a PBX (private branch exchange) running an IVR system that sounds exactly like their own bank's phone tree, directing them to specific extensions. In a VoIP phishing attack, the phone system identifies itself to the target as the financial institution and prompts them to enter account number and PIN. The result can be personally financially devastating."
