FBI Warns of “Vishing” Attacks – Scammers Using VoIP to Call You and Get Your Private Information

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The FBI is warning of an increase in what have come to be known as “vishing attacks” – where scammers call someone on the telephone, but make the call using VoIP, which not only is much more difficult to trace, but allows the scammer to spoof the phone number from which they are calling (making the number which shows up on the caller I.D. appear to be from someone else – or from the number that the scammer is about to ask you to call to provide them with your personal information).

Warns the FBI:

“Are you one of many who have received an e-mail, text message, or telephone call, purportedly from your credit card/debit card company directing you to contact a telephone number to re-activate your card due to a security issue? The IC3 has received multiple reports on different variations of this scheme known as “vishing”. These attacks against US financial institutions and consumers continue to rise at an alarming rate.

Vishing operates like phishing by persuading consumers to divulge their Personally Identifiable Information (PII), claiming their account was suspended, deactivated, or terminated. Recipients are directed to contact their bank via telephone number provided in the e-mail or by an automated recording. Upon calling the telephone number, the recipient is greeted with “Welcome to the bank of …” and then requested to enter their card number in order to resolve a pending security issue.

For authenticity, some fraudulent e-mails claim the bank would never contact customers to obtain the PII by any means, including e-mail, mail, and instant messenger. These e-mails further warn recipients not to provide sensitive information when requested in an e-mail and not to click on embedded links, claiming they could contain “malicious software aimed at capturing login credentials.”

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Please beware; spam e-mails may actually contain malicious code (malware) which can harm your computer. Do not open any unsolicited e-mail and do not click on any links provided.

A new version recently reported involved the sending of text messages to cell phones claiming the recipient’s on-line bank account has expired. The message instructs the recipient to renew their on-line bank account by using the link provided.

Due to rapidly evolving criminal methodologies, it is impossible to include every scenario. Therefore, be cognizant and protect your PII. Beware of e-mails, telephone calls, or text messages requesting your PII.

If you have a question concerning your account or credit/debit card, you should contact your bank using a telephone number obtained independently such as; from your statement, a telephone book, or another independent means.

If you have received this, or a similar hoax, please file a complaint at www.ic3.gov.”

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40 thoughts on “FBI Warns of “Vishing” Attacks – Scammers Using VoIP to Call You and Get Your Private Information

  1. 716-293-1345
    VM from “Gary” telling me to call him back by end of day because “they” are making a decision by the end of the day and he needs to help me navigate through it. Whoever “they” are..I don’t care. Not calling back. Google search shows company is Broadvox Clec LLC. Noppppe.

  2. Got a voice message from Neutral Tandem (719)666-3592 claiming I had to call a phone to arrange for a package delivery.

  3. Received several calls from Neutral-Tandem, LLC, using 1-(860)419-1123 , playing a recorded message stating I owed them $299 that would be deducted from my checking acct ending in XXXX , with my current banknwhich sounded legitimate. Supposed to be for renewal of software protection pkg that was expiring.

  4. I recieved a call from 716 929 6203, being originated thru my search as Broadvox Clec, Inc. I guess this is a new one. I had my cell phone off and left a voicemail saying they were interested in buying a property I might be the owner and pay cash, but needed more information. They did not say who they were. I did not call back. Investor or not people on the phone say who they are and what is their company or who they represent. Be afraid, be very afraid. I usually get a lot of robocalls too, but this one is scary. Can you imagen I give them my private information and then I see one of my houses being sold on ebay, craigslist, etc. Happy Holloween!

  5. Received call from unknown, told to call 409-204-5906 and asked first and middle name and gave last 4 of SS number!! I was Told by authoritative sounding caller that there was a civil complaint filed and son needed to call for his Summons…
    Looked up number and it is registered as
    neural tandem – Santa Fe Texas
    Landline
    Scary !!! SCAM
    Do NOT call

  6. I have my car for sale on Craigslist.

    I received this e-mail:
    “Still for sale text me back on my number +1 2132958401”

    I did not recognize this as a local number so I did a reverse lookup:

    Reverse Phone Information
    (213) 295-8401

    LOS ANGELES, CA
    Type: Landline
    City, State: Los Angeles:da 07, CA
    County/Parish: Los Angeles
    ZIP Code: 90015
    Carrier: NEUTRAL TANDEM

  7. Call from Neutral Tandem Massachusetts 857-289-0501
    Phoney debt collector robocall asking me to call them.
    I hung up.
    Do not call what ever number they give, once you do that they will hound you, I would think.

  8. NEW SCAM PLOY? Received TWO post cards from Broadvox requesting contact to collect
    “Texas public agency” overcharge. One from Houston address; one from Austin.
    NO out of pocket expense — provide ID info — our FEE is paid from refund you
    collect.

    One card from Consumer Refund Associates (Houston)

    The other from Texas Refund Assistance (Austin)

    Area code 361 phone number and 866 toll free number respectively.

  9. Phillip from Ross, CA in Marin County matched up with me on an online dating site. He contacted me using 628-500-3443. Spokeo research says this is a landline in San Rafael, CA and the provider is Neutral Tandem (a VOIP text messaging service associated with scams). Red flags were (1) immediately wanted off online dating site (2) Kept repeating his questions to me (3) quickly started using terms of endearment like “babe”, “dear” and “Beautiful”. (4)After just small talk, he quickly said I would make the perfect wife, mother, etc. (5) He has a military job he can’t go into detail about (6) he has NO family, other than a daughter. I called him on his scam after he ignored my questions on his last name and he tried to deny it.

  10. Scam alert. Don’t answer this number: 3022025571. They claim to be from the IRS. Said I owed money because I hadn’t paid my taxes and they were sending the police. I called the number back. It is a call center. Big scam.

  11. I’ve been dealing with this crap for years. Been scammed, I’ve had phone #’s call me that are almost identical to my cell #, Had email from every crook around, had johnson $ johnson run a commercial using my business 877 # 100 calls a day when that happened, I get minimum 10 calls from Google a day, and all these other scamers want to record you just so you say YES. All these scams and the people that let this happen are just screwing all of us dry. hrs during the work day every day are killing the small mom and pop shops. Something needs to be done.

  12. Has anyone been scammed by Neutral Tandem Florida LLC? Please reply if you have been scammed

  13. I got a call from the IRS saying I had red flags on my tax return and if I didn’t contact them immediately they were going to have the police raid my house. I called the number and I think it was picked up in India. I asked for their address. The lady asked why and I told her that I was sending it to the FBI. She hung up quickly. So I called again and a different person answered. I called a total of 10 times acting like different people. All 10 owed the same amount. 7800.00. Don’t fall for it. Number is 845-445-3682.

  14. Getting calls from 317-644-6786 saying im being sued by the irs LMAO! they do no tlike all my call backs asking why thare scamming!

  15. Also have received email stating that my “Gmail account has expired”. Just the usual BS. Be very careful with these kinds of scams. They are (as you said) getting very clever. Just because I’m over 70 does not mean I am stupid. (I do worry a little that as I get even older I may fall for some of this crap)

  16. Keep receiving a phone call almost daily from a group claiming they are CENTURYLINK. Just looked up this number today and found out they are a scam using viop. Nobody in the family answers these calls, In fact, we sometimes slam the receiver down. But, they don’t get the hint.

  17. (505)207-6846 – I keep receiving calls from this number. I won’t answer because I don’t have this number saved. They never leave a message so I looked it up and it comes up as Neutral Tandem c/o Inteliquent inc, One South Wacker Drive, Suite 200
    Chicago, IL 60606, phone # 866-388-7258.

  18. 3018049271.. phone number keeps calling me from a COUNTRY NSRY.in MD, Pennsylvania. I have no idea what they want put the keep calling me asking me for information from other numbers the company is called broad-vox CLEC oh yeah and woke up this morning with another phony collections account added to my credit report.

  19. 3202004249. This number is associated with broadwith. This person claims to be Tiger Woods.
    I think this person is one of those “romance scammers” the Internet is reporting. They text to women they troll on the social sites. They pick one & start texting to start a relationship but after a while began to ask for money for some problem he is experiencing; ask for iTune card; or as for you to give mailing address to receive some package/briefcase/luggage by shipping to your address or pick up at airport. Then say he needs some fee amount to complete the shopping process. It’s all about getting your money! Or bank info or debit card info or gift cards. (Read more on Internet under “romance scammers”

  20. Received a call today from what he said was the IRS 601-228-4511 saying that I was being investigated for fraud and that I should return the call or risk being arrested. I called Verizon and they said it was through Natural Tandem out of Centerville, Miss.

  21. After many phone calls, approx 100 in the last 6-8 months, I became exasperated and angry. The second one today, I stayed on the line for “credit card services”. They asked if my phone number was 404 761 3165. I told them no and gave a phony one. Probably caller ID could have alerted them but they went on. They asked if I had a visa Capital One,They said that they could lower the interest rate on my card and asked if it was over 10%, I said it was 11.6 but also said it was a Mastercard not a Cap 1 They said that was fine. . They asked for the expiration date, I gave them 7/21, that must have done it because they hung up. I called the number back and got directly back into the same merry-go-round, but this let me know that unlike spoofed numbers this one could be called back. I attempted several reverse look up services with no luck, then looked up the “carrier” for the number and came up with “Neutral Tandem” looking up Neutral Tandem, I found a subsidiary that looked promising, Inteliquent. I called their customer service line and immediately was asked if I wanted a lower rate on my credit card, and I assumed that the circle was closed. I considered that the. I still assumed that it was possible that the who thing was spoofed and there was no such company. I called from a cell phone with an ID Block and asked that I be removed from their call list and was told that they were not marketing they were just lowering interest rates. I did a search and found the building that they are listed in is at 550 West Adams St Suite 900 Chicago Il 80202 and is owned by USG, at least USG has headquarters there and management came up as Telos. I also spoke with the FBI, hoping that they might be able to cross link some of the information , and I called you and verified what I suspected , that you don’t have third parties making such calls, specifically Capital one as targets.

  22. Got a phone call from some robocall that when I checked seems to be Neutral Tandem VoIP in Seattle. Maybe if the FBI charged these VoIP companies every time they issued a number to scammers it would put a dent into these stupid annoying calls (this one was from some unknown company trying to claim I’d won a $1200 travel voucher) and when I asked what company it reset the robomessage…. I hate these asshats.

  23. I keep getting calls from 701-809-0997, I researched this and it refers to Neutral Tandem VoIP in North Dakota. They don’t leave a message, and I’m reluctant to call back for fear they are using an auto-dialer and calling back would confirm that it is a valid number. Neutral Tandem VoIP has a history of being related to scammers

  24. I’m a Building Contractor in Florida, I received a text during the weekend from (971)512-9232 a person named Tom Clark asking if I do kitchen/bathroom remodel, and if I do accept credit cards, I said yes, but I asked to call me back on Monday, he asked about what credit card machine I did have, I did not answer that question, he said that he was diagnosed with some type of cancer and could not show me the house and the ex-owner was going to do this, and he needed to get the job done before he was coming back home, guess what? First thing Monday morning got another text, asking how I was doing and he wanted to know again about the credit card, and sent me a web page to setup an account, I told him that I have a lot work to do and did’t have time for that “BS” and was not interested on it.
    I’m still waiting for the response.
    BEWARE

  25. I also got the same Tom Clark text from 971-512-9232 asking about my credit card terminal. Also a GC on Home Advisor. Thankfully I saw this post before going further and only asked why the inquiry about my credit card terminal

    1. I’m an electrical contractor and have been blown up by “homeadvisor rep” from a broadvox number trying to get me to pay for leads. Beware.

  26. I got an text from 337-205 3524 and “VoIP – Bandwidth SMSEnabled” I tried to call it back & got a fast busy signal…(blocked my number on my cell phone) text read “Donna

    Do you want to earn using your cell phone, respond yes or stop, I responded “Who is this?” no reply, well guess what, THAT would be a big fat STOP!!!

  27. I’m a general contractor and got a text from someone who got my information from Home Advisor. Asking me to do a bathroom remodel, but could I take credit card payments? …tried to get me to sign up for any kind of payment application but the ones I was willing to use, then offers to “walk me through the setup”…I bet his name isn’t Tom Clark, and I’m betting he doesn’t live in Portland, OR, and pretty sure that his VOIP phone from Neutral Tandem (971) 512-9232

  28. I wish I would have seen this sooner. I got taken for over 4000.00. So don’t take calls from (843) 968-0779. They got into my on line banking put fake tax return checks that were printed in my name & mobile deposited them. Now I’m stuck paying back the bank & I’m on a fixed income and can’t afford this. This have messed up my life financially.

  29. I was in an app & a lady whose profile says she’s from Georgia n then tells me to text her at 9852500910. I used whitepages reverse phone lookup n it has the number, says it’s from Pearl River, LA but underneath it says Bandwidth.com CLEC VOIP Line. Oh I forgot to mention that when she gave me the number she said which is a very small community. But I wonder how they get ur PII from texting unless they attach something to a pic or video. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

  30. VISION POINT 706-406-5505 GA Bandwidth SMSEnabled, this company proceeded to help themselfs to my checking account today on 08/07/15.They took $109.00 out of my checking account without my authorization. Now im basicall broke til next payday.I haev repeatedly tried to call this number but all you get is all of our customer service reps are busy at the moment please leave a message.
    Im furious.I have always been, I thought careful about when and where i use my debit card, but apparently not.Everyone please be careful. They haev hit one other person’s account that I know of, but there are probably more out there who has become a victim. So sad that honest hard working people out there are treated this way by thiefs like this.

  31. Recd calls for months from National Disability in Clearwater Florida. I know they’re in Florida because I traced the number. They claim to get you 2600 in disability paymemts and ask if you want to buy their cheap life insurance.

  32. Hey SCAM ALERT too all folks using Microsoft and Windows on your devices
    An unknown personnel are using a California and other companies too SCAM YOU they get you too think that you are being ” hacked ” and they want you too enter a code too allow them to STOP THE HACKERS. So the company they used on 7/31/2015 was Bandwidth SMS Enbabled VolP a VONAGE Company they call from 909-713-7135 or 850-254-8965. Please BEAWARE!!!

  33. Cell phone call today in Richmond KY. The same area code as mine is used for the area so I answered it. I did not recognize the number but since I have items on Craig’s List I answered. It was a scammer!! Called from 859-592-1527. The next time don’t answer the phone number and wait for a message. These bastards have called back today twice and I wont answer them.

    *** When you see a number that comes up don’t answer it. Look for the details from the callers phone. If I had known about the VoIP that was shown I would have ignored it.

  34. RECVD CALL FROM 8442241497 AND 2103686368..SPOKE WITH MARHSA SUPPOSED FLOOR MANAGER STATING THEY ARE CALLING IN REGARDS TO A PAYDAY LOAN W/GTI HOLDING….I DONT HAVE THIS LOAN….PER MARSHA THEY WILL SUBMIT INFO TO BEXAR COUNTY CLERK AND HAVE ME SUSTAINED AT HOME OR WORK….PER MARSHA SHE CLAIMED TO BE AN ARBITRATION CENTER…WANTED ME TO MAKE PAYMENTS OVER THE PHONE…I TOLD HER I DONT HAVE THIS LOAN AND SHE INSISTED THAT I PAY

  35. I have been getting phone calls asking for my BROTHER IN-LAWS daughter’s info. I knew what they were trying o pull, and I started insulting them, calling the parson every name in the book. It was a female. She was getting pissed at me. but I didn’t care. I have 2 of the Phone numbers on caller ID. 763-207-9069 & 763-308-5861. The 763-207-9069 number was called Neutral Tandem Lading. I did the best I could to look it up on my computer, and it came back as a place in Big Lake Minnesota. I know it’s a scam, and they would not be there. The 763-308-5861 number just said Bandwidth SMSEnabled Volp. I don’t understand why the FBI couldn’t find them by working with the Bandwidth company.

  36. The latest:
    I received a bagged 4×12″ doorknob type Notice from my local Internet/Telephone company, hanging on my gate.
    The Notice stated I had a 500 some odd dollar debit and they were going to disconnect my internet access unless I called THIS number that they provided, etc. etc.
    I almost fell for it…crazily, since I owe NOTHING.. I was just going to phone them to report that I owed nothing and they made a mistake. However, luckily, I waited half a day and thought it over and reread the Notice and realized it was a SCAM when the Notice said NOT to pay any office, etc. but only by phone or in person to their representative. I reported it to Charter.net, but they weren’t interested in following it up. I reported it to the Police and they DID send it on to the department that handles frauds. You do have to think twice before you reply to the phone, email, or other numbers or addresses these notes provide. I’m pretty wary about fraud, but I almost got caught. Sure pays to follow the advice of CALL YOUR BANK, PROVIDERS, ETC USING THEIR NUMBERS provided on statements, in the phone book, or at their own site…NEVER reply to the info the would-be-scammer provides.

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