If you hear these phrases on the phone, hang up quickly

How to Identify and Protect Yourself from Phone Scams

Almost everyone with a cell phone nowadays is aware of how annoying and bothersome promotional and spam calls can be.
These calls are becoming increasingly intrusive, providing fertile ground for the spread of new and more numerous phone scams.
It’s getting harder to adequately defend oneself against these scams.
Differentiating between a scam and a dubious yet legitimate marketing strategy is not always easy, and knowing how to protect yourself is crucial.
It’s important to remember that scammers do not abide by rules and laws, so even a simple verbal response to the caller can lead to serious trouble.

To help navigate these calls consciously and safeguard your rights, we have compiled a list of the most common tactics used by phone scammers and by operators who bypass privacy laws.
Here are some key phrases to pay attention to:

Key Phrases to Watch Out for on the Phone

One central element of phone scams is urgency.
Scammers try to convey a sense of emergency to cloud the recipient’s judgment and divert attention from suspicious elements.
There are several phrases commonly used for this purpose, including:

• Promises of a sudden price increase by a telecommunications company or public services provider
• Announcement of a time-limited offer
• Emphasis on the user’s concerns, suggesting the end of services by a company or an urgent need to take a certain action

These phrases are often combined in elaborate scams involving multiple calls from different seemingly unrelated operators to convince the target to change a contract or reinforce the false narrative.

It’s also crucial to be wary of phrases that provide vague or misleading information instead of clearly identifying the operator and the company they represent.
Scammers often leverage the customer’s emotions and create confusion.
A legitimate operator will readily provide their full name, a code, and details about the company they are calling from.

Another scam gaining traction is the “Yes” scam, where silences and statements expecting a straightforward positive response are used to record the recipient’s voice and falsify their consent to a contract.
Moreover, no authorized operator will request information about payment methods, bank accounts, or personal documents over the phone.
Legitimate entities such as banks contact customers officially and never solicit payment information over the phone.

Distinguishing Between Marketing Calls and Scams

Not all annoying and untimely calls are necessarily scams.
Unauthorized calls under privacy laws may not always have malicious intent.
Unfortunately, consumers currently have limited resources to protect themselves, especially in the initial contact phase.

It’s worth noting that inappropriate marketing strategies, which leverage urgency and emotions but are not deceitful or fraudulent, are on the rise.
In such cases, it’s crucial to request identification and postpone the conversation to verify legitimacy.