Hack Off! How To Beat Fraudsters

As scams rise 100%, there’s some clever ways to beat the hackers.

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“Press delete, throw it out, shut the door or just hang up.”

“That’s according to consumer watchdog, who earlier this week revealed 83,150 complaints of fraud were reported in 2011.

Scams conducted via telephone – the no. 1 method scammers use to contact victims – cost Aussies $28 million last year while SMS and email scams are also on the rise, Telstra warn.

Dating website scams are also among the top 10 affecting Australians, costing victims as much as $20,000 each last year.

“At the end of the day, it’s the same story; scammers are looking to take advantage of you and will go so far as to play on your emotions and make you feel guilty for not trusting them,” wrote Darren Kane, Director, Telstra Corporate Security, on Exchange blog this week.

“All they want is to rip off your money, identity, bank details, or personal information,” he warned. 

Kane also says he is concerned by the number of scams that go unreported because people feel too embarrassed or helpless to speak out.

Read: Watch Out! Scams Rise 100%, $85M Lost

Telstra released top 5 security for tips for business:

1. Conduct regular security audits of all voicemail, telephone and PABX systems. Cancel or disable features not required including old voice mailbox accounts.

2. Regularly check both inbound and outbound call records, especially to unusual destinations, and calls made and received at unusual times. Don’t wait for your Telstra bill to check calls and costs. Use Online Billing to check call records at any time.

3. Make sure access to phone or PABX systems is strictly limited, controlled and secured.

4. Treat phone PINs as seriously any other financial or computer access code. Ban employees from using easy-to-guess PIN numbers and make sure they are secure, not written anywhere, and changed regularly.

1. Make sure computer security is up to date. Use firewall rules to block undesirable internet activity and close unused IP ports

   Telstra has sent out warnings out to its one million business customers, following an increase in cases where hackers have gained unauthorised access to business phone systems.

   Private Automated Branch Exchange (PABX) units and voicemail systems were the most common fraud targets, says Kane.