Phone scammers are calling people and telling them that money has allegedly been unlawfully withdrawn from their bank accounts abroad, urging them to press a specific button to be connected to an operator. The warning comes from the online platform “We, the Consumers” amid the Black Friday campaigns that have already begun and the upcoming increase in shopping for the holidays at the end of the year.
In one case, a consumer received a call from the number +39 338 793 1105, claiming that, according to information from VISA in Vienna, a sum of money had been unlawfully withdrawn from their account. They were immediately prompted to press 1 to be connected to an operator in order to receive more information and assistance. The specific bank is probably deliberately not mentioned during the call, as the person receiving it is expected to identify themselves as a customer of their financial institution.
Although there are many suspicious circumstances – the call is supposedly from the bank in Bulgaria, the conversation is in Bulgarian, the money was withdrawn in Vienna, while the telephone country code is Italian, and so on – consumers may fail to notice them because the call has already alarmed them.
This type of scam is emerging against the backdrop of the Black Friday campaigns that have already begun and the upcoming increase in Christmas and New Year shopping. During the period when consumers will be making more online purchases, entering their bank card details and monitoring payments and deliveries, scammers may use precisely these circumstances to create a sense of credibility and urgency. In this way, consumers may be deceived not only while shopping, but also during a subsequent call that appears to be a warning about a problem with a payment that has been made.
Consumers should never press buttons or follow instructions from strangers during automated calls. It is crucial not to provide bank card numbers, CVV codes, PINs, passwords or one-time confirmation codes. If in doubt, the safest course of action is to end the call and contact the bank using the official phone number shown on the card or on the bank’s website, “We, the Consumers” recommends.
“When shopping online, consumers should use secure payment methods, check that they are on legitimate platforms and monitor the activity on their accounts. If they receive advertising messages in their personal email accounts, via Messenger, Viber or other communication apps, or requests to pay fees to release held shipments, they should under no circumstances follow links or enter personal and banking details,” Gabriela Rumenova, founder of “We, the Consumers”, said in an interview on bTV Radio.
Cybersecurity experts also warn that scammers often use completely random or newly purchased SIM cards that have not yet been added to online spam and scam databases. In addition, cybercriminals use software to conceal their actual number, meaning that even if an Italian number, for example, appears on the screen, the actual call may be made from an entirely different location in the world.
If a call or messages appear suspicious, the safest course of action is to block the number directly through the phone’s settings.