How scammers are posing as your cable and internet providers

The Federal Trade Commission has recently gotten countless reports of scam artists pretending to be cable and internet companies. These fraudsters are so good at deception that even the savviest consumer can get duped.

Despite call-blocking apps, software, and caller ID, scam artists are conning hard-working people like you and me of our hard-earned cash over the phone.

A woman recently emailed me saying this very thing happened to her and her husband:

We just received a scam phone call yesterday addressing my husband by name and claiming to be Cox Cable. We had just canceled Cox cable TV two or three days before, which this caller was privy about. They offered a 40% discount if we reconnected. I inquired about the cost, but before he would give me the cost, he wanted to verify our account and asked for my mother’s maiden name. That’s when the red flag went up. I said, ‘May I call you back in 15 minutes’, with the intention of checking out the phone number and calling Cox Cable. The caller replied that he’d call me back. Once I did a Google search of the number and called Cox Cable, I realized it was, in fact, a scam call. The caller didn’t call back. I followed up with a call to my older parents to warn them about these types of scams. The question in my mind is, how did they know we had just canceled cable service with Cox Cable after we’d had it for the past 11 years? Is there a breach in the Cox Cable data system?

 

How to tell if you are being scammed

Scammers posing as trusted sources like your cable or internet provider make it all the easier for their victims to fall prey to them and willingly give out their personal information. And sadly, more and more scam artists tend to prey on people aged 65 and older because:

  • They have good credit
  • They tend to be financially secure
  • They are trustworthy

Unfortunately, some scam artists are advanced enough to make their caller IDs appear as if they are, in fact, the company they are claiming to be. If they are legit, they will leave a message for you to call them back with the number, allowing you to do a Google search and ensure the number is safe. They are most likely scam artists if they don’t leave a message.

 

How did the scammers get the woman and her husband’s personal information?

It is alarming that the scam artist appeared to know the maiden name of the woman’s mother and that they had just canceled their cable subscription.

A mother’s maiden name is one of the most popular security questions people choose to authenticate their identity, should they get locked out of their account. Understandable because this is an easy question to remember; however, it’s also easy to track down, as a simple internet search could discover it. Data brokers or “people search” sites collect your information, including your birthday, phone number, and address, from various websites, then sell it to people searching for you online for a small fee.

A service like Incogni can help you remove all this personal information from the internet. It has a very clean interface and will scan 195 websites for your information and remove it and keep it removed.

Special for CyberGuy Readers (60% off):  Incogni offers A 30-day money-back guarantee and then charges a special CyberGuy discount only through the links in this article of $6.49/month for one person (billed annually) or $13.19/month for your family (up to 4 people) on their annual plan and get a fully automated data removal service, including recurring removal from 175+ data brokers.  I recommend the family plan because it works out to only $4.12 per person per month for year-round coverage. It’s an excellent service, and I highly recommend at least trying it out to see what it’s all about.

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How to remove yourself from the Internet

Our most recommended secure email provider is StartMail:

  • Keeps your email private by encrypting every email
  • Prevents big tech companies from obtaining your information
  • Blocks spyware and protects from malicious links
  • Multiple aliases
  • Ability to send password-protective messages

Best Private and Secure Email Providers 2023

 

Then too, always make sure you have a trusted antivirus program running on all devices. Our top choice is TotalAV.   Their product is full of features to keep you safe from malware and protect you when browsing the internet including ransomware protection, real-time antivirus protection, elimination of viruses and malware, a tool to free up your computer’s space, plus more.

Best Antivirus Protection 2024

 

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