Can 'calling number' on a mobile be spoofed ?

[RogerS]

Last night I received 8 calls, the last one finally succeeding in separating me from my slumbers but too late and that plus another one had gone to answerphone. The message being the same 'Please wait for an agent'.

The numbers are

+353 1 653 1448
01895 519270 which google suggests is Amazon and kosher
01895 519240 ditto

It's impossible to get an email address out of Amazon - the shysters. If you ring up the +353 then I found out, to my cost, that it costs me money. That was a futile exercise - much as I love India and the people - I detest having to speak to anyone in an Indian call-centre as they are generally, apart from Three, next to useless.

Finally found a chat window on Amazon and they deny that they made any calls to me. So to my original question...is it possible that someone can spoof a 'calling number' on my mobile to make it look as if it comes from someone else ?

 

[HJC1972]

01895 is my old area code, where I grew up: Ruislip. AFAIK Amazon don’t have any offices in the Ruislip/Uxbridge area which would be odd if they were calling from there.

 

[NikNak]

In a word.... yes... sadly.....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caller_ID_spoofing

 

[RogerS]

Interesting that when you call the +353 number a male voice announces 'Welcome to Amazon'.

Trying the 01895 numbers they are engaged. But when you Google them, there are an awful lot of people thinking that they are Amazon.

 

[Eric The Viking]

IIRC, and frustratingly, there are _two_ sets of codes in UK terminology:

CLI = Calling Line identifier
CLIP = Calling line ID Presented

CLIP can be anything and it's what shows up on a DECT or mobile screen.

CLI is supposed to be non-spoofable, but isn't presented. It's used for routing and things like prioritization in national emergencies.

Obviously there are legit reasons for spoofing, for example: a GP's desk phone often has a direct line in, but it's unhelpful if patients know it. It's better to display the main surgery switchboard number to the recipient.

One of the infuriating things about the way fraudsters are not dealt with is that they cannot completely hide that their call centres are outside the UK. If the authorities (Ofcom?) were so minded, they could block calls from places with lots of these call centres, causing the authorities there to either take action or be cut off from the UK (as their calls wouldn't be routed).

Obviously IP telephony makes the whole thing harder, but to me it's telling that expensive fraud that hits big organisations is speedily dealt with, but expensive fraud that hits thousands of ordinary people just gets a lot of hand-wringing.

As a general rule I now ignore numbers I don't recognise - callers have the option to leave a message, and I can return the call, or not, as I decide.

 

[sunnybob]

I never call back, unless I am specifically waiting for a delivery.
Other than that, they can call again.

 

[Mr_Pea]

I never call back, unless I am specifically waiting for a delivery.
Other than that, they can call again.

Isn't that the main part of the scam, if you ring enough people it won't take long until you reach someone waiting for a delivery and then you ring back and it might be a very high rate premium phone number or another scam where they they try and get your bank details.

I hate the land line.

 

[sunnybob]

Dont have a land line. I have about 4 expected delivery's a year. they can call my mobile as many times as they like. :lol: :lol: 8)

 

[RogerS]

....
As a general rule I now ignore numbers I don't recognise - callers have the option to leave a message, and I can return the call, or not, as I decide.

But if they spoof the caller ID then how will you know ?

 

[HappyHacker]

I the second one up on https://who-called.co.uk some people say it is a scam others say it is Amazon and some say the scammers have put the Amazon suggestions in.

I get up to 10 of these types of call a day despite blocking them and letting the answer machine answer them. When I had a BT contract I used their call blocker but filled all the numbers I was allowed within weeks. My phone has a call blocker but that gets full and it is a pain to go through deleting them.

Often get an international call with a UK phone number and when not answered get one within a minute from another number but not international.

I am seriously considering changing my landline number or going to an IP phone as most people call my mobile rather than the landline.

 

[Garno]

These are great for landlines but not that good for mobiles.
Call Blocker

 

[RogerS]

I the second one up on https://who-called.co.uk some people say it is a scam others say it is Amazon and some say the scammers have put the Amazon suggestions in.

....

If you look at the other number, you'll see that there are less 'plated' comments. It's definitely a scam although quite what the scam is I don't know.

Someone mentioned automatically turning off incoming rings on the mobile during the night. Is that part of the OS or an app, does anybody know ?

 

[tony_s]

"If you ring up the +353 then I found out, to my cost, that it costs me money. That was a futile exercise - much as I love India and the people "

FWIW +353 is Ireland. Not that it has any real bearing on the point of this thread......

 

[Inspector]

Someone mentioned automatically turning off incoming rings on the mobile during the night. Is that part of the OS or an app, does anybody know ?

On an iPhone it is in the Settings under Do Not Disturb, then Scheduled. So the operating system is the answer to your question. Have no clue on how the other cells do it.

Pete

 

[TFrench]

My mobile has a built in app that tells you if something is spam before you even answer it. Allows me to get my game face on for winding them up.

 

[Inspector]

My mobile has a built in app that tells you if something is spam before you even answer it. Allows me to get my game face on for winding them up.

What kind of phone?

Pete

 

[RogerS]

"If you ring up the +353 then I found out, to my cost, that it costs me money. That was a futile exercise - much as I love India and the people "

FWIW +353 is Ireland. Not that it has any real bearing on the point of this thread......

I know that !

 

[RogerS]

My mobile has a built in app that tells you if something is spam before you even answer it. Allows me to get my game face on for winding them up.

What kind of phone?

Pete

My phone also flags up 'Potential Fraud' on some numbers. I'm with Vodafone. I don't give the system much credence since,when Vodafone call me, it says 'Potential Fraud'.

 

[Inspector]

My phone also flags up 'Potential Fraud' on some numbers. I'm with Vodafone. I don't give the system much credence since,when Vodafone call me, it says 'Potential Fraud'.

So that's your cell provider and not the phone's operating system or a specific app you download that does it.

Pete

 

[RogerS]

My phone also flags up 'Potential Fraud' on some numbers. I'm with Vodafone. I don't give the system much credence since,when Vodafone call me, it says 'Potential Fraud'.

So that's your cell provider and not the phone's operating system or a specific app you download that does it.

Pete

That's my understanding. Certainly I didn't install any app. Just amuses me that Vodafone thinks that they themselves are Potential Fraud.

Well, TBH, that's not far off the mark as we got caught out when we bought a PAYG phone from Vodafone for SWMBO. Unbeknownst to us, cellular data was turned on by default. We thought nothing of it. What no-one at Vodafone bothered to tell us was that there were a load of pre-installed apps that had a habit of periodically 'calling home' and thus using our credit up. £0.20 here. £0.40 there. So after a few months when I went to check the credit, despite making only a couple of short UK calls in three months, £20 of credit had dribbled away for SFA.