Movistar has reported through a statement on its website that there are cybercriminals who are impersonating its corporate identity. The criminals call the victims by phone, claiming that they are employees of the Telefónica operator. The objective is to steal their personal and banking information and they manage to cajole them with the promise of a router change so that the WiFi connection works better.
Operators are one of the main hooks that cybercriminals use to scam users. They impersonate brands such as Movistar, Vodafone, Orange, Lowi, Digi and others through calls, SMS or emails with the aim of obtaining our personal or banking data. There are many people who believe the lies of scammers. For this reason, it is advisable to be informed of the tactics that are usually used to avoid falling into the trap.
Telecommunications brands are aware that they are the perfect bait for cybercriminals. That is why they usually try to protect their clients by informing them of new scams that they learn about. One that Movistar has talked about on its X account (formerly Twitter) consists of getting your private information under the pretext that they are going to change your router. The company comments that the scammers are impersonating its identity, but they may also do it with other fiber providers in Spain.
The Movistar router change scam
As Movistar Spain clarifies through X, cyber scammers are carrying out vishing campaigns on this occasion. This type of scam refers to phishing or identity theft using voice. By this, they mean that the fraudulent action is carried out through telephone calls.
It must be clarified that, although the operator has not detected that it is being done via email or SMS, it does not mean that there cannot be similar scams that are sent through these communication channels. Movistar did not want to provide any example of a telephone number, so that we remain alert to any call from a stranger.
From the other side of the line they claim to be from Movistar (or any other operator) and tell us that they are going to change the router, don’t trust us. As indicated by the signature in X’s publication, it is a cyber scam and the criminals aim to get hold of your miMovistar passwords. In the comment on the post on Elon Musk’s social network, another user clarified that it is a scam that has been going on for quite some time: “I have been receiving this call for two or three months.”
Movistar Spain
@movistar_es
Alert! New vishing campaign detected impersonating Movistar🚨
If you receive a call from an unknown number to change the router, don’t trust it, they are trying to get your miMovistar passwords.
#DigitalSecurity
November 5, 2024 • 1:00 p.m.
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How to act if they call you?
If they call you from your operator, they should already have your information. Therefore, any supposed call from Movistar in which they ask for your name, surname, email, account number, password or other detail should make you immediately suspicious. However, they may find some excuse for you to end up providing your information. Now that you know that they are posing as Movistar workers (and possibly other operators) to steal your credentials by trickery, you know that you should not give any information.
If they call you, you should hang up immediately and block the number instantly. Nowadays, it is difficult to know when we can and when not to pick up the phone when we do not have the caller added to the phonebook. There are many criminals who take advantage of the opportunity to scam by telephone. For this reason, it is best to activate the spam warning on your mobile phone and look for the numbers on pages like ListaSpam.com whenever we can before answering.
