Call spoofing

[Sorcha]

Another type of scam which is on the increase is ‘call spoofing’. We thought it would be useful to explain what it is, so you can better protect yourself from bad actors who employ this sneaky tactic.

What is call Spoofing?

If you have caller ID switched on, it will show the number of whoever is calling you so you can decide whether to answer it or not. Very handy if you prefer to only answer calls from numbers you recognise. You may sometimes see caller ID referred to as Caller Line Identity (CLI).

Call spoofing is when the caller ID is changed to mimic another number or destination.

Why ‘spoof’ a telephone number?

Sometimes there's good reason to change the caller ID, for example, many large companies (Banks, Utility, Telecoms, Government) will do this to display an 0800 number as opposed to a local number when calling their customers. This means if you need to call them back the number is usually free to call, it also means you can check the company’s website or your latest bill, to verify their telephone number.

Unfortunately, nuisance callers and criminals use call spoofing to hide their identity and make it look like they are legitimate callers from companies you may have a relationship with. More often than not these people are out to steal your login details and/or your financial information.

Spoofed calls are not just targeting UK residents, these calls originate from all over the world. This is a worldwide problem. Both the UK and international regulators are working with the telecoms industry to solve this problem.

What can you do to prevent becoming a victim of call spoofing?

• Be vigilant, never give out personal information in response to an incoming call, particularly if the caller asks you to carry out an action which might have financial consequences or seeking to confirm login or account details.

• Do not rely upon Caller ID as your sole means of identification. If someone rings you asking for this information, don't provide it. Instead, hang up and call the phone number on your account statement, or contact the company through their website.

If you want to report the call to EE Just text 'call' to 7726 followed by a space, then the number that called you, we use the data collected to help protect all of our customers.

Visit our Spam and phishing article to find out how to stay safe.

Find out more about currently circulating scams >

[XRaySpeX]

@Marc-TW : They are probably an innocent party.

It's a waste of time blocking these nos. They could come in from any random no.

[Marc-TW]

It's the other way round, I'm just blocking the person that's contact me because they think I'm calling them as I'm not and they seem to want to keep telling me I am. I get the impression they've not heard of spoofing and because it's my number it must be me. 

[XRaySpeX]

@Marc-TW : So do all the other victims of the scammers who are spoofing your no.

[Marc-TW]

I've only had that one so far (repeatedly).

[Ramdon]

Hi

I would like to know who you reported your being spoofed to and did you get any result?

I have received 54 calls from people that have missed calls from my mobile phone number even though I have made no calls to them. This is in a period of 5 days so I am now beginning to get pretty fed up.

When I rang EE I was told it would likely only be for a few days and the person that is doing the spoofing can buy an app to use someones number to hide their caller id. It was suggested I can change my phone number, well I have had it for a very long time and do not want to change it. 

I have been into Ofcom and Action Fraud website and can find no way of reporting this particular problem from my side only if I have been scammed.

I would appreciate some way of stopping this as I feel it is illegal/fraudulant.   

I have asked people that had my number to block it and why.

[James_B]

Hi @Ramdon,

Welcome to the EE Community. 🙂

As our Customer Care Team noted, these nuisance callers will usually only use a particular number for a short period. If it continues the only solution would be to change your number, which under these circumstances would be free of charge.

James

[N4A4O4M4I4]

HI, I've been getting strangers calling me to say they are returning my call but no calls had been made from my phone just as the previous community members have been reporting. What bugs me is that there seems to be no specific info or advice on the EE website that I can find about this and this does not fall within any of the options covered by their "contact us" facility. I was at a loss as to what to do.  So far the strangers ringing me back have been polite but I don't want any of them to suspect me of anything dodgy or start abusing me and I don't want someone using my number (my identity) to scam poor victims out of anything -I reported it to action fraud but as I've not been robbed or scammed myself then I'm not sure its something that falls within their remit. If there is no other option but to change the phone number then could EE post that info online and explain next steps as I'm not tech savvy!

[James_B]

Hi @N4A4O4M4I4,

Welcome to the EE Community. 🙂

I'm sorry to hear you have been a victim of number spoofing.

Has it been happening for long? In some cases, the nuisance callers will move to a different number relatively quickly.

If you did need to change your number, you can request the change by calling 150.

James

[N4A4O4M4I4]

Thank you James, yes it has been going on for a few months, I think I will
need to change my number but I have got in touch with actionfraud in the
meantime, I was hoping that as this is becoming more common then there was
a better solution, but maybe its impossible to prevent.

[Gingebaggy]

Hi

my issue is not incoming calls but the fact that my wife’s mobile number is being used to call other people who in turn ring her back and say they’ve had a missed call from her number on several occasions. Is this call spoofing or has her number been cloned as she has not called these people?