By Admin 
Scam Alert: As the times are getting faster, new methods of scam are being adopted. In this sequence, India’s cybercrime authorities have now issued an alert regarding USSD call forwarding scam, which is gradually increasing. This warning has been given by the National Cybercrime Threat Analytics Unit under the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre.
This is a trick in which people are being tricked on the pretext of activating call forwarding on their phones and their accounts are being silently hacked. Officials say that scammers are committing fraud by misusing basic telecom features.
Scammers posing as courier or delivery agents
The most worrying thing about the scam is that it is happening without internet access, due to which the criminal does not leave any evidence behind. By the time people realize that something wrong has happened to them, the entire account becomes blank or locked. It has also been told in the advisory that scammers usually come in the form of couriers or delivery agents. First of all, the victim is told that there is a problem with their ordered parcel or there are problems regarding delivery rescheduling. Or an excuse of address confirmation or re-delivery is made.
Avoid dialing USSD codes
You are then asked to dial a USSD code during the call or via message, which often starts with 21. This is a number which the scammers themselves control. Once the code is dialed, call forwarding is silently activated. This means that you have unknowingly fallen into the trap of a scammer. Now all incoming calls are redirected to scammers, including bank verification calls, OTP confirmation and security checks related to apps like WhatsApp or Telegram.
Through these calls, criminals can approve any transaction, reset the password or completely hack the account. Here the victim keeps using his phone without any knowledge and does not realize that all his important calls are being redirected.
On this, cyber expert Prof. Triveni Singh says that fraudsters are always in a hurry, so if someone insists on dialing a code, telling OTP or transferring a call, then stop there. It is almost certain that something is wrong. In such a situation, disconnect the call immediately. Apart from this, users should also keep checking the call forwarding settings in their phones from time to time. If you see any unknown number, it is wise to disable it immediately.
What precautions should be taken?
On this, cyber expert Prof. Triveni Singh says that fraudsters are always in a hurry, so if someone insists on dialing a code, telling OTP or transferring a call, then stop there. It is almost certain that something is wrong. In such a situation, disconnect the call immediately. Apart from this, users should also keep checking the call forwarding settings in their phones from time to time. If you see any unknown number, it is wise to disable it immediately.
Always keep in mind that never dial any USSD code sent by any unknown person, which starts with numbers like 21, 61, 67. Even if call forwarding is turned on by mistake, turn it off immediately by dialing ##002#. If you feel that you have become a victim of fraud, you can complain about it on the 1930 helpline or cybercrime.gov.in.
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