While working on her PC, a woman reports getting a Skype call from a user named “Help Desk.” Unable to deny the call, the woman was forced to listen to an automated message that said her machine was being checked for viruses while she was driven to a website against her will.
She couldn’t find the hang-up button that is normally visible on the Skype dashboard.
Not knowing where to turn, the woman reported the incident to AVG, concerned she might have been the victim of a virus attack with spyware still lingering on her computer.
AVG looked into the matter and discovered the woman had indeed encountered a vishing (or voice phishing) attack that pushes users to websites that launch malware onto their computers or try to trick users into providing information that can be used to break into their financial, social networking, and other accounts.
This new kind of attack is unique in that it combines both voice and text to try and dupe users into thinking they are receiving legitimate calls. While many users have learned how to spot and resist emails and IMs that try to lure them into providing personal information or visiting a malicious website, we aren’t conditioned to be as wary of phone calls. Traditionally with land lines, anytime we get an unwanted phone call, all we have to do is simply hang up.
This is no longer the case. Because Skype calls are placed over an Internet connection, once that digital connection is established, it can be used as a conduit for mayhem.
So remember, don’t accept calls from sources you aren’t familiar with. The best way to prevent this is to change your Skype account settings as follows:
- - On the toolbar menu, click Skype and scroll down to Preferences…
- - Click on the “Privacy” tab at the top and make sure you are only allowing calls from Contacts
- - Click on the “Calls” tab at the top
- - Beside the “Incoming Calls” option, check the circle that says “Do nothing”
If you give out your Skype number frequently, or it is not otherwise practical to only accept calls from known contacts, at the very least accept the “do nothing” option as described above to retain the option of denying calls from suspicious sources.
You must be a registered user to add a comment here. If you've already registered, please log in. If you haven't registered yet, please register and log in.