This content was created by Robert Siciliano. This content was uploaded by Robert Siciliano. This is a YouTube video titled "Online and Telephone Banking Hacked With Caller ID Spoofing @McAfeeConsumer" (posted 2012-03-17). The excerpt is an interview-style segment between a host (labelled SPEAKER A) and identity-theft expert Robert Siciliano. They discuss caller ID spoofing and dialing scams that target telephone and online banking, how criminals use social media to gather answers to knowledge-based security questions, mobile-phone vulnerabilities (lack of locks, Android malware), and practical advice (change security questions, use mobile antivirus, avoid suspicious links).
Chapters
Well, take that call and you could be taking your chances because hackers could take your cash. These now dialing up cell phone scams aimed at hacking the online bank account. Scammers are getting account info by making calls and texts that come in looking like they're from a bank. Identity theft expert Robert Siciliano says this is a growing problem. How do they do this, Robert? They make it look like, oh, this is my bank, I gotta open this up, what?
So what happens actually is with telephone banking, right, you make a call to your bank to make some fund transfers, check your balance and so forth, and the bank recognizes your caller ID. They recognize the phone number you're calling from. Caller ID spoofing is a technology that can actually pose as your phone, even your mobile phone. And when that occurs, it gives the bad guy some form of access to your telephone banking.
So they have that information. This has always been a fear, but I guess what's up the ante now is it's very widespread, right?
It's widespread, and what also happens too is the criminal is doing their own reconnaissance. They're getting identifying information about you through your social media. They get your mother's maiden name. They get knowledge-based questions that generally are used to reset passwords and to gain access to certain accounts. So whatever information you put on social media can also be used to reset those passwords. Passwords that can also be used to gain access to telephone and online banking.
So your advice would be what?
Well, for one, um, change up those knowledge-based questions so you log into different accounts when you forget your password. Whatever those questions are, like if you say, "I like cookies," right? What cookies do you like? If you have answers on your Facebook page, you probably want to change that. Other things like get, um, security for your mobile phone. You know, antivirus for mobiles now is really important. Uh, your Android operating system is very vulnerable to malware. Uh, and beyond that, just be careful what links you click in SMS text messages and emails that you receive via your mobile phone, because they could have links that can infect your phone as well.
Do you think people put too much information on these devices? In other words, I mean, a lot of people on, on iPhone, iPad, or any of these Android devices, they've got their passwords there, they've got everything there that an enterprising crook, even past cracking your code to get into that phone, if people are savvy enough to do that, Everything is there.
Yeah, and McAfee just did a study, and 30% of mobile phone users don't even put a lock on their phone, meaning that if they lose it, then somebody has full access to it.
Game over. Sure.
Yeah, and most of your mobile phones today are used primarily to access your online banking, your social media, your PayPal account and other financial accounts. So they're used for access and to store information, but all that access can compromise those existing accounts.
So just be careful. All right, Robert Siciliano, thank you. Good seeing you again.
