Scam phone numbers have become a growing concern in Estonia, with many individuals falling victim to fraudulent activities, due to a notable increase in fraudulent phone calls targeting citizens. These scams often involve aggressive callers offering investment opportunities and using Estonian phone numbers to gain the trust of victims. Sadly, this can result in significant financial losses and emotional distress.

What are Scam Phone Numbers?

Scam phone numbers are phone numbers used by scammers to contact potential victims and trick them into revealing sensitive information or transferring money. These numbers can be used for various types of scams, including investment scams, lottery scams, and phishing scams.

Types of Scam Phone Numbers

There are several types of scam phone numbers, including:

• Investment scam numbers: These numbers are used to promote fake investment opportunities, often with promises of high returns.

• Lottery scam numbers: These numbers are used to inform individuals that they have won a lottery or contest, and ask them to pay a fee to claim their prize.

• Phishing scam numbers: These numbers are used to trick individuals into revealing sensitive information, such as passwords or credit card numbers.

Identifying scam phone numbers:

• A stranger pretends to be a bank employee/police officer on the phone and asks for your bank card details or access to your bank account. A real bank employee/police officer would never ask for such things!
• Your call is directed directly to another institution, for example from one bank to another or to the police.
• A wonderful opportunity to make money is offered, which you are asked to prove by directing you to a relevant website. If any offer sounds too good to be true, it is not true.
• The caller urges you to make a decision/act immediately and quickly.
• You are asked to enter your mobile ID, ID card or Smart ID PIN codes in the phone call.
• The caller asks or even orders you to keep the entire activity a secret from everyone.
• The call is from a foreign number.

How to protect yourself from fraud:

• If you receive a suspicious call, end it immediately and block the suspicious phone number.
• Never share your PIN 1 and PIN 2 codes with anyone, not even the bank or the police.
• If you did give your PIN codes to someone you don’t know, call your bank immediately and have the transfers blocked, because someone else knows your PIN codes and can therefore start stealing money from your account. Then block both PIN codes quickly. Instructions can be found here: https://www.id.ee/en/article/changing-pin-codes-and-puk-code/
• Do not agree to investment opportunities offered in advertisements or over the phone.
• Do not give anyone your bank account information over the phone.
• Never download a program to your devices that someone asks you to do over the phone.
• If you receive an SMS from a suspicious phone number with an internet link, do not click on it.
• If you discover that you have made a bank payment to scammers, call your bank immediately. If you act quickly, the bank can cancel or dispute the money transfer.
• Report a scam to the police – https://cyber.politsei.ee/en/