In the interest of the safety and security of their customers, SaskTel brought forward a number of protections their customers can use to shield their intelligence from hackers and phishers.
To help their customers keep their personal information secure, SaskTel discussed two common types of fraud and gave tips on ways to introduce safeguarding measures.
Wireless port-out fraud is a category of identity theft. Criminals use personal information they’ve taken to pose as account holders to get service providers to transfer (port) wireless phone numbers and accounts to other service providers. The thieves are able to control phone numbers and use them in combinations with other information they’ve already stolen. They can access emails, bank accounts and other personal data with ease.
Port protection can be requested by calling 1-800-SASKTEL (1-800-727-5835). Port protection will fortify information such as phone numbers and identification and safeguard these personal vitals from online or physical thefts. Only the account holder is authorized to disconnect their port protections and authorize numbers to be ported to other carriers.
Click here to Learn more about port-out fraud and reducing your risk.
Phishing is common form of fraud where criminals send emails or texts, deceptively appealing for personal information on the behalf of a supposed lawful business.
Phishing can often be very persuasive.
Gregory Ng, a writer with Brooks Bell, an experimental consultancy group, defined phishing as “The act of sending fraudulent emails that masquerade as legitimate communication from trusted sources. The goal is to trick recipients into divulging sensitive logins, passwords and other personal information by leading them to a phony website.”
Recently, would-be phishers have sent emails to people with the purpose of manipulating their worries over COVID-19. Attackers have spread malware by deceiving users to share account credentials, or open dangerous attachments.
SaskTel said they’d never send e-transfer requests, ask for passwords, social insurance numbers, banking, credit card information or other confidential details.
If customers receive emails or texts requesting this information and the messages appear to originate from SaskTel, they are asked to report any phishing activities by emailing the Crown corporation at complaint.abuse@sasktel.net.
Additional information on recognizing phishing emails can be found by clicking here: Learn how to spot phishing emails.
Customers were also advised to use complicated, hard-to-guess passwords and to ensure their operating systems were current. The installation of security software was also highly recommended. Furthermore, customers were advised to never retrieve bank account information or to make financial transactions on public Wi-Fi.
To learn more about online fraud, visit sasktel.com/scams or the Canadian Anti-fraud Centre website.
