It seems every day scammers are coming up with new ways to trick consumers into handing over money. Now, technology is making their job even easier by allowing them to create fake voicemails with voice-mimicking software.
How are scammers taking advantage of voice mimicking technology?
- Small businesses are especially at risk with scams like these.
- The scammer leaves a voicemail, using software to mimic the manager or owner’s voice, instructing the employee to wire a large amount of money to a vendor for a rush project.
- Eventually the employee and real manager communicate and realize what happened, and that the “vendor” is a scammer that has made off with potentially thousands of dollars.
What other scams could this software be used for?
- This could easily be used for emergency scams, mimicking voices of relatives to ask for money to help get out of trouble or assist with a medical emergency.
How can small business owners protect themselves from fake voicemail scams?
- Secure accounts. Make sure all accounts used by your business are as secure as possible by using multifactor authentication. You should also be sure to regularly verify changes in information about customer, vendors and employees.
- Train staff. Training your employees on internet security can cut down on risk of falling victim to scams. Make it a policy to confirm all change and payment requests in person before making a transfer.