Hello all,

I've used this site a few times over the years, but just signed up today.

I've noticed that there are a lot of numbers provided for banks and similar financial institutions.  The question is - how much checking is done to make sure that these numbers are genuine before they're listed here?  I don't see what stops a fraudster from creating an entry for their own geographic or 0800 number, listing it under "XYZ Bank Helpline".  Whenever anyone calls, they say "XYZ Bank, how can I help you", and off they go towards getting your authentication details.  

So, what steps are made to verify that the number that is answered "XYZ  Bank" actually *is" XYZ Bank, before it's listed here?

Thanks,

TrustNoOne

Alternative numbers for banks are shown on credit cards and other documents as being for overseas use.

Dave wrote on Jun 18^th, 2009 at 5:15pm:

Alternative numbers for banks are shown on credit cards and other documents as being for overseas use.

Hi - thanks for the reply.  However, this doesn't really address the point.  The numbers you mention are a good source of alternative numbers, but the question is "what steps are being taken on the site to prevent fraudsters adding bogus numbers?"

BTW - Just to clarify, I'm all in favour of the site and the fight to get rid of 0870 numbers, but the whole site could get badly tarnished if anyone does use it as part of a scam.

Regards,

TrustNoOne

Confirmed numbers are numbers that have been confirmed by either by the administrators or reported as being correct by members of the forum. I would assume that administrators would make other checks before confirming numbers reported by, for example, new forum members.

jgxenite wrote on Jun 18^th, 2009 at 5:30pm:

Confirmed numbers are numbers that have been confirmed by either by the administrators or reported as being correct by members of the forum. I would assume that administrators would make other checks before confirming numbers reported by, for example, new forum members.

But, as you say, that's an assumption - is it actually the case, or is just anyone allowed to confirm a number?  I'd also *assumed* that there would be some checks made until I wanted a bank number the other day and then thought "just a minute, how do I know that's genuine?"

In addition to the issue of who is allowed to confirm these numbers, there's the question is how exactly it is done  Just ringing the number and seeing if it's answered "Hello, XYZ Bank" doesn't confirm that it really *is* XYZ bank - any good fraudster will make sure that this happens every time the phone rings.  The checks need to be more stringent than that, for numbers that are financially-related.

This question really needs looking at.  It's only a matter of time before someone tries a scam like this - the potential rewards are just too high.  And if it happens, this site could get a *lot* of bad press.

Regards,

TrustNoOne

Only administrators can confirm numbers. Normal users can add numbers to the unconfirmed database, but obviously you have to take those with a pinch of salt.

He has a point though .. and I'd certainly never thought of it before.  

It's not just banks, but anywhere that you would phone up and, say, give a credit card number to, are susceptable to impersonation.  Just look at how many phishing websites there are coming and going..

I think the OP is worried about people submitting numbers they can answer themselves and pretend to be a Bank, or whomever, but the person answering the call would have to know exactly how the bank does it, and take a user through security the same way, to avoid alerting the caller that there is something wrong..

The worst thing is, I can already think of at least two ways to create a 'fake' number for any institution you like which wouldn't alert the caller at all, and either way would take me less than ten minutes to set up.  I guess I'd best not specify exactly how!