At Verizon, we want our customers to be cautious of scams intended to obtain their personal information and to protect themselves from potential fraud.
Phishing is a type of fraud that uses a seemingly official website, phone call, email or text message designed to make you disclose sensitive information. Scammers often promise deals and discounts on the condition that you provide your login ID, password, payment information or any part of your social security number.
So how can you keep your information secure? Learning to recognize these scams is often your best defense.
If you receive any phone calls from individuals claiming to be Verizon representatives, always verify their identities by asking for certain account details. Any Verizon representative can give you at least one of the following pieces of information:
- The number of phone lines on your account
- The amount of your last payment
- The make and model of your current device
- Or the date you became a Verizon customer
Keep in mind that you should only ask these questions if you receive a call, text, or email from someone claiming to be from Verizon and are asking you to provide personal information or passwords. If you're placing a call to Verizon, you can be confident you are speaking to a representative. They may request information such as your billing system password to verify your identity - and that's perfectly okay.
You should also look out for emails or text messages containing links to sites that look like the Verizon website, but that are actually fake pages designed to make you disclose private information when visiting these sites. You can avoid falling victim to this type of scam by verifying your Verizon security image every time you sign in. If you haven't previously set a security image, you can easily add that feature by changing your password, where you'll be prompted to select one.
Whenever you need to reset your password, type www.verizonwireless.com directly into your browser. Additionally, the only time you may be asked for any part of your social security number is if you contact Verizon and have forgotten your Billing System Password or want to make an upgrade to your account.
For your security, remember:
- Be cautious of anyone who contacts you and asks for account information
- To be safe, always verify the identity of someone claiming to be from Verizon by asking account information questions
- and to avoid entering your credentials on fake websites, always verify your Verizon security image when you sign in
If you think you may have been the victim of a phishing scam, visit www.verizonwireless.com/fraud for help and more information.
