There have been reports of employees receiving phone calls from numbers "spoofing" the UT System Administration area code and exchanges.
Phone number spoofing is when a caller deliberately falsifies the information transmitted to your caller ID display to disguise their identity. Criminals often use phone call spoofing so it appears that an incoming call is coming from a local number, or spoof a number from a company or a government agency that you may already know and trust. If you answer, they use social engineering to try to steal your personal information, which can be used in fraudulent activity.
You may not be able to tell right away if an incoming call is spoofed. Be extremely careful about responding to any request for personal identifying information or confidential UT System information.
- Don't answer calls from unknown numbers. If you answer such a call, hang up immediately.
- If you answer the phone and the caller - or a recording - asks you to hit a button to stop getting the calls, you should hang up. Scammers often use this trick to identify potential targets.
- Do not respond to any questions, especially those that can be answered with "Yes" or "No."
- Never give out personal information such as account numbers, Social Security numbers, mother's maiden names, passwords or other identifying information in response to unexpected calls or if you are at all suspicious.
- If you get an inquiry from someone who says they represent a company or a government agency, hang up and call the phone number on your account statement, in the phone book, or on the company's or government agency's website to verify the authenticity of the request. You will usually get a written statement in the mail before you get a phone call from a legitimate source, particularly if the caller is asking for a payment.
- Use caution if you are being pressured for information immediately.
If you think you've been the victim of a spoofing scam at work, notify your supervisor, contact the UT System Police or call the Help Desk. If your personal information was provided, you should file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission.
