Suspicious Call Content Promptly Reported to 112
A woman in her 20s who overheard another customer's phone conversation at a cafe suspected a voice phishing (telephone financial fraud) crime and cleverly prevented a loss of 70 million won.
"I said I didn't watch illegal webtoons"... Heard the conversation and immediately reported it, preventing a major loss
Mr. A (right) is taking a commemorative photo with Park Young-su, Chief of Seongnam Sujeong Police Station. [Image source=Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency]
On the 23rd, the Seongnam Sujeong Police Station in Gyeonggi Province shared the story of Ms. A, a woman in her 20s who was at a cafe in Sujeong-gu, Seongnam-si, around 5 p.m. on the 14th of last month. Ms. A happened to overhear a suspicious phone call inside the cafe. A woman in her 20s, Ms. B, sitting at a table across from her, was speaking anxiously on the phone, saying, "I said I never watched illegal webtoons." As Ms. A continued to listen to Ms. B's conversation, she sensed that Ms. B was involved in a voice phishing crime. Ms. A immediately went outside and called 112.
When police officers arrived at the cafe, they confirmed that the person Ms. B was speaking with was a member of a voice phishing group impersonating a bank employee. Moreover, Ms. B had withdrawn 70 million won in cash in 10,000 won bills as instructed by the criminals and was carrying it in a paper box. Even when the police arrived, Ms. B was still being deceived by the criminals and was installing a remote control app on her phone. If Ms. A had reported the incident even a little later, a significant loss could have occurred.
Ms. A explained, "Ms. B was reciting numbers like an account number during the call and said she would withdraw money from the bank, so I reported it immediately. If I had misunderstood the conversation, I could apologize to Ms. B, but if it was voice phishing, irreversible damage could happen." The police presented Ms. A with a certificate of appreciation and a reward. Ms. B also expressed her gratitude by giving Ms. A a small token of thanks.
Impersonating investigation agencies and bank security team staff, fraudsters said, "To prove innocence, withdraw money" scam
On the 14th of last month, Mr. A (top) is seen listening to Mr. B's phone conversation. [Image source=Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency]
Meanwhile, the first criminal impersonating the police called Ms. B, saying, "A scammer used the victim's dormant account as a mule account," implicating her in a crime. Then, a second criminal impersonating a prosecutor called, saying, "If you prove that you did not use the mule account, we will help you." At first, the victim suspected telephone financial fraud and did not believe them, but due to the criminals' aggressive attitude and the fact that she recently closed a dormant account, she thought it might have actually been used as a mule account. Also, when she searched the name of the prosecutor impersonated by the criminal, it turned out to be a real active prosecutor, which made her believe them.
They told Ms. B that to prove her innocence, she had to withdraw cash from her own account and bring it to the Financial Supervisory Service, providing her with an address to deliver the money. However, the address they gave was not the Financial Supervisory Service but a one-room apartment building location. Suspicious, Ms. B returned to a nearby cafe and waited.
The criminal called Ms. B again at the cafe, impersonating a bank security team employee, saying, "Something went wrong at the bank where you just withdrew cash, and your phone has been hacked," and induced her to install a remote control app on her phone. During the process of urging Ms. B to install the app, the criminal pressed her, asking, "Have you ever watched illegal webtoons?" At that moment, Ms. A overheard the conversation and promptly reported it.
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