Evening Mail
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Optech Fibres is an expert and leading local business in the world of internet and telephone networks.
But company bosses were horrified when they discovered they had become victims of a new type of scam known as dial-through fraud, which added hundreds of pounds to their phone bill in a matter of minutes.
Optical and IT services manager, Lance Jobson, said: “Most people have never heard of dial-through fraud but it costs British industry millions of pounds a year. Basically, a company’s telephone system – their exchange so to speak – is hijacked and phone calls are made through your system so, ultimately, the cost falls on to your bill, which you are responsible for.”
The problem with dial-through fraud, Mr Jobson said, was that its victims often only realised they had been targeted when they received their phone bill.
He said: “We had security systems in place and thankfully spotted it straight away and counteracted it. We tracked the internet service provider to Somalia and we’ll be passing all the information on to the police.”
Big name organisations such as New Scotland Yard in London and the Irish government have also been targeted by dial through fraudsters.
Since the hijacking, Optech, based at Andrew’s Way, Barrow, has introduced new services in order to pass on their knowledge of the scam and prevent others becoming victims.
Mr Jobson said: “Digital fraud is like burglary; you can have all the hi-tech security systems, alarms and locks in place but you can’t guarantee you won’t ever be burgled. However, like any common thief, fraudsters don’t want to spend hours picking your lock or by-passing your network security, so the more measures you have in place, the less likely you are to be targeted.
“We would hate for any other businesses, particularly in the Furness area, which we support strongly, to become victims to dial-through fraud.
“The worrying thing is, if we, as a company which was aware of the scam, fell foul, so many others who know nothing about it could do too, so we want to raise awareness and warn other small businesses.”
A spokesman for BT confirmed customers would be responsible for any fraudulent calls on their bill.
BT said: “Telecoms fraud is an industry-wide issue that affects all telecoms companies, not just BT.
“Whilst BT cannot legislate for the risks in unsupported local end-user telecoms infrastructure, we are working with industry to raise awareness across businesses of the threats posed by dial-through fraud.”
A spokesman for Cumbria police said the force would investigate all forms of fraud in co-operation with telecommunications companies.