2016IEEE SpectrumRequires access

Could you fall for a scam? Spam filters are passe. What we need is software that unmasks fraudsters

Markus Jakobsson, William Leddy

Open publisher page 6 citations

Abstract

SAY YOU RECEIVE an email saying, "We have kidnapped your child. To verify that we are telling the truth, just call your child's cellphone. To get your child back, you need to send us $10,000 within one hour. We will send instructions in a separate email. Do not tell anybody–or else." · Chances are you'd pick up the phone and call your child. Imagine the chill along your spine when a stranger answers, "We have your child." · And yet this is such a simple scam. Attempting it requires just two things: your email address and the online account password associated with your child's phone number. With that information, a scammer can forward your calls to your child's phone number to his own prepaid phone. There's no need for him to have your child's phone, or even know what country you or your child are in.

About this research paper

What this paper is about

SAY YOU RECEIVE an email saying, "We have kidnapped your child. To verify that we are telling the truth, just call your child's cellphone. To get your child back, you need to send us $10,000 within one hour. We will send instructions in a separate email. Do not tell anybody–or else." · Chances are you'd pick up the phone and call your child. Imagine the chill along your spine when a stranger answers, "We have your child." · And yet this is such a simple scam. Attempting it requires just two things: your email address and the online account password associated with your child's phone number. With that information, a scammer can forward your calls to your child's phone number to his own prepaid phone. There's no need for him to have your child's phone, or even know what country you or your child are in.

Why it matters

OpenAlex reports 6 citations for this work. Citation counts describe recorded attention and do not establish research quality.

Key contribution

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Method / approach

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Main findings

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Available abstract

SAY YOU RECEIVE an email saying, "We have kidnapped your child. To verify that we are telling the truth, just call your child's cellphone. To get your child back, you need to send us $10,000 within one hour. We will send instructions in a separate email. Do not tell anybody–or else." · Chances are you'd pick up the phone and call your child. Imagine the chill along your spine when a stranger answers, "We have your child." · And yet this is such a simple scam. Attempting it requires just two things: your email address and the online account password associated with your child's phone number. With that information, a scammer can forward your calls to your child's phone number to his own prepaid phone. There's no need for him to have your child's phone, or even know what country you or your child are in.

Key concepts: Phone, Password, Internet privacy, Computer security, Computer science, Need to know, Phone call, World Wide Web

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Could you fall for a scam? Spam filters are passe. What we need is software that unmasks fraudsters — Research Paper | ScholarLens