Types of Voice Phishing That Surged Due to COVID-19

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[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] Since COVID-19, the use of non-face-to-face channels such as messengers has increased, leading to a sharp rise in messenger phishing impersonating family members and acquaintances.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service on the 24th, the damage amount from messenger phishing last year was 99.1 billion KRW, a 165.7% surge compared to the previous year, accounting for 58.9% of the total damage.

Messenger phishing involves impersonating family or acquaintances via text messages or KakaoTalk, requesting personal information and money transfers under urgent pretenses. In December last year, a scammer impersonated the daughter of victim A (62 years old, housewife) and sent a messenger talk saying, "Mom, my phone is broken, so I urgently need to apply for phone insurance. Please help me proceed under your name." The victim, deceived, clicked on a malicious link in the messenger talk sent by the scammer, which installed a remote control app on her phone. She also provided the scammer with photos of her ID card, bank account number, and password. The scammer accessed the financial apps installed on the victim’s phone via remote control, transferred all balances from the account and other bank accounts linked through open banking services to the scam fraud account, embezzling a total of 267 million KRW.

The Financial Supervisory Service explained, "Messenger phishing damage mainly occurs among the elderly because scammers impersonate their children, exploiting the vulnerability where parents’ rational judgment is impaired." They added, "With stolen ID cards, authentication numbers, etc., scammers can secretly withdraw account balances, open new accounts, apply for new loans, and after subscribing to open banking, embezzle balances from the victim’s other financial accounts, exposing victims to additional risks."

Additionally, new scam methods exploiting social interests such as COVID-19 vaccination, disaster relief funds, or presidential election polls are also prevalent. These scams trick victims by pretending to be vaccine reservation verification or quarantine certificate issuance, inducing the input of personal information or sending malicious URLs to install remote control apps. They also lure consumers by offering temporary special loans, demanding personal information, or embezzling funds under the pretense of repaying existing loans.

A Financial Supervisory Service official advised, "Always refuse requests for personal information and money transfers, and never click on URLs from unknown sources." They also recommended, "If you have transferred money due to fraud, immediately apply for account suspension."

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