Dubai: In response to an increasing number of telecom scam cases, etisalat is issuing a formal alert warning its customers of unsolicited suspicious calls.
There has been a rising number of cases in which fraudsters poing as etisalat employees ask customers to either transfer credit, share their PIN number, or provide personal information to claim a huge cash prize.
Jaber Al Janahi, vice-president of corporate communications for etisalat, has advised users not to disclose any confidential information such as bank account details, PIN or eVoucher/recharge card numbers to unknown callers on the phone or through SMS or email.
"No such raffle or lucky draw campaign is currently being run by etisalat. Etisalat promotions are well advertised in the media and the winners are informed through a standardised process," said etisalat spokespersons.
Warnings
Etisalat has issued similar warnings over the last few years. In 2010 scammers attempted to defraud customers by calling them on a local number and telling them they had won up to Dh1 million. They would be able to redeem it by revealing the PIN number of high value prepaid phone cards.
In 2009, Mobily also issued an alert to its customers to beware of similar prank calls.
People who have been vicitims of the scam say they receive a phone call from an etisalat staffer saying that they have won a weekly prize of Dh200,000.
Scam method
The fraudster then reads out a five digit code saying that if it matches the number on their sim card they're a winner.
However, all etisalat numbers have that same sequence.
The fraudster then tells the victim to send him the PIN code of wasel recharge cards worth Dh1,000 or more. The victim then finds the recharge cards have been emptied out and they have lost over Dh1,000.
