Are you experiencing an increase in the number of "local" calls to your home or cell phone? You’re not alone. This phenomenon is called “neighbor spoofing” and it’s a caller ID spoof strategy being used by phone scam artists in an attempt to get people to answer the phone. "Neighbor spoofing" is a common type of phone scam.
Con artists and robocallers use technology to modify what phone numbers appear on caller ID, impersonating phone numbers from neighbors, friends and local businesses to try to get you to answer the call. In many instances, it is a random number with the same area code and first three digits as your own phone number. In other cases, the number displays as coming from a local business or person with whom you’ve previously communicated.
The Better Business Bureau shared the following tips to identify and handle "Neighbor spoofing" phone calls:
If you’re not certain whether the call is legitimate or a spoof, hang up and dial the known phone number for the contact to verify the communication, especially if personal and/or financial information is being requested.