Could Someone Be Pretending to Be Your Business on the Phone?

Your company name is on your website.

Your telephone number is on your email signature.

Your customers recognise your business when you call them.

But how confident are you that someone else isn't using your identity to contact people?

Telephone fraud and number spoofing are becoming increasingly important issues for businesses, and telecommunications security is no longer something that should sit entirely in the IT department.

What is phone number spoofing?

Phone number spoofing is when a caller manipulates the information displayed on the recipient's phone so that the call appears to come from a different number.

That could make a scam call appear to come from a local number, a company, or even an organisation the recipient already trusts.

The Government has specifically identified access to UK telephone numbers and call routing as an area of concern in its work to tackle fraud. Ofcom has also strengthened measures around spoofed UK numbers.

For businesses, this creates two problems.

Your employees can be targeted by fraudulent calls.

And your customers could potentially receive fraudulent communications that appear to come from your business.

Why should businesses care?

Trust is one of your most valuable assets.

Imagine a customer receives a call that appears to be from your company.

They are asked to confirm account details.

Or change payment information.

Or click a link sent by text.

The customer believes they are speaking to you.

But they're not.

The financial consequences can be serious.

The reputational consequences can be even harder to recover from.

The latest UK Cyber Security Breaches Survey found that 38% of businesses experienced phishing attacks during the period covered by the research, making phishing by far the most common type of breach or attack.

And telecommunications are part of that wider picture.

Your telephone system is part of your security

When businesses think about cybersecurity, they often think about:

• Passwords
• Firewalls
• Antivirus software
• Email security
• Multi-factor authentication
• Staff training

All of those things matter.

But communications should also be considered.

Who can access your telephone system?

How are numbers allocated?

Who can make calls?

What happens when an employee leaves?

Can staff access company communications remotely?

Are call forwarding and routing features properly controlled?

Does your provider have appropriate safeguards in place?

These questions become increasingly important as businesses use more sophisticated cloud-based communications.

Your customers need to know they're talking to you

The National Cyber Security Centre recommends businesses make their SMS and telephone communications trustworthy and consistent, helping customers distinguish genuine communications from fraudulent ones.

That means businesses should think carefully about how they communicate.

For example:

Do your customers know what numbers you will call them from?

Are your SMS messages recognisable?

Do you have a clear process for payment or account changes?

Do your employees know what information they should never request over the phone?

Small improvements can make a big difference.

Don't make it easy for fraudsters

Technology cannot prevent every fraudulent call.

But businesses can reduce the opportunity for criminals by having sensible processes around their communications.

Staff should know what legitimate calls look like.

Customers should know how your business communicates.

And your telecoms provider should understand the importance of security alongside functionality.

The conversation businesses should be having

Telecommunications used to be viewed primarily as a way of connecting one person to another.

Today, your phone system is part of your wider business infrastructure.

It carries customer conversations.

It connects employees.

It handles sensitive information.

It can integrate with other business systems.

And increasingly, it needs to be considered alongside your wider security strategy.

At 360Coms, we believe choosing a telecoms provider should be about more than finding a good monthly price.

It should be about understanding how the technology fits into your business, and making sure it remains reliable, manageable and secure.

Because when your business phone rings, you need to know who's really on the other end.