Protecting yourself from Sim swap scams

A Bloomfield Township man is warning others after hackers hijacked his cell phone's sim card to steal $200,000 in bitcoin.

[VietNguyen-vjsu]

the solution could be easy as setting a password or PIN number on the SIM cars swapping (one would need to know the PIN number to swap the SIM card, but phone companies have refused to set this up.

[jashannon]

With the newer/higher end phones it's optional use a SIM - they have an "eSIM" which is builtin to the phones. I know iPhone 13 as one example I have personally helped someone switch to. Just call tech support with your cell provider and tell them you want to use only the eSIM. Then break the SIM with plyers, throw it away, and you're safe from this scam no matter what. Or Google on how to add the SIM pin if you don't have one. (The default pin is 0000 with Androids apparently, which is needed to set your pin.)

[repriser]

You should never, never leave credentials on the cloud devices (phone, cloud storage, mobile devices, cloud stored credentials), keep them in your physical pocession. A lot of databases are not encrypted, rouge administrators can retrieve your information.

[rosiezell]

A few months ago I had to get a new SIM card, the one in my phone went bad so my carrier swapped it out with no charge. If I remember correctly I had to show my photo ID & provide my pin #. I didn't even know this scam existed until a couple of weeks ago, !

[ElizabethHurtado-pyur]

And don't throw your old device in the trash because you never know who gets hold of it

[skeebo]

Would having a 4 digit passcode to unlock your phone help?

[Tad-For-Global-Peace]

According to FTC:

“use an authentication app or a security key” bc PIN code may not fully protect in case sim swapper works at carrier itself :(

But be careful with Relying on authentication app, because one woman got her phone taken right out of her hands in a New York City bar/restaurant. So maybe buying those Physical authentication security keys is the best way to protect yourself.

[lindamastropietro]

How would I get the money back if I was hacked?

[DavidGS]

Voice ID would defeat most of these scams.

[semimba]

you should never use biometrics. cops can force a facial recognition or thumb print but no one can force you to give a password. Also, don't give real answers to the questions.

[prestoncheapbtheadphoneste]

I use my, esim. Strong passwords, my ugly face recognition and 2 step verification on some of my most important accounts.

🫤