Q: Hello, I am an expat living here in Busan. I recently had someone try a voice phishing attack on me in Korea. What was amazing was when I told them that I could not speak Korean very well, they called back a few minutes later with a fluent English speaker. They had a strange story about my passport being found in the Incheon International Airport. Then they told me to follow their instructions to get my passport back and I almost fell for it. I was too busy at that moment to continue the

conversation, so I kindly asked them to call me back later. Luckily, I found my passport before they were able to call me back. Do you think I should report this to the police?

A: It sounds like you had been scammed. Voice phishing has made headlines here in Korea for a quite a long time now.

Whenever I heard news about victims of voice phishing calls, I assumed that they were either elderly or were not being careful….

But anyone can be a victim.

This happened to me a few months ago.

I do not normally take naps, but that day I took a nap, and I was awakened by a phone call.

The caller said that I had ordered something from overseas and had paid twice for the item with my credit card. He told me to give him my information to receive a refund or to cancel the payment.

He almost got me, because it was true that I had bought something online earlier that month.

Luckily, I was still a bit groggy from my nap, so I had difficulty following his instructions.

When I didn’t understand properly, he sounded annoyed.

Then, instinctively, I could tell that something was not right.

So I said, “Okay, sir, would you mind if I call you back in a few minutes?” And I asked for his name and his office number.

After, I checked with my credit card statement, and it had not been charged twice.

I was so close to being trapped!

These days, voice phishing scammers are so good… .

In the past, voice phishing was more like…

one of your family members is being kidnapped and you have to pay a certain amount of money to have them released.

But times have changed.

For example, you may receive a text message saying, “this is a message from a Gu-office. Click the link to see if you are eligible for a COVID relief fund.”

But if you click the link, it will not lead to the website of the Gu office, but instead

automatically charge your bank account. That’s just crazy.

The crime has evolved so much that just about anyone can become a victim.

It’s good that this person didn’t send any money to get his or her passport back, but… just be careful.

If the money has been already sent, you must visit your bank as soon as possible.

That way, they can suspend (freeze) that bank account.

Or call 1322. It’s the number of 금융 감독원, the Financial Supervisory Service.

Since you personally gave no information to the caller it is not necessary to inform the police.

But please remember:

Banks do not call to offer you a lower interest.

If someone calls you and asks for your personal information, a picture of your ID card, or your bank account number, chances are that you are being scammed.

If someone sends you a text message with a link, do not open it.