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If a hacker has your phone number you could be at risk of identity theft, financial fraud, and more. Here’s how to keep your number and your identity safe.
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About 60% of the world’s cyberattacks start on mobile devices [*]. And it’s easy to see why. Your phone number is an easy access point for scammers and identity thieves.
Once scammers know your number, they can target you with phishing texts and calls, or trick you into downloading malware and giving up personal information.
And once they gain access to your personally identifiable information (PII), it doesn’t take much more to access your financial (and other sensitive) accounts.
In this guide, we'll show you how hackers steal your phone number, what they can do with it, and how you can protect your mobile number and personal information from identity thieves.
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If your number falls into the wrong hands, you could become a victim of phone scams, financial fraud, and identity theft.
Unfortunately, it’s remarkably easy to find someone’s number.
Data breaches are among the most common ways that scammers get access to your phone number. But there are plenty of other ways they can steal your digits as well. “People search” sites like WhoEasy collect and sell your personal data to telemarketers and hackers. Even if you’re cautious about what you share online, it’s not always possible to keep your number safe from criminals.
Here are five common ways a thief may try to find your telephone number:
Once criminals have your phone number, they can engage in a range of identity theft schemes. Here are descriptions of the eight ways hackers could use your phone number to steal your PII — and cause financial damage.
Mobile phone companies have security features to prevent scammers from making changes to your account. Unfortunately, however, hackers have found ways to reroute your number.
Here’s how it plays out:
In the news: In March 2021, Vice ran an experiment with a hacker to demonstrate how easy it is to reroute a phone number [*]. Within minutes, the hacker was able to take control of the reporter’s number. The hacker then rerouted all calls and messages and gained access to the reporter’s Bumble, WhatsApp, and Postmates accounts.
🛟 Related: How To Know if Your Phone Is Hacked (and What To Do) →
In the past, a hacker couldn’t cause much financial damage with just your personal phone number.
Today, however, our mobile devices serve as much more than address books. We store reams of personal information on our smartphones — including photos, emails, and account passwords.
And because most of us rarely change our phone numbers, those numbers become deeply connected to our other personal information. That means that if scammers have access to your phone number, they can find out all sorts of other information about you (and use it to steal your identity).
Once hackers have your number, they can use it to gain access to your most sensitive and valuable data, such as your:
Smartphones contain your personal data and digital footprint. This makes them a prime target for fraudsters who want to steal your identity.
Here’s how it plays out:
SIM swapping — or SIM jacking — occurs when fraudsters use your mobile carrier’s “porting” feature to gain access to your phone number. Porting is a security feature that protects your data when you change phone carriers. But scammers can exploit the system to take ownership of your number under a new SIM card.
Here’s how it plays out:
In the news: Twitter CEO, Jack Dorsey, was a victim of a SIM swap scam in 2019 [*] when hackers used his phone number to take over his Twitter account. Since then, the problem has grown. The FBI reported 1,611 complaints in 2021 with victims losing a combined $68 million to SIM swapping scams [*].
🛟 Related: Is Identity Theft Protection Really Worth It? →
Fake text message scams (also known as smishing) are an increasingly common method that hackers use to try and trick people into sharing sensitive information or downloading malware onto their devices.
Here’s how it plays out:
🛟 Related: How To Remove a Hacker From Your Smartphone →
Doxxing refers to the malicious act of revealing someone’s private information online to the public. The term comes from 1990s hacker culture in which rival hackers would “drop docs” to reveal someone’s true identity.
Today, doxxing can lead to harassment, fraud, and other abuses of privacy.
Here’s how it plays out:
🛟 Related: How To Quickly Identify a Scammer on the Phone →
Some scammers will use your phone number to engage in blackmail. If they access sensitive information — like photos and videos — they can threaten to release it to the public unless you pay a ransom.
Here’s how it plays out:
🛟 Related: What Is the Google Voice Verification Code Scam? →
Spoofing is a scam in which hackers adjust the caller ID shown on the recipient's phone so that it seems to come from a reputable organization. This is how a scammer can call you with your caller ID reading “IRS” or “FBI.”
Here’s how it plays out:
In the news: USAA Federal Savings Bank warned customers about a spoofing scam after a Phoenix couple was tricked into transferring about $2,000 from their account [*]. Ed and Cyndy Evans believed the text messages they received were from the bank. In reality, the scammer quickly took their money and locked them out of their accounts.
🛟 Related: How To Block Text Messages From Unknown Numbers →
Sometimes, hackers don’t go after you when they have your phone number — they target your loved ones instead. In these scams, fraudsters use your number to trick family members and friends into disclosing personal information or sending money.
Here’s how it plays out:
🛟 Related: 12 Awful Senior Citizen Scams: How To Prevent Elder Fraud →
Hackers can cause serious damage to your identity, reputation, and bank accounts with just your phone number. But with a few steps, you can secure your number against scammers.
Here are some ways to make your phone number more difficult for prying cyber criminals to hack:
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a cybersecurity measure that protects access to your accounts. You can contact your phone carrier’s customer service department and ask them to set a secondary password on your account. This way, only you can make changes or port out your phone number.
🛟 Related: How To Remove Your Personal Information From the Internet →
A SIM lock can help prevent scammers from SIM swapping your phone. The lock requires an additional PIN number in order for anyone to make changes or use your number.
To set up a PIN on your SIM, contact your carrier, or set it directly on your iPhone and other iOS devices.
Pro tip: A password manager can help protect your devices from SIM swapping and other phone scams. While hackers may gain access to your phone number to bypass 2FA, a password manager allows you to easily use unique and strong passwords that hackers can’t get around.
When you receive text messages or emails from unknown senders, resist the temptation to click on any links. If you get a message about a missed delivery, or find a message waiting for you in an online account, log into the service directly — not from the provided link.
Always research senders to confirm they are trustworthy and have authentic verification.
🛟 Related: Can iPhones Get Hacked? How To Tell & What To Do →
Scammers want to get you on the phone. One way they’ve learned to do that is by calling you from a spoofed number and hanging up right away. If this happens to you, don’t let your curiosity get the better of you. Don’t call back; instead, block the number.
🛟 Related: What is Vishing? Don't Fall For These 15 Common Phone Scams →
If you receive a strange text message asking for you to call a phone number, ignore it. These are almost always text message scams where fraudsters want to get you on the phone and trick you into giving up personal information.
Aura’s credit and fraud monitoring checks your bank accounts, credit cards, and credit reports for suspicious activity. If scammers gain access to your bank account through your phone, Aura will let you know quickly so that you can shut them down.
The easiest way for a scammer to steal your phone number is to get physical access to your phone.
When criminals stole my phone while I was on vacation, they were able to access all of my accounts, lock me out of my email, and steal tens of thousands of dollars. Always keep your phone in sight, and set up biometric security measures like fingerprint ID to secure your phone if it’s stolen.
🛟 Related: 10 Airbnb Scams That Will Ruin Your Next Vacation →
You can use antivirus programs on both mobile and computer devices. Cyber security programs block malicious code or malware, making it harder for hackers to access your data or steal your phone number.
🛟 Related: How To Know If Your Phone Has a Virus →
Ensure that the websites you visit are the real deal. Hackers will create fake websites by changing one letter or number of a webpage URL (for example “Walmrat” instead of “Walmart”).
These sites might appear identical to service providers such as your bank — which can trick you into sharing your phone number and other sensitive information.
🛟 Related: How To Protect Yourself From Hackers (2024 Guide) →
Never throw away anything that contains identifying information, such as your phone number. Make sure to shred or burn the files so that the data is unrecoverable.
🛟 Related: How Hackers Get Your SSN (And How To Protect It) →
Maybe it’s already too late, and you know that someone has your phone number and is targeting you with a scam.
Here’s what to do if you think a hacker has access to your phone number:
🛟 Related: How To Recover a Hacked Facebook Account →
Hackers don’t care if you use an iPhone or an Android phone. All they need is your phone number to steal your identity, money, and more.
As hackers get more sophisticated, you must take preventive action to keep your devices, finances, and identity safe. Lock your SIM with a PIN code, be careful with unsolicited calls and text messages, and try not to give out your phone number to too many people.
For added protection, sign up for Aura’s all-in-one digital security solution.
Aura protects your devices from scammers, monitors your online and financial accounts for signs of fraud, and keeps your passwords secure. And if the worst should happen, you’re covered by a $1 million insurance policy for eligible losses due to identity theft.
Editorial note: Our articles provide educational information for you to increase awareness about digital safety. Aura’s services may not provide the exact features we write about, nor may cover or protect against every type of crime, fraud, or threat discussed in our articles. Please review our Terms during enrollment or setup for more information. Remember that no one can prevent all identity theft or cybercrime.