With access to a smartphone for almost everyone, Spam Calls are also on the rise duping many innocent people every day. Gen Z and millennials are less likely to be safe from getting tricked while it’s not the same for others. And what are Nepal Telecom and Ncell doing about it? Here in this article, we’ll talk about everything about spam calls and ways to be safe from spam calls in Nepal.
Spam Calls in Nepal
OTP Scams
The most notorious spam calls right now are the banking and digital wallet ones, going around some years for now. What happens here is the scammer pretends as a bank/digital wallet representative and asks for an OTP code for fake purposes. If you provide that OTP number, then, it’s like handing over the keys to a thief. They can then change your password, and log your bank/wallet account on their phones. And their target is pretty obvious— your hard-earned money!
Lottery Scam Calls
As a Nepalese, having Viber/WhatsApp on your phone is very common. These instant messaging apps are everyone’s favorite platforms to get connected to our family, and friends and even for office work. Due to a huge user base, WhatsApp and Viber have also become hotspots for scammers. You might have at least gotten a spam/message once on these platforms. Most of the scam calls are done via international numbers, alluring you a prize money for a competition, you never ever participated in. Especially, the “Kaun Banega Crorepati” WhatsApp scam has duped so many innocent people. Making them deposit money in the scammer’s account as the preliminary fees to get the prize money and whatnot! And their money goes to the scammer’s account.
Employment Scam
Another common scam going on these days is the employment scam calls. It can be on text messages too. Scammers usually target those looking for a job and provide enticing offers like handsome salaries and pay rates. Here as well, they take fake registration and processing fees and the next you know, your money is gone! In some cases, the scammer can also hook someone for a week doing online tasks and paying no money when it’s the payment time.
How to identify spam calls?
- Using TruCaller App: If you have the TruCaller app, it can detect a possible scam call. So, you don’t fall into the scam trap.
- Unsolicited Calls: If you get an out-of-the-blue phone call from another part of the globe with an unknown number, then, you should just avoid taking the call or simply cut it. It’s most likely to be a scam call anyway.
- Requests for personal information: Duping oneself as a bank/government representative and asking for all your personal details is too fishy. You can term it a scam call right away. Bank or such personnel never ask for personal info such as passwords, OTP, and other details.
- Fake tech support: This one is the most notorious one when you see a pop-up ad showing phone numbers of reputed tech support and make a call on the phone. Sometimes, they can also directly call you saying there’s a virus on your phone/computer and other reasons.
Airtel launched AI-powered spam detection
Gazing at our neighboring country, Airtel has already begun providing an AI-powered soam call detection feature. It can flag suspicious calls and SMS in real time, warning the users about a potential scam. Airtel is using dual-layer protection with filters at the network and IT systems layers. It relies on the usage pattern, frequency, call duration, use of suspicious URLs, and other parameters to detect a scam phone call. Similarly, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea have also commenced the service.
- Also Read:
Do we have any AI-powered spam detectors in Nepal?
The answer is no. Sadly, both telcos, NTC and Ncell haven’t implemented any AI-powered Spam detector. Nor have we heard of any such plans in the news. Here, the Nepal Telecommunications Authority as the regulatory body should develop a mandatory policy for implementing such spam call detectors in Nepal.
It’s high time, we require powerful spam detectors as smartphone usage is surging as well as the number of spammers. Plus, educating our parents and those unaware of modern technologies seems also very important. Some digital wallets and banks have already begun sharing awareness against OTP and similar scams in Nepal. Most importantly, the telcos should bring spam/scam detection technology to Nepal.
- Meanwhile, you can check our eSIM video.
