The Government through the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has warned Kenyans on mysterious phone calls when upon receiving, wipes away all the loaded airtime from their handsets.
CA revealed that they had confirmed fresh reports through the National Kenya Computer Incident Response Team Coordination Centre of the international phone scam known as Wangiri which was first reported in January this year.
According to the government, victims of the scam receive very brief or missed phone calls from unknown international numbers.
The scheme is designed to lure phone users into returning the "urgent" international calls, upon which they are unknowingly redirected to premium numbers that drain their airtime.
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The longer the victims stay on line, the more money they lose to the scammers, with post-paid subscribers being the hardest hit.
Dark web
The scammers purchase the phone numbers used in the scam from the Dark Web, which is a hidden part of the internet, known for buying and selling illegal goods and services.
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CA cautioned Kenyans against receiving numbers that bear the following international dialling codes: +41 (Switzerland), +963 (Syria), +252 (Somalia), +37 (Latvia) among others.
"We are advising the public to not call back any international numbers they do not recognise and if one happens to fall victim, he/she should report the number to the service provider so that the numbers can be blocked," CA said in a statement.