Wangiri Scam Costs Iranian Cellphone Users Thousands of Dollars

EghtesadOnline: I n a phone scam recently gone viral in Iran, 126,000 cellphone subscribers have been targeted costing them some 3.8 billion rials ($27,300) collectively, deputy ICT minister Hamid Fatahi twitted on Wednesday.

News ID: ۷۴۶۱۵۰

27 October 2018

Earlier in the week, the ICT Ministry issued a warning about answering calls from unknown international or unusual numbers, branding them a form of phone fraud.

The scam is a form of the phone fraud known as ‘Wangiri’, a Japanese word meaning “one ring and drop” and that is exactly what the scammers do. Users receive a call that cuts off just as the phone rings, leaving a ‘missed call’ notification from an unknown international or unusual number on their display.

Curiosity might goad many to call back the number to see who it was, but doing so can cost the users exorbitant sums of money. The scammers have set up a premium toll number, which charges callers at an exorbitant rate, reportedly up to and sometimes exceeding $8 per minute, according to Financial Tribune.

Fatahi wrote on Twitter “So far 126,000 Iranians have been targeted in the scam costing them some 3.8 billion rials ($27,300) collectively.”