Have you been called by +44 and hung up instantly? Congratulations, you are a candidate for elegant looting!
Lately, half the world is receiving mysterious calls with a British prefix (+44), as if suddenly we all had a cousin in London that we forgot. The funny thing is that nobody knows anyone in the United Kingdom, but there they are, playing at 3 AM as a reminder that the universe enjoys our sleepless nights.
Wangiri: the Japanese art of hanging and laughing at your bill
It turns out that this is not a misdialing, but a fraud with an exotic name (“Wangiri” means “a call and cut”, because in the world of crime they also appreciate short poetry). The tactic is simple: a robot calls you, hangs up on the first ring, and hopes that your curiosity – or your dazed sleep – leads you to call back. Boom! Now you’re talking to a premium number that will charge you more than a Taylor Swift concert.
Some “favorite” numbers of these scammers are:
+44 7787 7495 07 (the “James Bond” of scams)
+44 7435 5289 65 (possibly a Harry Potter fan)
+44 7760 5318 05 (surely sells fake Rolex watches)
+44 7340 7284 96 (the classic “millionaire inheritance” waiting).
Operators, like Movistar, recommend not returning calls to unknown numbers (unless you like to give money away). But, of course, who needs advice when you can discover the fraud months later, when you see your bill with a €50 charge for a 2-second call?
Basic protection: be more suspicious than a cat in a bathtub
To avoid being scammed while you sleep (or at any other time):
– Don’t return strange calls, even if they promise you a Nigerian prince.
– Search the number on Google: if others have already reported it as a fraud, don’t be the next one.
– Review your invoice as if it were your final math exam.
– Block, report as spam, and if they send you an SMS with “You won an iPhone!”, ignore it (spoiler: you didn’t win anything).
Ready to avoid falling into the trap? Share this article and save someone from paying for a ghost call. Or better yet, explore more cybersecurity guides before the next scammer convinces you that you are the heir to the British crown.
