Warning for practices over PBX phone systems

There are reports that some businesses have recently been victims of PBX (Private Branch Exchanges) fraud where a hacker accessed their phone lines and made premium rate calls at a significant cost to the practice. We have contacted the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) to see if there is any advice particularly for practices. Whilst we wait for a response it is worth noting that the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) has issued some helpful guidance on how to protect against this type of fraud.

PBX/dial-through fraud occurs when hackers target PBX from the outside and use them to make a high volume of calls to premium rate or overseas numbers. Since the end of June 2013 there have been nearly 500 Action Fraud reports relating to this - costing victims over £6m. Visit the NFIB website for information on how to protect against this type of fraud.

If you feel you have been a victim of fraud you can also call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or use their online fraud reporting tool.

Last updated : 25 Sep 2015

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