EXPOSED - Your phone number! Learn how to protect it
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Connectivity is a beautiful thing.. until it starts intruding on your personal space.
Connecting to loved ones and keeping in touch has transcended geographic boundaries, thanks to technology. What once used to take days and even weeks now takes seconds. In fact, you can do much more than just speak to your friends and family - you can see them, send them gift packages & money, exchange data, etc. Furthermore, you can meet new people on social media, make online purchases, grow your business, and so much more.
In all these forms of communication, there’s one common denominator - your phone number. Being connected in so many ways also means being exposed. It is easy for phone numbers to fall into the wrong hands, leading to cyber threats. As a user, there are a few steps you must take to avoid such problems and the intrusion of your privacy.
How your phone number is exposed
Awareness is the first step towards protecting your data online. Your number may be exposed in many different ways, some of which you may not be aware of. Let’s take a closer look:
- Oversharing: It feels harmless to share your number during contests, alerts, and online forms but sometimes, the intent of the recipient is malicious and your phone number may be shared with others, ending up in your receiving too many unwanted calls.
- Linking to social media accounts: Phone numbers and email IDs are mandatory requirements to create any social media account. While giving them out is inevitable, you can make sure that these details are private by changing the default settings.
- Not reading the Terms of Service: The Terms & Conditions of products and services are usually very monotonous and none of us has the patience to go through them. Companies take advantage of this and slip in a clause that allows them to use your contact details. While it may take time, it is important, thus, to read these documents thoroughly and understand where and how your data will be shared.
- Falling prey to data breaches: Companies sometimes are victims of data breaches and they are obligated to release details about the information breached. If you think your phone number may have been leaked, you can call the company and enquire.
What information can a hacker get from your phone number?
Along with your name and address, here’s everything that a hacker can get their hands on through your number:
- Your address
- Your family members’ names
- Email address
- Social media accounts
- Verification codes
- Cryptocurrency
This shocking list can go on depending on how “out there” you are. Using this information, hackers can commit identity theft, commit fraud under your name, steal your phone number, etc.
Precautions to protect your phone number
There are a few things you could do before the fact to avoid having your contact information leaked. We have listed the easiest and most effective ways below:
- Use a password manager
- Go through the Terms and Conditions carefully
- Conduct a Google Search with your phone number to find out what information is available online - do this on a regular basis
- Do not answer unknown calls and let them go to voicemail
- Use two-factor authentication (2FA) as and where possible
- Use a spam call blocking app
- Keep your number off robocalls by registering on DND
- Use a private virtual secondary number
Conclusion
We live in times when sharing contact details is inescapable. Whether it is to shop online or to build a business, the phone number is always the first point of contact. But then, shouldn’t you have the comfort of privacy and security? With Doosra, you can.
Doosra is a popular secondary number app that you can subscribe to in order to safeguard your primary number, which can remain private. Your secondary number will be the one you use online and receive all transactional messages and calls. Plus, the application blocks all calls so that you cut spam in its roots! This is the quickest, easiest way to stay incognito without compromising on the pleasures of technology.
Oh, what a wonderful world we live in! Let’s take measures to safeguard our privacy and enjoy it to the fullest.