The Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA) today (September 24) reminded members of the public to stay alert to suspected fraudulent calls purporting to be made by OFCA.

     A spokesperson for OFCA said, "OFCA received reports from members of the public today on their receipt of suspected fraudulent calls purporting to be made by OFCA. According to the information provided by the members of the public who received the calls, all the calls were in the form of pre-recorded messages, in either Cantonese, English or Putonghua, alleging that there were anomalies in the called parties' use of telephone services or their telephone numbers had been used in illegal activities, and that their telephone services would be suspended. The called parties were then instructed to press '9' for further enquiries.

     "We wish to stress that OFCA has never made and will not make such phone calls. In addition, calling numbers with a '+' sign as a prefix displayed on mobile phones indicate that the calls originate from outside Hong Kong even though the calling numbers may be masqueraded as Hong Kong phone numbers."

     The spokesperson added, "We urge members of the public to stay alert and report any suspected fraudulent calls to the Police, irrespective of whether a '+' sign is displayed as a prefix to the calling numbers. If they have any questions regarding the status of their telecommunications services, they should contact their telecommunications operators for details direct, and under no circumstances should they disclose their personal information over the phone."

Ends/Tuesday, September 24, 2019
Issued at HKT 19:41

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