It’s back in the news again. Voicemails are being hacked, and now with The News of the World illegally targeting the missing schoolgirl Milly Dowler and her family in March 2002, its likely this one’s going to be around for some time.
I’ve had many calls from people about how to prevent their voicemail (your mobile phone answer phone) from ‘being hacked’ so thought I would share some advice on here.
How is Voicemail Hacked?
Your voicemail can be accessed from any phone as long as you know which number to call. The number varies from mobile operator to mobile operator, but is easy to find online. Once hackers get this number, they can start trying common PIN numbers and your personal information to try to access your voicemail.
If they fail, they can also try to convince the mobile operator by calling or emailing them to reset the PIN number by pretending to be you, it’s hard to do, as mobile operators require information such as the last four digits of your national security number or your date of birth for example, but it is not impossible.
Protecting Your Voicemail
Start with changing the default PIN number. When you first get your phone (or your account setup), the mobile operator normally provides you with a standard voicemail PIN number. Most customers change this, but if you haven’t bothered to change the standard PIN number, then you’re taking an unnecessary risk. You might want to change your PIN number regularly as well, just in case someone has guessed it or has been made aware of it, just as you would with your credit or debit card when you use a chip and PIN device or an ATM machine.
Picking a Good PIN Number
Many customers think that there is nothing important in their voicemail and decide for an easy to remember PIN number like repeating digits, consistent numbers, your birthday or even ATM PIN! While these passwords may be easy to remember, they leave your voicemail vulnerable.
First, use a combination of numbers. Most PIN numbers are a combination of 4 digits. Of course you want to avoid repeating digits like 2222 or 5555. It will only take ten tries for your PIN to be cracked. As much as possible, go for unique combinations. It is a common mistake to use birthdays, anniversary dates, home addresses or other special dates as combinations. These are all easy to deduce and put your voicemail at risk.
While you try to stay away from common dates that are easily identifiable with you, be careful also in choosing random numbers without meaning to you because this will be difficult to remember. To give you an idea, numbers can also stand for certain letters. That will further widen your options when trying to come up with a unique combination.
Add a Password to Your Account
If you want to add an additional layer of protection, you can add a password to your account with your mobile operator so that only authorised users can make changes to the account. To do this, call up your mobile network and say you want to setup a password on your account. This takes a few minutes and will help keep a hacker from getting access at the source, but again, you might want to change this regularly.
Why bother setting a PIN number?
You may not be a pop star or politician, but as we ditch landlines more and more we rely on our mobiles as a primary means of communication with numerous individuals, organisations and companies we wouldn’t want to be public. Whether it’s a message from the bank saying you have been denied for a loan or a voicemail from a medical specialist, there are some things that shouldn’t be shared. If you take a few moments today, you can make it harder for someone to hack your voicemail and get your personal information. Unless you like washing your dirty laundry in public, change your voicemail PIN!
