Boost Mobile Fraud
Prevention Guide

Teaming up to prevent fraud

It takes a team and everyday awareness to protect yourself against bad actors. Let's learn what we can do to keep you safe online.

We'll cover common types of fraud and general fraud prevention tips, so you can keep your account safe.

Boost Mobile Fraud

Prevention Guide

Teaming Up to Prevent Fraud

It takes a team and everyday awareness to protect yourself against bad actors. Let's learn what we can do to keep you safe online.

We'll cover common types of fraud and general fraud prevention tips, so you can keep your account safe.

Notice

Illegal Download of Customer Data

We learned of a data security event involving a subset of our customers’ information, as managed by one of our partners–the data was not readily identifiable and consisted of call/text logs without customer names or the communication content. This data related only to a portion of Boost Mobile accounts that were active from May to October 2022. Protecting your data is one of our top priorities. We have confirmed through our partner that the affected platform has been secured. We coordinate with our partner regularly. They are monitoring the situation and working with law enforcement. The impacted data is of low value for unauthorized use, and our partner does not anticipate fraud or identity theft to result from this data.

The affected data fields included phone numbers of customers and the numbers those customers dialed/texted, number of interactions, total call duration and, for some records, cell site identification number(s). No identifying names accompanied this data. The downloaded data does not include: (1) the content of any calls or texts; (2) the time stamps of calls or text; or (3) any details such as name, Social Security numbers, date of birth, financial information, or other personally identifiable information.

We sincerely regret that this incident occurred. We have provided notice to current and former customers whose information was involved along with resources to help protect their information. To find out if your information was impacted, please call toll-free 1-833-415-2515. This service center is open from 8:00am - 8:00pm ET, Monday through Friday, excluding some U.S. holidays. Customers can come back to this page for the most up to date information regarding the data incident or for resources to help prevent fraud.

The information below provides good general information to help protect you from phishing, smishing and other online fraud. While the data at issue here is of low value, we want you to adapt safe browsing and mobile usage habits to protect yourself online every day

Common Types of Fraud

Learn about the most common online scams and how to prevent them.

Scammers can hijack your phone number by using your name, address, birth date, PINs, passwords or Social Security number to port your number out of Boost Mobile to a device they control. Once they have control of your phone number, scammers will often bypass multi-factor authentication and drain your bank account. Take these steps to protect yourself from Port-Out Fraud:

Do not share your personal information with anyone.

Be Alert: We will never call of text you asking for your personal info. If someone calls or texts you asking for your personal info, do not share and contact us immediately.

If you leave Boost Mobile, we'll give you a port-out PIN. Keep your port-out PIN secure and don't share it.

Additional steps: If you are a victim of port-out fraud, contact your bank and other financial institutions and place a fraud alert on your credit reports.

Scammers can send deceptive messages to your phone. These messages appear to be from a trusted source, like your bank or the IRS. The messages seem urgent and may promise you a reward in exchange for clicking a link or submitting information.

Interacting with the message, such as clicking on the link sent or calling the phone number in the message, can give scammers access to your personal information or allow them to install malware on your device. Scammers may sell your information or use it to perpetrate fraud.

Take these steps to protect yourself from a SIM Swap:

Do Not Act: If a text message seems suspicious, delete it immediately. Do not respond to the message or click on any link, even if the message requests that you “text STOP.”

Confirm Before Clicking: Boost Mobile will never ask for personal or account information by text message. If you get a text that seems to be from us with a link to click or number to call, contact us at (833) 502-6678 before acting on the message.

Report It: If you receive a suspicious text message claiming to be from Boost Mobile, please forward the text message to us right away.

Remember, do not click suspicious links. If you shared any personal information or clicked on any suspicious link, contact us right away.

Scammers often target the good conscience of people trying to help others in the wake of a natural disaster. Scammers prey upon people wanting to help, tricking them into donating to phony charities and charitable services.

Take these steps to protect yourself from Post-Disaster Scams:

Be Alert: Verify the information of any person or organization asking you to pay for services or donate to charity.

Do not share your personal information with anyone.

Confirm Before Clicking: Scammers send links or attachments that contain malware or direct you to fraudulent websites. If you suspect you’ve been targeted, file a complaint with the FTC.

If a scammer gains control of your SIM card, either by physically switching out the SIM or by using software to “clone” your SIM, they can hijack communications meant for you and reroute them to a device they control.

This lets them outsmart multi-factor authentication and gain access to your financial accounts.

Take these steps to protect yourself from a SIM Swap:

Do not share your personal information with anyone.

Be Alert: We will never call or text you asking for your personal info. If someone calls or texts you asking for your personal info, do not share and contact us immediately.

Get an eSIM: An eSIM is a digital SIM that eliminates the need for a physical SIM card. An eSIM can’t be removed from a device.

Report Fraud: If your device is lost or stolen, please contact us at: (833) 502-6678.

Additional Steps: If you suspect you’re a victim of SIM swapping, contact your bank or other financial information and place a fraud alert on your credit reports.

If you get a call from a number you don’t recognize, and it stops after one ring, you may be a target of a “one-ring” scam. Do not answer or return these calls. Calling these numbers back at premium rates is the goal for “one ring” or “wangiri" scammers. The longer you stay on the call, the more money the scammer makes.

Take these steps to protect yourself from One Ring/Wangiri Scams:

Be Alert: Don’t answer a number you do not recognize. If a suspicious unrecognized number repeatedly calls, do not share any info with the caller and contact us immediately at (303) 502-6678.

Confirm the legitimacy of a phone number before calling back or answering.

Report It: If you suspect that you are being targeted by a one-ring scammer, do not pick up or call back.

General Tips For Staying Cyber-Savvy

Protect yourself from the most common cybercrimes by following these general rules.

Use a Strong Password

It's best to use a password that is at least 8 characters long, with an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, a number, and a special character.

Check Links Before Your Click

Hover your mouse over a hyperlink to check the link in the lower left corner of your browser. On most mobile devices, you can top and hold a link to display the link's destination.

Verify Before Responding to Emails

Return emails addresses can be spoofed! Emails from Boost will almost always come from boost@boostemail.com. If you receive an email from a different email address, do not respond to it.

When in Doubt, Log Out

If you walk away from your computer, or use public computers at a school or library, someone else could reopen your browser and access your accounts.

How To Spot Scams

Learning how to spot scams is the best way to proactively protect your accounts.

You're Asked to Send Money Outside of Normal Payment Methods

Scammers might contact you with a great offer in exchange for upfront payment made through a specific payment method (usually money orders, like Green Dot or Western Union). They may also ask that you purchase gift cards.

You're Asked to Give Out Personal Info

Scammers attempting fraud sometimes call customers and claim to be Boost Mobile reps. Since they can spoof our phone number (make their called ID seem like Boost Mobile), these calls often appear legitimate. We will never call and ask for personal info.

You Get a Call or Email Asking for Personal Information

Phishing (pronounced "fishing") is a term used to describe the process of gathering information. Any additional info that a scammer collects about someone is a successful phishing attempt. If you receive a suspicious call, reach out to us immediately.

How You Can Report Fraud

If you're a victim of fraud, you should contact the credit reporting bureaus to prevent someone else from opening up loans or bank accounts in your name.

Reporting fraud or fraud attempts to local law enforcement helps them investigate leads and prosecute scammers. Even if your local law enforcement agency doesn't have the resources to investigate it, you can still report it using one of the links below:

Federal Bureau of Investigation

www.fbi.gov

Federal Trade Commission

www.ftc.gov

www.consumer.gov/idtheft

International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network

Equifax

Experian