21 June 2012: From time to time the TIO receives complaints from small businesses that have received large telephone bills as a result having their telephone system (known as PABX) hacked.
PABX hacking occurs when the passwords of a telephone system are breached, and the hackers fraudulently sell international calls through the business’s phones. The hackers profit from the activity, while the small business owner’s telephone bill spirals into the tens of thousands of dollars over days or even weeks.
The business often doesn’t become aware of being hacked until they receive a large bill. The cost isn’t simply on them – frequently telecommunications providers are left in the lurch, as they have to pay the wholesale costs of the international phone calls..
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