A woman in Ohio, Lela, had her phone number hacked, despite changing carriers and trying to recover her accounts. She had her phone number transferred to another carrier, AT&T, and was still experiencing issues.

How to Protect Your Phone Number

Your phone number may seem harmless, but it is connected to many of your important accounts, such as bank accounts, credit cards, and email. If a hacker gains control of your phone number, they can receive your calls and text messages, including security codes.

A SIM swap scam occurs when a criminal tricks your mobile carrier into moving your phone number to a SIM card or eSIM they control. A port-out scam happens when they move your number to another carrier.

To protect yourself, you should call your carrier directly and ask them to check for SIM swap attempts, port-out requests, and unauthorized account changes. You should also ask them to add stronger protections, such as a strong account PIN and port-out freeze.

Securing Your Email and Accounts

Your email is often the master key to your digital life. If a hacker controls your email, they can reset passwords for your banks, credit cards, and other accounts. You should change your email password from a safe device and review your recovery email addresses and phone numbers.

You should also use an authenticator app or security key for important accounts, such as email, banking, and credit cards. This will make it much harder for hackers to break into your accounts, even if they gain control of your phone number.

Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.