Around 10:50 AM this morning, my indoor landline rang. The caller ID displayed the number 00962851, which looked highly suspicious at first glance. I generally ignore these types of strange calls; landlines these days are rarely used except for family connections or the occasional automated campaign recording during elections.
However, this call seemed persistent. It rang and rang and rang until it became quite annoying. I finally gave in and picked up, curious to see who it was. On the other end, a robotic voice spoke calmly:
“Hello, this is Chunghwa Telecom. This is an automated payment reminder. Your account currently has an outstanding balance of 6,852 TWD. Please pay as soon as possible. If you have any questions, please press 9 to be connected to our operator.”
After listening to this robotic recording, I didn’t move or say a word. I just waited. I once encountered a scam group where, after the “robot” finished speaking and realized I wasn’t responding, someone on the other end actually started cursing at their colleagues! This group seemed better trained, however; they simply replayed the recording after I remained silent for a while.
When I receive these types of scam calls, if I have the time, I stay on the line just to consume their communication traffic and reduce the time they have to find new victims (I’m nice like that). Nevertheless, the techniques and methods of fraud syndicates are constantly evolving—the truly incompetent ones have likely already been caught. This specific automated system was significantly better than the crude Microsoft TTS (Text-to-Speech) systems used in the past.
Still, if you listen closely, you can spot the flaws. Genuine Chunghwa Telecom automated voices have specific intonations and follow the standard processing patterns of large-scale corporate systems, especially when transitioning between text and numbers. Regardless, it’s undeniable that this type of phone fraud is likely very successful. Setting aside what happens after you press “9,” simply pressing that button means you’ve already stepped into the web woven by the scammers.
Their choice to call near the noon hour is a classic tactic. That is the time when most elderly family members have returned home, making them easier targets for deception. After all, even a former Minister of Finance was once swindled out of millions this way.
I want to remind everyone: if you or your family members receive any automated voice notification, it is strictly forbidden to input any confidential information, and you should not even press a button. If you have any doubts, hang up the phone yourself and manually dial 123 from a landline, 800 from a mobile, or dial the 165 Anti-Fraud Hotline.