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 NEWS  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 For  immediate  release:  News  Media  Contact:  August  6,  2002  Rosemary  Kimball  at  (202)  418-  0511 
 E-  mail:  rkimball@  fcc.  gov 
 FCC  CONTINUES  NATIONAL  FRAUD  AWARENESS  WEEK  ACTIVITIES  Day  Two:  Cell  Phone  Fraud 


 Washington,  DC  –  On  Monday  the  FCC  announced  it  is  observing  National  Fraud  Awareness  Week  (August  4  th  -10  th  )  by  highlighting  five  topics  about  which  it  gets 
 many  inquiries  and  complaints  from  consumers.  One  topic  will  be  addressed  each  day  this  week.  Not  all  are  frauds  or  scams,  but  all  are  topics  about  which  consumers  should 
 be  informed. 
 On  Monday  the  Commission  addressed  “The  Do-  Not-  Call-  List  Verification  Scam.” 


 Today’s  topic  is: 
 CELL  PHONE  FRAUD 


 Cellular  fraud  (cell  fraud)  is  the  unauthorized  use,  tampering,  or  manipulation  of  a  cellular  phone  or  service.  At  one  time,  cloning  of  cellular  phones  accounted  for  a  large 
 portion  of  cell  fraud.  As  a  result,  the  Wireless  Telephone  Protection  Act  of  1998  expanded  prior  law  to  criminalize  the  use,  possession,  manufacture,  or  sale  of  cloning 
 hardware  or  software  for  cell  phones. 
 Currently,  the  primary  type  of  cell  fraud  is  subscriber  fraud.  The  cellular  industry  estimates  that  carriers  lose  more  than  $150  million  per  year  due  to  subscriber  fraud. 


 What  Is  Subscriber  Fraud? 
 Subscriber  fraud  occurs  when  someone  signs  up  for  service  with  fraudulently-obtained  customer  information  or  false  identification.  Lawbreakers  obtain  your  personal 
 information  and  use  it  to  set  up  a  cell  phone  account  in  your  name. 
 Resolving  subscriber  fraud  could  develop  into  a  long  and  difficult  process  for  victims.  It  may  take  time  to  discover  that  subscriber  fraud  has  occurred  and  an  even 
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 longer  time  to  prove  that  you  did  not  incur  the  debts.  Call  your  billing  carrier  if  you  think  you  have  been  a  victim  of  subscriber  fraud. 
 What  Is  Cell  Phone  Cloning  Fraud? 
 Every  cell  phone  has  an  electronic  serial  number  (ESN)  and  mobile  identification  number  (MIN)  programmed  by  the  carrier.  A  cloned  cell  phone  is  one  that  has  been 
 reprogrammed  to  transmit  the  ESN  and  MIN  belonging  to  another  (legitimate)  cell  phone.  Unscrupulous  people  may  be  able  to  obtain  valid  ESN/  MIN  combinations  by 
 illegally  monitoring  the  radio  wave  transmissions  from  the  cell  phones  of  legitimate  subscribers.  After  cloning,  both  the  legitimate  and  the  fraudulent  cell  phones  have  the 
 same  ESN/  MIN  combination  and  cellular  systems  cannot  distinguish  the  cloned  cell  phone  from  the  legitimate  one.  The  legitimate  phone  user  then  gets  billed  for  the  cloned 
 phone’s  calls.  Call  your  carrier  if  you  think  you  have  been  a  victim  of  cloning  fraud. 
 Summary 
 Remember,  to  prevent  subscriber  fraud,  make  sure  that  your  personal  information  is  kept  private  when  purchasing  anything  in  a  store  or  on  the  Internet. 
 Protecting  your  personal  information  is  your  responsibility.  For  cell  phone  cloning  fraud,  the  cellular  equipment  manufacturing  industry  has  deployed  authentication  systems  that 
 have  proven  to  be  a  very  effective  countermeasure  to  cloning.  Call  your  cellular  phone  carrier  for  more  information. 


 FILING  A  COMPLAINT 
 You  can  file  a  complaint  with  the  FCC  by  e-  mail  (fccinfo@  fcc.  gov),  the  Internet  (www.  fcc.  gov/  cgb/  complaints.  html),  telephone  1-  888-  CALL-  FCC  (1-  888-  225-  5322) 
 voice,  1-  888-  TELL-  FCC  (1-  888-  835-  5322)  TTY,  or  mail  (Federal  Communications  Commission,  Consumer  &  Governmental  Affairs  Bureau,  Consumer  Inquiries  and 
 Complaints  Division,  445  12th  Street,  SW,  Washington,  DC  20554). 


 For  information  on  this  and  other  topics  of  interest  to  consumers,  visit  our  Web  site  at  www.  fcc.  gov/  cgb 
 To  receive  information  on  this  and  other  FCC  consumer  topics  through  the  Commission’s  electronic  subscriber  service,  click  on 
 www.  fcc.  gov/  cgb/  emailservice.  html. 
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