Roaming and Data Top-Up Scam

Roaming and data top-up scams involve fraudsters contacting mobile customers — by text, phone, or email — claiming to represent their carrier and offering roaming packages, data bundles, or top-up credits that can be purchased at a discount or added to their account immediately. Payment is taken but no credit is ever applied.

The scam is most commonly encountered by customers who are travelling internationally and are acutely aware of the cost of roaming, or by pay-as-you-go customers who are running low on data. The sense of urgency — being abroad with high roaming charges, or facing imminent data cutoff — is exploited to accelerate the transaction and prevent the verification steps the customer would otherwise take.

A related variant targets customers shortly before they travel, offering 'discounted' international roaming packages activated through a link. The link leads to a fake payment portal that collects card details, which are then used fraudulently. No roaming bundle is activated.

The use of spoofed caller IDs that match the carrier's actual customer service number makes these calls especially convincing. A customer who sees their carrier's real number displayed has no immediate visual cue that the call is fraudulent.

The fraudster sends a text or makes a call appearing to come from the customer's carrier. The message or caller explains that the customer's roaming data is about to run out, that they are approaching their data limit, or that a special offer on a new bundle is available for a limited time.

The customer is directed to click a link or call back a number to purchase the add-on. The link leads to a convincing replica of the carrier's website where payment card details are entered. The number connects to a fraudulent call centre that processes a payment via card details provided over the phone.

Payment is confirmed by the fraudulent site or caller. The customer receives a fake confirmation message showing the bundle has been activated. When they later check their account, no data or credit has been added. By then, the card details used may have been used for further transactions.

In variants targeting travellers in real time, the fraudster creates sufficient urgency that the customer does not take time to verify through the carrier's official app, which would immediately show the actual account balance and confirm no bundle was purchased.

Roaming charges are a genuine source of anxiety for travellers, and the offer of a solution appears at exactly the moment it is most welcome. The combination of a familiar brand, a spoofed number, and a real-time problem to solve is a compelling set of conditions for a quick decision that bypasses careful verification.

Pay-as-you-go customers who are used to topping up through third-party sites and convenience stores are also less likely to find the instruction to click a link or call a number unusual — these are normal top-up pathways for many users.

[Carrier]: your data bundle is almost used. Add [amount]GB for [amount] — tap here: [fake link].

International roaming alert from [carrier]. Avoid high charges — activate our [destination] bundle for [amount]: [fake link].

Special offer: double your data for [amount] this month only. Activate now at [fake link].

[Carrier] top-up reminder: your pay-as-you-go credit is low. Add [amount] instantly: [fake link].

If you receive a message about your data or roaming, check your account status directly through your carrier's official app or website — navigate there yourself, do not click links in the message. Your actual balance and any active bundles will be shown in your account.

If the incoming number appears to be your carrier's, hang up and call back using the number on your physical SIM card packaging, your most recent bill, or the carrier's official website. Do not use the number in the message.

For roaming bundles, purchase add-ons only through your carrier's official app, website, or by calling the official number. Do not purchase through links sent by text.