What Can Scammers Do With Your Phone Number? 7 Real Risks

Should You Worry If Someone Has Your Phone Number?

Hackers and scammers can use your phone number as a “digital master key” to gain access to your online accounts (including your bank account, email, and social media) and target you and your contacts with phone and text scams.

By far, the most dangerous risk posed by someone having your phone number is a SIM swap. 

In this scheme, hackers use social engineering to trick your phone provider into giving them control of your cell phone number. They can then request and intercept password resets and two-factor authentication (2FA) codes, and access your most sensitive accounts.

The good news is that you can take steps today to proactively protect your phone number, accounts, and identity.

What Can Hackers Do With Your Phone Number?

1. Use a SIM swap scam to take control of your phone number
2. Access your sensitive online accounts (email, banking, etc.)
3. Find enough of your sensitive information to steal your identity
4. Target you with phone and text message scams
5. “Dox,” harass, and stalk you
6. Open new phone lines or utility services in your name
7. Impersonate you and target your friends and family

It’s remarkably easy for someone to find your phone number. Data breaches regularly leak phone numbers and other personally identifiable information (PII), which ends up for sale on the Dark Web.

But it’s not just criminals who put your phone number at risk. Data brokers and “people search sites” take advantage of weak privacy laws to scrape online sources and public records for your PII, and sell it to anyone who wants it — even scammers.

Here’s a breakdown of the biggest risks to your security when hackers, scammers, or other malicious actors have your phone number:

1. Use a SIM swap scam to take control of your phone number

Mobile phone companies have security features in place that are designed to prevent scammers from making changes to your account. However, hackers have learned how to use your stolen personal information to pass security checks and take control of your phone number.

In 2024, the FBI reported that victims lost nearly $26 million to SIM swap scams alone.

Here’s how these SIM swap scams play out:

• A scammer calls your phone carrier impersonating you and requests that the company "port-out" your phone number to a new SIM card that they control. The scammer may claim that you lost your old SIM card or phone and need a new one.
• With control of your phone number, the hacker not only can receive messages on your behalf — but also send messages, make calls, and access your accounts.

Why do mobile carriers “port out” phone numbers? Porting is a security feature that protects your data when you change phone carriers. But scammers can exploit the system to take ownership of your number under a new SIM card. 

2. Access your sensitive online accounts (email, banking, etc.)

With control of your phone number, hackers can intercept password reset requests and 2FA codes sent to your phone, and access your most sensitive online accounts.

SIM swaps are especially dangerous if your passwords have been leaked in a data breach or compromised by phishing attacks — as this gives hackers easy access to your online banking, cryptocurrency, email, or social media accounts.

⚠️ Do this now: Protect your accounts by switching to an authenticator app. Hackers can only use SIM swaps to access your accounts if your method of 2FA is SMS-based (i.e. you receive 2FA codes over the phone). Authenticator apps like Authy, Microsoft Authenticator, and Google Authenticator, provide 2FA without relying on SMS and are much more secure.

3. Find enough of your sensitive information to steal your identity

On its own, your phone number may not seem like a particularly sensitive piece of personal information. However, your phone number can lead scammers to other more sensitive information, including account passwords, credit card details, and even your Social Security number (SSN).

Phone numbers were found in 39% of all data breaches in 2024.

Hackers can use your phone number to search data breaches (or data broker lists) for your other sensitive information and build a more complete profile about you. In some cases, your phone number may lead them to enough information to steal your identity.

4. Target you with phone and text message scams

You probably already receive unwanted phone calls and text messages, including robocalls, spam calls, and messages from unknown numbers. But scammers who have your phone number and other stolen information can target you with more sophisticated phishing scams.

Fraudsters may contact you pretending to be law enforcement, debt collectors, or even family members — using your own personal information or family details to trick you into sending them money or clicking on malicious links that infect your mobile device with malware.

📚 Related: How To Block Spam and Scam Calls →

5. “Dox,” harass, and stalk you

Once scammers gather information about you via your phone number, they could potentially try to blackmail you by using stolen information, photos, or videos. They may also stalk you by using location data, harass you online and use your personal contact information, or release your private information (known as “doxxing”).

💡 Report online stalking and abuse to the authorities. The Coalition Against Stalkerware provides a list of resources for anyone dealing with online stalking, monitoring, and harassment.

6. Open new phone lines or utility services in your name

Also known as subscriber fraud, this scam involves fraudsters using stolen personal data to open new cell phone, utility, or other accounts in their victims’ names. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received 4,258 reports of phone or utility fraud in 2024.

This type of fraud can be hard to identify — and even harder to prove that the debt isn’t yours.

7. Impersonate you and target your friends and family

If scammers have control of your phone number, they may use it to target your friends and family members with scams and phishing attacks via phone calls, texts, or messages on Whatsapp and Telegram.

Even if scammers don’t have control of your phone number, they can use spoofing technology to make it look like calls or texts are coming from your phone. In other cases, they may trick you into providing unique codes that allow them to set up Google Voice accounts by using your phone number.

Scammers are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) to mimic their victims’ voices in phone calls — making these scams dangerously believable.

How To Secure Your Phone Number Against Hackers

Protecting your phone number and online accounts from cybercriminals requires a four-step approach:

1. Carrier level: Protect your phone account with a unique PIN or “port out freeze.”
2. Device level: Keep your device secure with a strong passcode, SIM PIN (or use an eSIM), and antivirus software.
3. Account level: Replace SMS 2FA with an authenticator app, use a password manager, and monitor your account passwords.
4. Proactive behavior level: Remove your PII from data broker lists and public websites, use a “burner” phone number for account creation, and avoid clicking on suspicious links.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of the steps you should take right now to protect your mobile phone and phone number, in order of importance:

Update your 2FA method to an authenticator app

If you haven’t already enabled 2FA on your most-important online accounts, do that now. 

If you already use 2FA, take this opportunity to switch from SMS to an authenticator app. This is the most effective way to prevent account takeovers from SIM swap scams. For even more protection, consider a hardware security key, such as YubiKey.

Here are the different 2FA methods that are available:

Secure your account with your mobile phone carrier

Most phone carriers provide optional tools that can help secure your account against SIM swaps and port-out scams — such as a unique PIN or “port freeze” that prevents unauthorized users from moving your phone number to a new SIM or provider.

Here’s how to secure your phone account with most major carriers:

• AT&T account passcodes prevent unauthorized users from making changes to your account.‍
• Verizon Number Lock is a free security measure that prevents anyone from moving your phone number to another service.‍
• T-Mobile SIM Protection and Port Out Protection are free features for both postpaid and prepaid accounts to help secure your phone number.

Keep your passwords in a password manager

A password manager is a secure tool that stores and provides easy access to your account credentials. Password managers make it much easier to use strong passwords that are unique, complex, and long — as you only have to remember your master password (to access the manager) and not each individual account’s password.

Some password managers — including the one that comes with every Aura account — can even warn you if your passwords have been leaked or are too weak.

Don’t click on suspicious links or answer unknown calls

Phone scams are among the more common ways that your personal information or mobile device get compromised. You can avoid most risks by simply ignoring text messages and phone calls from numbers or people you don’t know.

If you need to answer unknown or unfamiliar calls or respond to texts, follow these protective measures:

• Don’t trust your caller ID. Scammers can spoof their phone numbers to make it look like they’re calling from a local number, company, or government agency.
• Never click on links in text messages. If in doubt, visit the website in question directly — for example, if you get a smishing text about suspicious activity on your bank account, sign in via the official banking app to check; or call your bank’s fraud department by using the number on the back of your bank card.
• Avoid calling back unknown numbers. Scammers use one-ring scams (hanging up before you can answer) to trick you into calling them back.
• Sign up for an AI-powered spam call blocker. Aura uses AI to screen unknown or suspicious callers on your behalf, ensuring that you only receive legitimate calls and texts.

Protect your phone against theft and hacking

If scammers have physical access to your phone, or infect it with malware, they can access your most sensitive information and accounts. Always make sure you know where your phone is when you’re out in public.

You should also take steps to secure your phone against common threats:

• Set a strong device PIN. Use a unique code that is at least six characters long.
• Use biometric security. For added security, enable fingerprint or facial recognition security.
• Set your auto-lock to the shortest time possible. This will prevent scammers from gaining access to your phone if they steal it in public.
• Enable automatic software updates. Outdated software (and device operating systems) are more vulnerable to malware and can be more easily hacked.
• Install trustworthy device antivirus. If you use an Android phone, install antivirus to scan for and remove malware. iPhones don’t allow third-party antivirus apps to be installed. You can sign up for Aura free for 14 days and gain access to its powerful cybersecurity suite — including a military-grade virtual private network (VPN) and antivirus to make sure your device is safe.

📚 Related: How To Know if Your Phone Is Hacked (and What To Do) →

Remove your personal information from the internet

Proactively removing your personal information from public websites, social media accounts, and data broker lists can prevent scammers from using your data against you.

• Clean up your social media accounts and tighten account privacy. Remove your phone number and other details from your account profiles. Then, tighten your privacy settings to only allow friends and contacts to view your details.
• Submit data removal requests to data brokers. There are hundreds of data brokers in the United States alone, each with its own (often convoluted) data removal request system. You can automate the process by signing up for Aura. Aura scans over 95 data brokers for your sensitive information and sends take-down requests on your behalf.
• Remove your contact details from Google search results. If a website is hosting your information, it may show up when someone does a Google search of your name. You can request that Google hide these results from searchers (or have Aura do it for you).

Use a secondary or “burner” phone number whenever possible

You can keep your primary phone number private by using a secondary or “burner” account when signing up for online services and loyalty programs. For example, Google Voice allows you to set up a virtual phone number for free (if you have a Google Workspace account) that you can access from your smartphone or desktop device.

📚 Related: What To Do If Your Phone Is Hacked →

Were You the Victim of a Phone Scam? Do This Now!

If you think your phone or accounts were hacked or that you fell for a phone scam, act quickly to minimize the damage:

• Contact your phone service provider. Let your mobile service provider know that you’re the victim of a SIM swap and ask them to regain control of your number.
• Switch passwords and 2FA methods for all compromised accounts. Immediately secure your most sensitive accounts, and then proactively switch as many online accounts to an authenticator app as possible.
• Freeze your credit with all three bureaus. Scammers can use your stolen information to take out loans or open financial accounts in your name. Contact each of the three main bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) to freeze your credit reports and prevent fraud.
• Contact the FTC to report fraud and identity theft. The FTC is the official resource for victims of identity theft and fraud. If you gave a scammer personal information or think your identity has been stolen, file an official report at IdentityTheft.gov. Victims of fraud can also report the scam to ReportFraud.ftc.gov. If you have information that could lead to an arrest, you should also file a police report for identity theft.
• Dispute fraudulent charges. Check your bank statements for signs of fraud, and then dispute them directly with your financial institution’s fraud department. You may be asked to supply your FTC or police report.
• Try to recover lost funds. There are different steps required, depending on the payment method you used with a scammer. For more information, follow Aura’s in-depth guide on how to get your money back from a scammer.
• Continue to monitor your accounts for identity theft. Identity thieves can strike at any time. Aura’s award-winning identity theft protection solution monitors your most sensitive information and accounts for signs of fraud and alerts you in near real-time. You can try Aura free for 14 days to see if it’s right for you.

The Bottom Line: Your Phone Number Can Put You at Risk

Hackers don’t care if you use an iPhone or an Android phone. All they need is your phone number to steal your identity, money, and more.

As hackers get more sophisticated with their tactics, you must take preventive action to keep your devices, finances, and identity safe. Lock your SIM with a PIN code, be careful with unsolicited calls and text messages, and try not to give out your phone number to too many people. 

For added protection, sign up for Aura’s all-in-one digital security solution. 

Aura protects your devices from scammers, monitors your online and financial accounts for signs of fraud, and keeps your passwords secure. And if the worst should happen, you’re covered by a $1 million insurance policy for eligible losses due to identity theft.