Cheap VoIP? It's a 'vish' come true for scammers...

Cheaply available voice over IP numbers and net calling are helping crooks launch new data-thieving scams, a security company has warned.

In a twist on phishing, fraudsters are now calling their intended victims instead of emailing them. The caller hears an automated message that warns of a problem with a bank account, Secure Computing, a maker of security appliances, said in a statement on Monday.

The message includes instructions to call a phone number to resolve the issues. That number connects the caller to a voice response system asking the consumer to enter their 16-digit credit card number, Secure Computing said.

The fraudsters are likely to be using stolen identities to set up a voice-response system and acquire local VoIP phone numbers, according to Secure Computing, which dubbed the new way of scamming "vishing".

Phishers have already been sending out emails that attempt to trick people into sharing personal information over the phone, instead of via a website, the traditional scam.

Cyber crooks are also using mobile phones as a way to bait victims. In Iceland and the UK, SMS text messages were used to lure people to a malicious website that installed a backdoor, according to F-Secure, a Finnish antivirus company.

Criminals are better organised and moving to more sophisticated tactics to get their hands on confidential data and turn PCs of unwitting users into bots, or compromised PCs commandeered by remote attackers, law enforcement officials said recently.

Phishing is one of the most common threats. In May, just over 20,000 phishing websites - a new record - were reported to the Anti-Phishing Working Group.

Paul Henry, vice president of strategic accounts for Secure Computing, said in the statement about vishing: "Consumers need to be extra-vigilant when giving out their information on the phone. Common sense is the first line of protection."

Joris Evers writes for CNET News.com