Answer
Phone hacking is where people gain unauthorised access to information that is held on a mobile telephone, in most cases these are voicemail messages.
Mobile phone companies set up a default voice mail service for all mobile telephones. This service can be accessed from other mobiles telephones (or traditional landline telephones) by dialling your mobile telephone number. Once the voicemail service message begins, all a hacker has do is dial * and enter a PIN number, which is a default PIN number unless it has been changed.
For details on how to amend this PIN number, see your service provider in the related links.
If you suspect that your telephone or mobile telephone has been subjected to hacking then you can report it to Police Scotland by dialling 101.
When you contact the police they will need:
- Your name, address, date of birth and current contact number
- A brief reason why the caller believes that they may have been victim of telephone hacking
- The telephone number believed to have been hacked and
- The estimated date when hacking is believed to have occurred
Your details will be forwarded to the investigation team dealing with phone hacking enquiries.