ANACOM has become aware of contacts made by persons falsely claiming to be employees, representatives or auditors of this Authority, with the aim of obtaining advantages such as the conclusion of contracts for the provision of electronic communications services or for other purposes. These contacts are fairly frequent, with only the form of approach changing, such as the means of contact (telephone and/or email) or the style of speech of the person making the contact.
Be aware of the email address used by the person contacting you, which may have been created to give the false impression that you are being contacted by ANACOM. An example of a fake email address may be marialopesanacom@gmail.com.
Please note that ANACOM does not make contacts for commercial purposes, either on its own behalf or on behalf of any electronic communications service provider.
ANACOM deplores and condemns this practice, which it combats as soon as it becomes aware of it, in particular by alerting users so that they can protect themselves. In addition, a criminal complaint is filed with the Public Prosecutor’s Office regarding the false identification of these individuals as ANACOM employees, and the corresponding administrative offence proceedings may be initiated if the facts provide evidence of unfair commercial practices on the part of companies regulated by ANACOM.
In this context, users of communications services must take care:
- not to provide personal data to people they do not know;
- to request identification of the person making the contact (name, company and department he/she represents);
- to ask to be contacted at a later date, so that the identity of the person and the purpose of the contact can be confirmed in the meantime; and
- to ask to be contacted directly on the operator’s website, if they are interested in contracting services.
In these situations, we also recommend that users file a complaint with Polícia de Segurança Pública (the Public Security Police) or Guarda Nacional Republicana (the National Republican Guard) in their area of residence. Alternatively, you can contact the Public Prosecutor's Office or the Investigation and Criminal Division of the court in the area where the incident occurred.
