Ask HN: What to do about unwanted SMS activation codes?
- I keep receiving activation codes for various services, including some I don't have an account for: Google, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Facebook (for Android), Blizzard, Twitter, TheChange, LocalBitcoins, Netflix, Amazon, Paypal and VoicePhishing. I don't have any crypto-related accounts. My phone number is not tied to most of my accounts.
- Some horny old German dudes started messaging me on WhatsApp. After a bit of investigating, I learned that my phone number ended up on those "local girls in your area" porn ads.
- I started receiving spam calls, which is pretty unusual in Germany. I received ~5 calls from US numbers, which I did not answer.
- Today, I got a call from a Forex bank about an account activation. Because of the events above, I tried to get more info. He just said that the account was for a person named Pyotr. Not a rare name in Germany, but definitely not my own.
My phone number has been public on my website for 3 years, because I'm legally required to put it there. However all that nonsense started very recently. Nothing like that happened before.
My email was part of the 123rf breach, among others that included phone numbers.
Could anyone shed some light on what is happening, and what I should do about it?