SIM Swap and Port-Out Fraud: How to Protect Your Business Phone Number

By Web Asset House Studio · October 28, 2026

Note: Some future links on this site may be affiliate links. We never claim hands-on testing; guides are researched from the public sources listed in each article.

How we wrote this: A summary of the FCC's cell phone fraud guidance and its 2023 SIM swap and port-out fraud order as published in the Federal Register (linked below), checked October 28, 2026. It is general information, not legal advice. Each carrier's protections and their names differ, so ask yours.

For many small businesses, one mobile number does a lot of work: it's the number on the website, the login for the bank, and the place verification codes arrive. That makes it a target. If someone takes over the number, they get your calls and texts, including the codes.

How the takeover works

The FCC's cell phone fraud page describes two versions:

• Port-out fraud. Moving your number to another carrier or device is legal and routine. With enough of your personal information, a scammer may convince your carrier that a port-out request comes from you. The number moves to a device they control.
• SIM swap. The scammer gets your number onto a SIM they hold. The FCC also mentions physical theft of a removable SIM card.

Either way, the FCC says, the scammer controls your texts and calls and may then reset passwords on your financial and social media accounts.

What the FCC requires of wireless carriers

In November 2023, the FCC adopted rules on SIM swap and port-out fraud. The Federal Register notice says the rules require wireless providers to:

• Use secure methods to authenticate a customer before a SIM change or port-out.
• Notify customers immediately when a SIM change or port-out request is made on their account.
• Offer all customers, at no cost, the option to lock their account so SIM changes and ports are blocked.
• Keep a clear process for reporting fraud, investigate and fix it promptly, and give customers documentation of fraud on their accounts.

The notice set January 8, 2024, as the general effective date, with some parts delayed until later approvals. Carriers name and run these protections differently, so the useful step is to ask what yours offers.

Lock down your business number

1. Turn on your carrier's account lock (sometimes called a number lock, port freeze or SIM protection). The FCC's rules require carriers to offer one for free.
2. Set an account PIN or passcode with the carrier if it offers one, and don't reuse a PIN from another account.
3. Turn on change notifications so you hear about SIM or port requests right away.
4. Know your account details (account number, the authorized users). If you ever move providers on purpose, our guide to porting your business number explains the normal process.
5. Consider an eSIM. The FCC notes eSIMs can't be physically removed, which removes some of the risk of a physical SIM swap. Port-out scams remain a concern, and the FCC says to wipe your eSIM data when you replace a phone.

Make the number less valuable to steal

Text-message codes are only as safe as the phone number they go to. For your most important accounts, such as banking, email and your domain registrar, switch to an authenticator app, a passkey or a security key where the service offers one. See our guides to passwords and MFA for a small business and passkeys.

Warning signs

• Your phone suddenly loses service where it normally works. After a successful port-out or SIM swap, your number is working on someone else's device.
• You get a carrier message about a SIM change or port request you didn't make.
• You stop receiving calls or texts, or get password-reset alerts you didn't trigger.

If it happens

• Call your carrier immediately from another phone, report the fraud and ask them to restore the number and lock the account. The FCC's rules require carriers to have a clear reporting process and to give you documentation of the fraud.
• Secure your accounts: change passwords for email and banking first, and review recent activity.
• For related identity theft, the FCC's fraud page suggests contacting local law enforcement, filing an identity theft report with the FTC, and placing a fraud alert with one of the three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian or TransUnion), which passes it to the other two.
• You can also file a complaint at the FCC's Consumer Complaint Center.

Sources

• FCC: Cell Phone Fraud
• Federal Register: Protecting Consumers from SIM-Swap and Port-Out Fraud (Dec. 8, 2023)
• FCC: Consumer Complaint Center