Fake Tech Support Calls: Anyone else get them?

[The Deacon]

Had a series of them over the course of one day last week, from a 315 (upstate NY) number warning me in more and more threatening tones that I owed the IRS money and would be arrested if I failed to return the call. Never called back and I'm still free.

On a lighter note, got one of those "you've just won a free cruise to the Bahamas" calls. Caller asked if I was married. I said no. He asked me if I "lived with someone". I was in the mood to have some fun, so I said yes. Caller asked "would she be willing to accompany you". Told him it was a he. Brief pause, then "ok, no problem". Then I mentioned that he was 10 years old and, at the moment, had his head in my lap. Heard a gasp, then a click. :D Bear gave me one of his "hey, you're disturbing me" looks when I burst out laughing.

[remnar]

That's hilarious Paul. :eek: :D

[The Deacon]

Today's winning caller was peddling "final expense insurance". Let her give her spiel, the politely said "sorry, not interested". She replies "but don't you want to spare your family those expense. I said "I've already made my arrangements, and their all paid for. I'll be cremated, my ashes mixed with resin and cast into the shape of a fire hydrant which will be placed in the local dog park." Long silence, then click.

[paladin]

You're too kind Paul...you're providing these bottomfeeders with material for a funny book to publish one day. If I don't recognize the Caller I.D., then it goes unanswered-- boring, not as amusing <for us> as your protocol...but effective.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Someone told me not to respond to spam callers and spam emailers because if I respond, that tells them they reached an actual active person, and they will try to send more spam, and its best to ignore and delete or hang up on them. What do you say to that advice?

[The Deacon]

You're too kind Paul...you're providing these bottomfeeders with material for a funny book to publish one day. If I don't recognize the Caller I.D., then it goes unanswered-- boring, not as amusing <for us> as your protocol...but effective.

I try to follow that rule as well. Problem is, if the phone rings on one of those rare days when I'm expecting a call and I'm not wearing my reading glasses at that moment, I can't see who's calling. To make matters worse, a couple of people I do business with show up as "Private Name, Private Number" on caller id, so I can't even block those. After 60+ years, I suspect a Pavlovian conditioned reflex to answer a ringing phone comes into play as well.

Someone told me not to respond to spam callers and spam emailers because if I respond, that tells them they reached an actual active person, and they will try to send more spam, and its best to ignore and delete or hang up on them. What do you say to that advice?

I've been told the same. Definitely true for emails, and may help in some cases with phone calls if the caller is human, but I'm not sure if robo-calls can distinguish between a call answered by me and one answered by my answering machine. What you most definitely do not want to do is follow the instruction to "Press N to be removed from our list". Doing so not only tells them they've reached a live person, but one who is to at least some degree compliant.

[anagarika]

Paul,

Those are hilarious! I wish I have 10% of your sense of humor! Loved ones kept telling me I'm no fun :o

You're a :cool: :spyder:

[JT]

Funny stuff gentlemen :)

I guess it varies from country to country, how do the fake callers get the phone numbers. Here, landlines are petty much in the past now, mobile phones are like 98% majority. So, when making a deal for the SIM-card/deal with the phone company of your choice, one can determine "how" your number is available to anyone, including business/marketing users etc.

I can determine it totally hidden, so that the Number directory/ Directory Enquiries/ number service can't find it, or they can find my name and number, or my name, number and address. Also, one can make a "marketing decline/ban" to those number services, so they can not approach you at all.

As quessed, I don't give my personal info out at all, so only my friends know my personal number. No hassle with the fake callers or newspaper salesmen..
My work number is listed under the company+my name, so no hassle there either.

Still, I get some veeeeeery interesting calls to my work number because of my work, but that's another story. Phone call record app is very handy sometimes :D

[shunsui]

It's mutating. Here's the latest version, a pop-up.

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-36084989

[Cheddarnut]

Maybe the piece of mind some people get from thinking they have online protection improves their lives psychosomatically, and is therefore not a scam. Insurance in general is kind of a scam.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

I have a question somewhat related to this: When it comes to those "identity protection" services, that promise if you sign up with them, they will guarantee that no one steals your identity and abuses it for whatever purposes, what is the reality vs the hype behind them? Someone has said that any individual can do all of what they do,for free, for yourself, its just that their service involves you paying them to look up and get ahold of resources that would take the average person a lot of extra time. I'd like your thoughts on these? One example is this "Life Lock".

[The Deacon]

Funny stuff gentlemen :)

I guess it varies from country to country, how do the fake callers get the phone numbers. Here, landlines are petty much in the past now, mobile phones are like 98% majority. So, when making a deal for the SIM-card/deal with the phone company of your choice, one can determine "how" your number is available to anyone, including business/marketing users etc.

I can determine it totally hidden, so that the Number directory/ Directory Enquiries/ number service can't find it, or they can find my name and number, or my name, number and address. Also, one can make a "marketing decline/ban" to those number services, so they can not approach you at all.

As quessed, I don't give my personal info out at all, so only my friends know my personal number. No hassle with the fake callers or newspaper salesmen..
My work number is listed under the company+my name, so no hassle there either.

Still, I get some veeeeeery interesting calls to my work number because of my work, but that's another story. Phone call record app is very handy sometimes :D

Some buy them from places you've done business with and given your number. Some buy them from companies that compile and sell lists of active numbers. Some buy them from or trade them with other scammers. Some just go the "brute force" route and have someone dial their way through a known area code and exchange starting with NNN-NNN-0000, NNN-NNN-0001, NNN-NNN-0002 and so on straight thru to NNN-NNN-9999. Phone companies here make that fairly easy by using a standard series of tones followed by an equally standard message when you dial a number that's not in service.

I have a question somewhat related to this: When it comes to those "identity protection" services, that promise if you sign up with them, they will guarantee that no one steals your identity and abuses it for whatever purposes, what is the reality vs the hype behind them? Someone has said that any individual can do all of what they do,for free, for yourself, its just that their service involves you paying them to look up and get ahold of resources that would take the average person a lot of extra time. I'd like your thoughts on these? One example is this "Life Lock".

Some of them can act as an "early warning system", letting you know if someone tries to obtain credit in your name, and that can be of some value. Some of what they do is "name based" so it's probably a lot more helpful to someone like me with a relatively uncommon name than to someone named Smith, Jones, etc. Downside is, it's just going to be one more place that has your SSN on a computer. Given that at least one of the major credit bureaus has been hacked, I think you'd have to be an idiot to believe any database as 100% secure. As for their "guarantees", I could be wrong but I don't think any of them are worth much. As a result of SC's income tax database getting hacked a few years back I have free identity protection from CSID. It "works", at least to the extent that when I open an account I get a message warning me that someone has opened an account in my name. Would I have it if I had to pay for it, probably not.

And, since you mentioned LifeLock, this happened 6 years ago, and he did something incredibly stupid, but it's still a fun read. Lifelock CEO's Identity Gets Stolen 13 Times :rolleyes: :D

[JT]

Some buy them from places you've done business with and given your number. Some buy them from companies that compile and sell lists of active numbers. Some buy them from or trade them with other scammers.

That is true.
Luckily, my country and the language we speak is pretty difficult, so the market is inside this country, not much baad engrish callers here. It's mainly those annoying tabloid/newspaper/wonderpill sellers, not so much windows/other fake support calls.
They do target older folk with land lines, and pretend to be bank officials / police etc, and try to get the bank account info and passwords. :mad:

[Gadget]

Hi
only fell for it once long ago after buying my first decent laptop, called two days after I bought it.... "we work with Michrosoft and can see your pc has a problem" cost me $60 for an "extended warranty service pack", luckily they didn't ruin anything and I didn't have any important info in the pc yet.....

Now when one calls I say "oh no, what can I do... can you help me"... then leave them hanging on the line while I watch tv....