Happy new year tellows friends!
As we heard a lot about robocalls in the US last year, measures were taken by the end of the year as President Trump has signed legislation giving authorities to the right to identify and block robocalls.
In these days we have to pay more attention to the victims of phone frauds, which includes the vulnerable seniors. Last week an elderly robocall victim committed suicide after phone scammers have stolen her life-savings.
Screenshot from FTC report
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If you still remember, the US government is doing something to stop the skyrocketing robocalls, there are bills in Congress waiting to be voted next month. In the US, we receive billions of robocalls per month, and monthly money loss amount to 128M last year. Of course, it is promising if the bill passes in the summer, however, we should also pay attention to the latest information about phone scam in the mean time!
Picture from FTC
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Dear friends of tellows,
Hi there! The first month of January already passed and tellows hope you had a wonderful beginning of the year. We thank you for choosing tellows as your resources of phone scam protection, as in January we received over 100K page views and we joyfully invite you to stick with us through 2019. This time we will go through the January top 3 searched numbers in the tellows U.S website, and also share some of its details for your information, such as the type of callers and the name of companies.
The first mostly searched number is +1400491098.
It has a tellows score of 6, which is a mildly trust worthy rating, yet the search request cumulatively numbered over 10k.
The second frequently searched number is +442038076172.
Our tellows community reported that the number belongs to a company called CFD Global, which its country code revealed it is a British phone number. With a tellows score 8 and also a nature to be a telemarketer.
The third one is 8002927508.
Our users suggested that it is a debt collection company named Synchrony Financial or CareCredit and its cumulatively search requests over 20k. It has a tellows score 6 and most of the users have opinion that once they paid the loan the call stopped.
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Just imagine you receive a phone call one afternoon from THE US Federal Grants Administration and you think to yourself, what could they possibly want with me? You receive the news of a lifetime – you have been awarded a grant to initiate any project or further your education of your choosing, all at a total value of $8000.00!*
Does it sound too good to be true? The latest scam to sweep across America is the Government Grant scam and unfortunately my friends, this one hasn’t landed anyone thousands of dollars richer. What usually happens to the contrary, is that the caller claims himself to be a representative of the US Federal Grants Administration and attempts to lure the recipient to believe that they have qualified for a government grant. In order to retrieve this “free money,” the caller firstly requires the person’s bank account number or a small figured deposit.
We have some beneficial information with what you might hear, see and expect, to help easily recognize this Government Grant Scam and useful tips for proceeding with the phone call.
Gone are the days of leaving your front and back door ajar and your windows wide-open. Sad but true, people just don’t feel as safe in their own neighbourhood’s anymore and we long for security solutions before it is too late. So when a company (cold) calls you again and again offering a solution to this problem on a silver platter, what do you do?
Here at tellows.com, it has come to our attention that there has been a common trend lurking over the last few months with searches for phone numbers related to the selling of these (questionable) Home Security Systems.
Due to this high volume among the greater community, the Federal Trade Commission recently released information as to what are a couple of the “red flags” to be aware of for those who receive these calls.
Dear friends of tellows,
This week’s winning entries are all-new and quite entertaining. They are experts in their field and do their work with efficiency and determination – in other words, they just don’t stop calling. We’ve got telemarketers, debt collectors and a delightful mixture of who knows who else, because the last number can be used by anyone who feels like it. Read on…
1. 6313933105 with 2 comments and 1010 search requests. tellows Score: 7
2. 5707068800 with 4 comments and 1014 search requests. tellows Score: 8
3. 2149695489 with 3 comments and 601 search requests. tellows Score: 8
The first number 6313933105 from the USA may belong, according to our users, to Cablevision, whose telemarketing department calls you if you cancelled their services, or equally, if you might be interested in them. In short, they seem to call everyone with a phone and try to flog their product.
This calls come at rate of 7 or 8 times a day! For once I know whos is calling though. Its cablevision because I canceled a few weeks back. I answered the first few calls and patiently told them that I canceled it with a reason and I’m not interested. They simply dont’t give a damn what I want though…
The second number 5707068800 is from Wayne, USA and the likely owner is Penn Foster, though we can’t quite be sure. What we do know is that these calls come from debt collectors, who might call you a) for laughs (and hang up when you answer) b) to ask you where [insert name of random stranger here] is or c) (the most likely reason) – they want you to pay off a fictional debt.
First I was called to identify some people ’cause apparently, they were all listed with my number and said honestly I don’t know them. Then they wanted to have MY information and that’s just weird. So they collect it. Then is stopped for a few weeks and then they started to call again. Now I had some debt which I had to pay. Now isn’t it convenient that I was called a few weeks back then…It really sounds like scam. when I confronted them they started to get quite rude and even when I wanted them to delete my number, they just said the same thing: give us money!
Our final number 2149695489 from Dallas, USA is not from Dallas at all. If you search this number on the internet, you can immediately see that it doesn’t actually belong to anyone and a whole lot of people, normal and crazy, trustworthy and untrustworthy, are able to use it. Next time you see this number pop up on your screen, close your eyes, make a wish and hope someone really fantastic is on the line. Who knows, you might be lucky.
This phone number is simply strange. Sometimes friends call me with this number. e.g. when they’re away or something but in between I partly get really strange calls from some creeps. They’re similar to the comments below…It seems like everyone can use it cause its a payphone number. I think it’s the ideal opportunity for frauds to get in action
Let this week’s numbers be a warning and don’t forget to keep your wits about you. Our third number just goes to show that you never know who’s on the other end of the line.
Have a nice week!
Your tellows team
Hello friends of tellows,
This week we certainly have an interesting combination for you, from inmates to stubborn telemarketers who hold on to their work for years. Some of the annoying calls which come flying your way are actually unintentional but let’s admit, that the majority of them certainly isn’t. Telemarketers adopted the strategy to not even ask you, if you really want buy or order something or not. Now they simply ask you how much you want of it and wait for an answer while you still think: what is he/she talking about? And another great strategy is pursued by the Bank of America, which calls their clients to the point, where they block the number, not knowing who it is that terrorizes them.
All in all one could say, that on their way to invent new strategies to reach out to the people, something went wrong. Nevertheless inform yourself and share your experience with us. Your comment might help just the right person.
1. 2135430000 with comments and 1156 search requests. tellows Score: 7
2. 2144469818 with 2 comments and 730 search requests. tellows Score: 8
3. 2165458326 with 2 comments and 1002 search requests. tellows Score: 8
The first number 2135430000 from Los Angeles – USA is an odd case because it’s supposed to be from inmates from various facilities. They accidently deal the numbers or something just doesn’t work right. At the end both parties are dissapointed. But there is a solution which was proposed by one of the users and which might help you:
I got calls from that number too and because it really started to get on my nerves I researched a little bit and I found out, though I’m not sure if it’s actually true, that these calls come from inmates from various facilities e.g. like jail. Though now I’m even more confused ’cause why would someone from jail call me? Anyway I don’t think that even if I answer, the inmate could do anything against this problem so I’m going to call securustech who sends these calls and have my number blocked.
The second number 2144469818 from Dallas – USA belongs to Telemarketers who stubbornly seek to sell as many of their products as they can, ignoring your opinion on that case entirely. If you say ‘No’ it’s not understood as one. You can be sure that you’ hear from them again.
This number calls our work place and wants to speak with an owner or office manager. They are calling from superpages.com regarding advertising. No matter how many times I tell them I’m not intersted and to please not call they go on calling. It’s frustrating.
And finally the third number 2165458326 from Beachwood – USA belongs to FIA Card Services who is a contractor of Bank of America. They make calls to their clients in order to “thank” them for their business. That means in general that you opened an account in their bank or something similar. The problem is, that customers themselves don’t recognize the number and don’t pick up the call. If they do, the line goes dead or some other problems prevent the bank from expressing their gratitude. So they try again later. And after a while the customers feel harassed.
This number and callers are just odd. I mean they call me daily, at leat 2 times a day and in most cases they just hang up when I try to answer the phone. Phone ID says Bank of America and that makes it even more weird. At some point I didn’t want the call to end as it usually does and after a minute someone answered. They really introduced themselves as Bank of America and they wanted to know my reasons for opening an account..And when exactly did I do that? I would remember that. So I looked it up and that’s the result. Still I’m not in BofA so why do they have my number? And if they call all of their customers to just inform them of the things they already know and in that way annoy the h*** out of them, then I think they should be worried that they might lose some of them in the near future…
These are fine examples of goodwill going bad. Don’t be discouraged. Take care and have a nice week!
Your tellows team
Dear friends of tellows,
we have another update on the most wanted numbers on tellows. The following three numbers were the one most searched for the past few days:
1. 6302881777 with 2 comments and 922 search requests. tellows Score: 7
2. 3233319189 with 7 comments and 1075 search requests. tellows Score: 8
3. 4804212803 with 2 comments and 550 search requests. tellows Score: 7
Ranking on our first place, the number 6302881777 from Hindsdale received a tellows score of 7 and has been active for several years. While users complaint that the number calls at all hours, Erica shared:
That is the sales department from comcast! Only advertising!
Our second number, 3233319189 has been making calls from Los Angeles. According to our users, the caller tries to intimidate by making apparently false accusations and posing as debt collection company or as police. Moreover, in some cases the caller seemed to have personal information about the person being called. User Heather commented:
This number called me at work today. The guy said that I owed for an unpaid loan, which I know is bull..however, he has my bank card name, last four of my social, and my full name! I asked him why the BBB has never heard of them, and I was hung up on.
Calling from Phoenix, Arizona, our third place, number 4804212803 has been reported as scam. While one user voiced suspicions about a possible lottery scam, user lateriser3 has found a way of dealing with the persistent caller:
They keep on calling and will not take no for an answer so I just hangup and put them on my reject list.
To know what phone numbers to put on your reject list, you know the place to look for untrustworthy numbers and if you have any information on suspicious numbers don’t hesitate to contribute to tellows! Other than that, we hope you can enjoy a nice, scam- and spam-free weekend.
Your tellows team!
The topic for this weeks blog entry arose when we came across the comment of rosee and other users on number 9712179508 stating things like this:
he said he was calling from windows and that my computer was beeing hacked and wanted me to follow the steps on my computer he was asking, of course I said no way and hung up
What we found there is much more than just some scattered instances of unsolicited phone calls, it leads us to a huge scamming business that bothers people not only in the US but in all English-speaking countries. We already reported on this scam method last year in our UK Blog. The calls we are talking about are mostly having the same goal. Callers, pretending to be working for e.g. Microsoft or Windows technical support, are giving aggressive warnings that your computer is infected with numerous malware, viruses and other infected files and malicious traffic. The only help is apparently the caller itself who can rightaway fix all problems on your PC and delete the infections, which he will show you, is very urgent and necessary.
What sounds like a nice support offer for inexperienced users is in fact highly developed deceptive business practice. Because the result will not be the removal of anyway non-existent dangerous malicious activity but much more the removal of the consumers money. While the consumers think that the support team will fix the allegedly detected problems they allow them to remotely access their computer and what is equally worse, charge tremendous sums of money for this “support” and additional software.
The obviously profitable random cold calls are being made by numerous companies, such as Pecon Software, Finmaestros LLC, Zeal IT Solutions or Virtual PC Solutions, mostly located in India. While this scamming has been going on for years now, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) last year finally reported a huge crackdown on these telemarketing boiler room enterprises that where scamming consumers in large amounts. Nevertheless, as noticable in the worldwide Tellows community, the calls are still being made and as a matter of fact, the FTC is not as successful in hindering the scammers as they wished for, since US laws don’t apply to Indian companies adequately.
One of the solutions for however not becoming a victim of tech support scamming is obviously being leery of incoming calls. Microsoft itself offers some necessary hints. In addition, platforms like www.tellows.com provide their users with fruitful information about suspicious phone numbers. The huge database of untrustworthy callers on tellows makes it easier to decide which calls to take and which ones to ignore completely. The tellows community has been warning and informing consumers about fraudulent phone numbers in about 20 countries and has encouraged users worlwide to share information about criminal phone spam methods. We found some examples of numbers that most probably belong to the group of tech support scammers, such as:
As the list is not anywhere near complete, you are more than welcome to extend it by evaluating phone numbers and commenting on scammers on tellows!
Source: http://ftc.gov/opa/2012/10/pecon.shtm
Have a good week!
your tellows team