Tag Archives: Method

Neverending Spam – The US Top 3 Spam Numbers

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Here are the most annoying spam numbers that have been harassing US citizens during the last week:

1. 3604615083 from Port Angeles with a tellows score of 7
2. 7574479265 from Norfolk with a tellows score of 8
3. 07788209043 mobile phone number with a tellows score of 9

Luckily, the phone preacher did not return so far and, of course, we hope that our work contributed to make an end to this nuisance.

But there are other spammers and scammers only waiting for you to pick up the phone. Both numbers on rank 1 and 2 were one rank lower last week.

There are no new reports on last week’s spam number 1. The only thing we can say for sure is that this is an automated dialer.

We have got very useful comments on the scammer on rank 2. Everybody watch out, this is a number phishing for information!

TH3 reported:

Text sd Please contact 7574479265 BofA 435603XX Card Issue. I don’t have a BofA card. Sounds fishy to me.

Mad in Dallas added:

Scam trying to get Bank of America account information. New version of scam tried about 2 weeks ago.

And finally mchoate had fun with this number:

someone that is trying to get debit/credit card numbers. it is a scam. I called BOA. they took the information. when you call the number back it ask for you to put in your cc/dc. I had fun with it and just put in random numbers… about 50 times! Then I BLOCKED their text.

Did the PPI scam wave already reach the US? So far, we have only heard of this happening in the UK. The 3rd most wanted spam number is offering clients to claim back money from their PP-insurance. Read more about this scam method on our UK blog.

Kind regards!

Team Tellows

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3 Numbers That Harassed You The Most – Weekly Update

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And here we go again with last week’s 3 most annoying spam numbers:

1. 0016466166770 from New York with a tellows score of 5
2. 3604615083 from Port Angeles with a tellows score of 7
3. 7574479265 from Norfolk with a tellows score of 8

Well, seems as if our campaign against the phone preacher was successful. There were no new reports on last week’s spam number 1. However, another candidate in the telemarketing scam business took its place. There were reports about the green card scam going on over this number. But obviously the aim of these calls turned out to be phishing.

User Patt wrote the following comment weeks ago already:

She (Amely Johnson) called me and told me I HAVE WON A GREEN CARD LOTTERY and I have to pay $500. She even asked my VISA or Master Card number.

Rank two goes to an automated dialer of a company situated in Port Angeles that is giving silent calls. So we can be curious with what kind of offers the number is going to amuse people all over the country.

And another phishing number on rank 3, which is not only calling but also texting in order to gain confidential personal information. User TH3 wrote a helpful comment:

Text sd Please contact 7574479265 BofA 435603XX Card Issue. I don’t have a BofA card. Sounds fishy to me

Thank you for providing us with the worst spam and scam numbers! Together, we are strong!

Take care,
Your Tellows Team

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Telemarketing In The Name Of God

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Tellows is back again to bring you the latest news on a spam or even fraud method circulating in the US. Self-declared preachers are calling individuals who apparently are on their “prayers’ list”, claiming to know about the hardships they were going through and that they should join their so-called “prayer’s closet” to be saved. It might sound ridiculous in the first place, but not everybody is aware that this is an obvious rip-off attempt.

We are talking namely about the following numbers:

8003187853
18003187853

If you know about other numbers – report them here!

The caller introduces himself as preacher or prophet or other religious leader. In some cases reported by users, one of these spammers’ name is “prophet Manasseh Jordan” of “Manasseh Jordan Ministry”. The calls have the following structure: first the caller says that God urged him to call you. He claims to know that the person on the other end was going through difficult times. In the end he wants the called person to press a key and give him detailed personal information.

Here is a transcript of such a call:

God urged me and spoke to me about praying for you, being a prayer partner,
being someone that’s standing on the sidelines praying that every day your needs will be met.
If you’re ready to join my prayer closet where I pray over thousands and you are the only one that’s missing.
I want you to press 0 so you can transfer, so I can transfer this call to the Prayer Closet
and so this way I can have your information so I can begin to start praying for you non-stop.
If you’re really ready press 0 right now because I know that your miracle is right around the corner.
Your struggle will be over. Press 0 now to be transferred to the Prayer Closet.

View the video on source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaB1so4nJBc

Phone calls of this kind have not only been reported to Tellows, but also to other blogs and websites dealing with this problem. However, the fake messiah seems to be operating only in the US so far.

You do not have to be a genius to notice that this is a scam call. Still, here are some advices:

* Never ever tell anybody your credit card details during a such a call, nor give any other personal information like your name or address.
* Ask the caller where he/she got your number from.
* Ask the caller for her/his name, job title, company and telephone number.
* Write down the telephone number and report it to Tellows
* Keep in mind that legitimate companies do contracts in a written way and never ask for personal details and financial matters on the phone

Yours,

Team Tellows

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Weekly Top 3 Annoying Spammers & Scammers

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Here are the top 3 most annoying phone numbers of this week:
1. 8003187853 toll-free number with a tellows score of 7
2. 3604615083 from Port Angeles with a tellows score of 7
3. 7162625942 from Rochester with a tellows score of 8

The crazy preacher business phone is back on rank 1! Oh my Gosh, are you sure this is what the Almighty told you to do? And who is going to save us from the spam preacher? The toll-free number appeared in our Top 3 ranking before. But this time it even made it on rank one. We call it: unbelievable!!!

Recent comment on the number by donna:

left me the same message creepy how do the assume i have hardships that require their interference i know where my church is

The second rank goes to a number that most probably belongs to an illegal, but yet very active telemarketer. We do not have much information on the spammer yet and therefore hope that Tellows users will provide us with more facts.

The goal of the scammers behind the number 7162625942 is to encourage consumers to buy sponsor offers, promising consumers they would get a gift card in return. Of course, this turns out to be a scam and either the worth of the sponsor offers is much less than the gift card or the consumers do not get any such card at all.

user Gomatthi reported:

Received a text message saying “Congratulations on winning $500 Target card. Click now http://www.prizewintowday.com. Claim your card now!

We are very glad you did not fall for it!

We count on your cooperation in the struggle against spam and scam!

Take care,
Your Tellows Team

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Religion and Profit – the 3 US Most Wanted Numbers

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Here are the top 3 most annoying phone numbers of this week:
1. +17675034697 from Dominica with a tellows score of 5
2. 4254069024 from Seattle – East suburbs with a tellows score of 6
3. 8003187853 toll-free number with a tellows score of 7

Last week’s top spam number 0012538203089 got expelled from the list of top spammers of the US. Now, the Dominica number moved from second to first rank! We did not find out any more information yet, except that this is another typical silent call or ping call number. Meaning: a callcenter is giving people automated calls from a list of numbers they probably bought. The automate is checking active numbers in order to provide them with telemarketing calls later.

For the Seattle number on rank 2 user Payback\’s a bitch reported:

A total scam. Called with offer to lower credit card interest rates. Attempted to obtain credit card account numbers and personal information. Keep them talking, waist their time as long as possible, act as dumb as you can. Let them explain everything. I faked a bad line and had the suckers call me back twice. How incredibly stupid are these people! Unbelievable!

Well, there’s not much to be added…

On rank 3 we arefacing probably the most ridiculous of all harassment calls and spam/scam methods… User Jack reported:

It’s some call from a preacher who claims himself a prophet, asking for entering his prayer. An unnecessary call to answer.

… and user Jayne added:

Left message on cell phone saying they were going to save me. I’m on DO NOT CALL LIST. This is an unsolicated call and seems to be calling many people.

Sad enough that these scammers count on the hopelessness and naiveness of religious people. Might be just a question of time until someone will read him the riot act.

Give us more information and help everybody to find out about and recognize scammers!

Take care,
Your Tellows Team

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Slam Spam and Scam! The US Top 3 Of The Week

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Here are the top 3 of the most annoying phone numbers of this week:
1. 0012538203089 from Washington with a tellows score of 7
2. +17675034697 from Dominica with a tellows score of 5
3. 7572146785 from Virginia with a tellows score of 9

Last week’s top spam number 0012538203089 stayed on first place and has about 3646 search requests by now.
Bad news for everybody who fell for it: this is another PC doctor scam number.

User Bear from Switzerland reported:

Got 2 calls (Switzerland)

Just someone telling you your computer is infected by viruses, and asking you to give him direct connexion to your computer to repare it!!

Do not answer any request from this number/person

He is absolutely right, for this is a widespread scam.
We have reported about this scam method before:

These wannabe Microsoft employees will spin tales about the most malevolent of software and the ways your PC system was infected by it. According to the American computer forum bleepingcomputer.com the fraudsters will try to lure you on onto their website to download a software called Teamviewer. This program enables the scammers to access your PC directly and, therewith, provides them with the opportunity to download and install malware, manipulate your system settings and spy for personal data. However, Microsoft will not call to warn you of a potential viral infection and offer support for free. Microsoft is not ignorant of the scam and was quick to publish an article on their investigation into the matter on their windows blog.

For further information see our blog article on PC doctor scam

We count on you in the struggle against phone spam and scam! We need you to share vital information about fraudulent phone numbers.

Take care,
Your Tellows Team

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PC Doc Win Greencard In Lottery – The Week’s Most Wanted

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Here we go with this week’s most wanted: a PC Doctor from Washington, a bank details phishing company who apparently gives out green cards for 500 $ and somebody who introduced herself as AmVets. Here they are:

1. 0012538203089 from Washington – Tacoma with a tellows score of 8
2. 0016466166770 from New York/Manhattan with a tellows score of 6
3. 3176888617 from Indiana with a tellows score of 7

This week’s number 1 is a PC doctor number – one of the most recent scam methods that combines phone and computer spam and scam. As we already reported in our blog, the callers claim to call on behalf of Microsoft or an anti-virus programme company and explain that they will now direct you to delete the virus on your computer with the help of a bogus anti-virus software that you should download for a fee. It is quite an old story, though it still seems to be active, so beware!

For the number on rank 2: no news, just an increasing number of search requests: 1095

And last, but not least, user annoyed reported:

Woman asked for me by name and claimed she was from AmVets. I told her she had called my office number and she responded “well this is the number they gave me” I told her I didn’t know who “they” were but not to call me at my office any longer. Then I blocked her number on our office phone system.

So, do not let them spam the rest of your week!

Yours,
team Tellows

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A Scam Method Walkthrough Mk I – You Better Know What You Are Dealing With: Nuisance Calls

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Nuisance Calls – The UK’s Approach

In general, all forms of nuisance calls are unsolicited. Whereas telesales calls employ a vehement form of aggressive advertisment, silent calls are meant to identify valid phone numbers from a pool of randomly generated numbers. Furthermore, automated diallers are often used when the call centre is short on agents. To identitfy silent calls, call centres are required to display a Calling Line Identification number on your phone in order to allow you to aquire the caller’s phone number by dialling 1471. Once the number is obtianed, it is advised to forward this number to Ofcom (use Silent Calls Complaint Form). With sufficient complaints Ofcom will find it easier to counteract the dubious schemes of callcenters and other suspicoius companies. Additionally, it is recommended to contact your provider which might help to identify the caller as well. Moreover, your provider may offer a ‘anonymous call rejection’ (check if this service is charged) to prevent a vast bulk of unsolicited calls in the future.

As far as telesales calls are concerned, a registration with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) bears the advantage of having the legal upper hand against call centres since the TPS makes unsolicited calls to you unlawful within the 28 days after you registration. Not only will the TPS will contact the company involved but also it will relay your complaint to the ICO which, in return, can enforce adequate regulations. If you experience unsolicited faxes you can register with the Facsimile Preference Service. Unfortunately, neither Ofcom nor the TPS have authority outside the UK’s borders. Hence, telesales calls from abroad cannot be stopped.

Furthermore, if you think the call centre obtained your personal information illegally the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) gladly provides detailed guidelines on the protection of your privacy in electronic communications. Additionally, complaints about nuisance calls, spam fax and mail may be filed directly with ICO. In all these cases you should share as much information with Ofcom, your provider an tellows on the caller as you can. Yet

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