I always block these numbers immediately after I get them. It's starting to help cut back on them.

quote:

Originally posted by Bob RI:
I get the car warranty calls on my cell all the time...always a different number and area code.

I get the car "warranty expired" spam in my mailbox all the time (USPS). I generally don't answer unknown numbers, so can't say about how many have tried via the phone for me.
 

The only people that have my cell phone number are close friends, and my doctor.

Everyone else gets the land line, and it's a Magic Jack. The ringer is turned off, and everything goes to voicemail. Voicemails get emailed to me. 95% of them are 3 seconds long and get deleted right away.

Very rarely I'll get a robocall on my cellphone, if the number isn't one of my contacts, I just don't answer it.

I've got three elderly folks to tend to and a business that gets 99% of referrals via the internet so ignoring incoming calls is not an option for me. The telephone is a tool to me, not just an incidental toy.

The sad thing is that for each of you guys that have fun with these, there are 100 others that get scammed.

Usually, the scammed get scammed out of $6k-$10k. Happens daily. The police put out press releases almost daily warning about it, and people are still willing to fall for it.

I get 4-5 per day, though I never answer them. The IRS scammers actually left messages on several occasions.

Mine always show City names on the caller ID - often local but also from across the country. Obviously spoofed.
I never answer a number I don't know. If the call is authentic and important, they'll leave a message.

We cut the landline cord last month.

We came to realize the only people who called our landline, were people we did not want to talk to.

It seems I always have something going on which could result in people calling. Refi on the home, test results from the doc, new glasses at the optician, etc. Many of the spoofed calls show local numbers. I frequently regret answering the calls but still have to in case it is the important one.

When I am not expecting a call, I won't answer an unknown number. But I can't turn off the ringer because there are legitimate calls I don't want to miss.

It really pisses me off I can't safely answer my own phone without it likely being some asshole scammer.

These calls use to bother me, but now I actually have fun with the calls. I usually tell that that "I'm messed up in some bad sh*t and that I need some money fast". They will normally hang up at that point. Breaks up my day and I enjoy it...

I recently lost my father and my MIL so I have been answering a lot of calls from unknown numbers while settling their affairs. One thing I know is that F'ing heather sure gets around. She has called me about my credit accounts and my car warranties. Sometimes 2 or 3 times a day from different states. I hit 1 once and some Indian dude answered. I told him if he ever called again I'd hunt him down, He hung up on me

This all started when Yahoo's site was hacked. I get 150 to 200 spam emails a day at my primary hotmail address and now my ISP address is starting to get spam.

My phone number was also on the site so now I am getting bogus phone calls for all kinds of service. I just hang up.

41

quote:

Originally posted by BamaJeepster:
I don't know, I automatically block any number that is 'unknown' or who blocks their caller ID information and I never answer a call from a number I don't know. I rarely get calls from numbers I don't know any more.<snip>

My iPhone is my only phone. I never answer calls that aren't in my "Contacts" list, but I still get, on average, at least one such call per day. That's despite the fact that I've registered my phone number in the national "Do not call" directory.

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:

quote:

Originally posted by BamaJeepster:
I don't know, I automatically block any number that is 'unknown' or who blocks their caller ID information and I never answer a call from a number I don't know. I rarely get calls from numbers I don't know any more.<snip>

My iPhone is my only phone. I never answer calls that aren't in my "Contacts" list, but I still get, on average, at least one such call per day. That's despite the fact that I've registered my phone number in the national "Do not call" directory.

The 'Do not Call' registry is a joke and useless to start with; scammers certainly aren't going to care if you're on it.

quote:

Originally posted by KevinCW:
These guys are fun...

It is a personal hobby to screw with them.

So far, my personal records, are to keep "Rachel" from "Cardmember Services" on the phone for about 35 minutes..

I've had the last idiot from "Windows Tech Support" on the phone for over an hour. A LONG... FRUSTRATING... HOUR... for him at least...

I had it on speaker laughing at him.

If I could, I'd get a cell phone number dedicated to screwing with these assclowns...

LMFAO!!!

I like the cut of your jib.

A coworker was in my office the other day when I got a call about lowering my creditcard interest rate. Her and I played this guy for 45 minutes. We gave him the cc numbers off of the Visa and American Express websites. We even pulled up the lyrics to Kenny Roger's Ruby don't take you love to town and had good fight, phone was on speaker, using the lyrics. This guy kept asking if we were pranking him? Of course all the while still trying to get valid cc numbers.

Vince

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:
I always block these numbers immediately after I get them. It's starting to help cut back on them.

That's what I do as well, if I don't recognize the number and they don't leave voicemail I block the number.

It's not really in the TelCom companies' best interest to do anything effective about TeleSpamming and TeleScamming. They make money off those activities. In the past they've even been complicit in certain unsavoury activities. (E.g.: People finding themselves signed up for third-party services they did not request or billed for services they did not request and did not receive.) Finally the U.S. Government had to threaten them with Federal action if they didn't bring it to a stop. You're unlikely to see the FCC do anything effective about the TeleSpamming/Scamming problem, particularly under somebody like Chairman Ajit Pai, who believes industry can do no wrong.

At work, where I am, amongst other things, the TelCom Admin, I once simply told the thing that now calls itself "AT&T" that I would no longer waste my or my employer's time cancelling bogus services and charges, and getting them removed from our bills. That, going forward, I would simply instruct our Accounts Payable Department to deduct such charges and pay only the balance. When they not-so-subtly suggested that might result in a "service disruption," I pointed out they were no longer our primary service provider, and suggested they were making a damn good case as to why it should remain that way. Somehow they managed to find a way to make the problem go away. Imagine my surprise.

Personally: I rarely give my mobile number out. Still: I get TeleSpammed/Scammed on it. I've taken to disregarding or pressing "Ignore" on any number I do not recognize.

The home phone is in the process of being ported to a VoIP provider. The VoIP provider has spammer/scammer/robodialer detection. I'll configure calls it brands "high likelihood" of being spam/scam/robocall to require pressing an additional digit to complete the call. I'm told that will probably eliminate the majority of them.

Time is money to a scammer. The more time you can delay them then the less old people they can rip off. Those calls they make from overseas also cost them money. Drag out the call and you actually cost them money. I'm doing God's work messing with them.

Its easy to spoof a number and come across as a valid one. One day I was home for lunch and had a message from "Raleigh Police Department", which it also showed on my caller ID. So I figured what they, let's call. So I call the number and get a "hello" instead of an official greeting, so the game is afoot. I asked to speak with Officer XYZ that left the message, and the guy puts me on hold, and same dude comes back on the phone stating it's now him. Let the fun begin.

So he proceeds to tell me I have unpaid tickets, uh-huh, uh-huh, and we can avoid any further troubles by taking care of them now. "So you want my credit card number? Is that it?" to which he replies yes. Otherwise they will have to come arrest me. The truly funny part was when I told him "You got me man, dead to rights. I've hated being on the run all these years, I'm glad it's finally over. Send a car, I'm turning myself in. I'll be waiting out front."

Click, he hung up the phone.

I never answer my phone unless I recognize the number, I get a lot of calls that I don't recognize the number, I let it go to voice mail but I never get any messages. Lots of scams going around these days and if it's not a scam it's someone else begging for money.