Telephone scam warning

jackiegats

I have heard of a scam recently where someone comes to your door (usually a well dressed woman) saying that her car has broken down and asking if she can use the phone to call her husband. If you let her use the phone (which most people would probably do) she makes what appears to be a call to her husbands office and speaks to someone who tells her he is in a meeting, she asks them to get him and holds on to speak to him. She will wait a while and then appear to be speaking to her husband, she then thanks you very much and leaves.

This is a scam because the woman has previously set up a premium rate number with herself as the beneficiary - the call seems genuine because she has a recorded message on the number which means that you can hear someone talking on the other end of the phone. When you get your phone bill you will find that you have been charged £50 per minute for the call!!

soolin

I have heard of a scam recently where someone comes to your door (usually a well dressed woman) saying that her car has broken down and asking if she can use the phone to call her husband.  If you let her use the phone (which most people would probably do) she makes what appears to be a call to her husbands office and speaks to someone who tells her he is in a meeting, she asks them to get him and holds on to speak to him.  She will wait a while and then appear to be speaking to her husband, she then thanks you very much and leaves.

This is a scam because the woman has previously set up a premium rate number with herself as the beneficiary - the call seems genuine because she has a recorded message on the number which means that you can hear someone talking on the other end of the phone.  When you get your phone bill you will find that you have been charged £50 per minute for the call!!

Where did you hear it? Whoever told you this needs to see the current urban myths doing the rounds and told that passing on stories like this frightens vulnerable people. This is similair to the 'dial a number to find out if you have won a prize hoax' also doing the rounds, see the following link:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/12/08/dial_9_scam_snares_wilts/

or try this for more hoax mails:

http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/hoaxes/hoax5.asp?HName=%2390%2F09+Cell+Phone+Warning+Hoax

These are nasty scare stories and should be ignored.

Soo

Matt_Nixon

I had one of the Dial 9 phone call scams, didn't dial 9 just put the phone down!

I wonder if someone with more Phone Related technical knowledge could tell me if it's possible for them to make money just by us pressing 9?

Or are we accepting a premium rate reversed charge call if someone presses 9?

soolin

I had one of the Dial 9 phone call scams, didn't dial 9 just put the phone down!

I wonder if someone with more Phone Related technical knowledge could tell me if it's possible for them to make money just by us pressing 9?

Or are we accepting a premium rate reversed charge call if someone presses 9?

Another urban myth, see the last example on the following page:

http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/hoaxes/hoax5.asp?HName=%2390%2F09+Cell+Phone+Warning+Hoax

As mentioned above check out the website https://www.snopes.com and see just how many of these hoax e mails are doing the rounds.

Soo

Matt_Nixon

I actually had the call!

I had won a holiday in florida, fort lauderdale, it was a recorded american voice, all I had to do was press 9.

Which I didn't!

It's not a hoax its really happening, the question is would pressing 9 have charged my BT account?

Bossyboots

The following was posted on another forum I use.

From ICSTIS the industry regulator :

Welcome to Latest News, the page giving you all that's new at ICSTIS.

UPDATED: WEDNESDAY 24 NOVEMBER 2004

£20 PER MINUTE AND £50 PER MINUTE TELEPHONE 'SCAMS' - URBAN MYTHS

Over the last few days, ICSTIS has received dozens of enquiries about the above 'scams', which are being widely publicised by e-mail. To help us put an end to the current spate of enquiries, please pass this information on to all contacts.

In the first case, the apparent 'deception' takes place when people receive a recorded message informing them that they have won an all-expenses paid holiday and are asked to press 9 to hear further details. It is then claimed that callers are connected to a £20.00 per minute premium rate line that will still charge them for a minimum of five minutes even if they disconnect immediately. It is also claimed that, if callers stay connected, the entire message costs £260.00.

In the second case, the apparent 'deception' takes place when people receive a missed call from a number beginning 0709. It is then claimed that, if callers dial this number, they are connected to a £50.00 per minute premium rate line.

Please note that these stories are NOT true.

£20.00 per minute and £50.00 per minute premium rate tariffs do not exist - the highest premium rate tariff available is £1.50 per minute. Despite the dozens of enquiries received by ICSTIS about these 'scams' (and most people appear to have heard about them second or third-hand), not one person who claims that it has actually happened to them has been able to produce a phone bill to support their story.

ICSTIS urges any individual or organisation that receives an e-mail about these 'scams' to delete it immediately. Please do NOT forward it to others.

http://www.icstis.org.uk/icstis2002/default.asp?node=-1

MarkyMarkD

I actually had the call!

I had won a holiday in florida, fort lauderdale, it was a recorded american voice, all I had to do was press 9.

Which I didn't!

It's not a hoax its really happening, the question is would pressing 9 have charged my BT account?

I had exactly the same call and ignored it. Just coincidence that I got the hoax e-mail at work today too.

jackiegats

A friend of mine works for the court service and the warning was sent to her via Sussex Police, I don't know how true it is but it does seem possible that this could happen - apologies if I have scared anyone!!

trisontana

The Bedfordshire Police were also fooled by this myth last year. They even went on to the BBC Three Counties Radio consumer programme to warn people.Luckily the presenter made inquiries with ICSTIS and the whole thing turned out to have no substance. Red faces all round in the police force!

soolin

A friend of mine works for the court service and the warning was sent to her via Sussex Police, I don't know how true it is but it does seem possible that this could happen - apologies if I have scared anyone!!

It always adds weight to a hoax if they can get someone gullible in the police or other 'official' capacity to believe it and back the story.

Don't trust anything like this, always check it out via snopes first. If it is a hoax then let the original sender know and ask them to make sure they check their facts in future before frightening people.

When the budweiser hoax was doing the rounds a couple of years back I was sent a fake warning from a large official public body. I e mailed back and told them it was a fake as did a couple of other rather senior bods within my company who were less than polite about receiving this rubbish As a result several people within a large public body who had been circulating these hoax warning using their official email addresses had their internet privileges removed while they were 'retrained' about company policy and warning e mails.

Soo

Matt_Nixon

I'm sorry to disagree, but

I HAVE ACTUALLY HAD THE CALL!

How on earth can it be a Hoax, there must be a way for these guys to make money or why would they bother ???

I wonder if it's like pressing 9 on the Reverse Call Service, you actually accepting a premium rate call?