BEWARE Premium Rate missed call scam

student100

On Sunday I got a missed call from a number which looked very much like a normal phone number: 0706179****.

The call must have been barely long enough to make my phone ring, since I didn't hear it ring.

Foolishly I called back the number (I though it might have been someone important trying to call...). It rang and I heard a message "we are connecting your call" or something similar. I thought this sounded suspicious so I hung up.

I didn't really think anything more of this until today when I checked my phone bill online. The call back had been charged as a Premium Rate number costing £2 even though the call only lasted a few seconds.

I have phoned my phone company (Virgin mobile) who said that there is nothing they can do (since they have been charged the premium rate fee by the company so it's not them who profit from it...). They informed me that any number 070xx ... whilst it may look like a mobile number is probably a premium rate number. (Along with 09xxx which are more obvious premium rate numbers).

Someone is obviously making a killing by phoning people at random so they get a missed call then hoping they will call back.

I have no idea where the company got my phone number from.

Beware! I won't be calling back any unknown missed calls in future!

redux

Yes - UK mobiles only begin with 077, 078 and 079 (and IoM ones are 07624).

070 numbers are always these personal numbers that were once about the same price as mobile calls, but have never got any cheaper in the last ten years.

One of the Ofcom proposals about numbering systems is to move 070 to a different range, which should help people spot these scamsters more easily, but you'd hope they or ICSTIS would stamp out this use anyway.

student100

Mmm, apparently ICSTIS (who regulate premium rate numbers, including short code text numbers) don't regulate 07 numbers, so there is nothing they can do about it. I suppose it's only Ofcom you could complain to.

Steve_xx

Numbers starting 077, 078 or 079 are mobile numbers, whereas those starting 070 are not mobile numbers they are called Personal Numbers, or 'find me anywhere numbers'. The holder of the number can choose where the call terminates, for example if the holder is out all day he can choose to have the 070 number to terminate on his mobile. If he's back at home he can choose to have the number terminate on his landline. The number is not attached to any specific device.

These are often mistaken for mobile numbers and originally they were revenue sharing type numbers, just like the 09 range. However, revenue sharing is no longer allowed on them. Charging for calls to these numbers is normally at a slight premium to calling a mobile phone. The original poster seems to me to have suffered disproportionately to what his/her network would be charged for that call.

OFCOM have proposed that 070 will be moved to the new to be opened 06 range, thereby removing the confusion that they are mobile numbers. 07 will be given over entirely to normal mobile numbers.

mobilegossip

O2 have already blocked access to these numbers.
Shame others dont follow.

Steve_xx

mobilegossip wrote:

O2 have already blocked access to these numbers.
Shame others dont follow.

I'm not sure why o2 would do that?

*!*HIBS*!*

Maybe because they are already aware of this type of scam people scammers ahev been using, preventing the customer from losing out (being scammed)?

mobilegossip

Steve_xx wrote:

I'm not sure why o2 would do that?

Have a read of this :http://www.o2.co.uk/help/070_numbers/0,,500,00.html

redux

mobilegossip wrote:

Have a read of this

yep, that explains why I thought O2 hadn't blocked all the numbers, but Orange have barred some others than that list

student100

Steve_xx wrote:

These are often mistaken for mobile numbers and originally they were revenue sharing type numbers, just like the 09 range. However, revenue sharing is no longer allowed on them.

Do you have a source for the fact that revenue sharing is no longer allowed on 070 numbers? I'm sure it can't be right, otherwise what's the point of the scam?

Steve_xx

student100 wrote:

Do you have a source for the fact that revenue sharing is no longer allowed on 070 numbers? I'm sure it can't be right, otherwise what's the point of the scam?

Yes, here:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/telecoms/ioi/numbers/num_070_guide#acc070