Phantom phone call from 08434100683

grumbler

http://whocallsme.com/Phone-Number.aspx/08434100683/7

Interesting reading...

Watch out if you get texts from this number. Somehow it made my wife's mobile call and wiped out her pay-as-you-go phone credit. She swears she didn't ring the number deliberately.
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Same here < sure didnt press any buttons >angry grrrrrrrrr
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This number has cost me £7ish with a call that I definitely did not make.
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I wouldn't have thought that's technically possible until today. I had a call (recording about PPI) from these !!!!!! a week ago when I was driving, cancelled it. but found out today that the number was on the outgoing call log - 41 min call - 4 days later. I didn't call it but it's wiped out about £12 of my PAYG credit to zero.
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I thought that it was impossible too, but apparently not! I'm on with Talkmobile who also run off the Vodafone network. I wonder if that has something to do with it!
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Just recieved a ridiculous phone bill only to find this 08434100683 number has charged me £60 for a 3 and a half hour call, which once i racked my brains, i remembered they rang me to tell me i had some money to claim, i pressed three, stupidly, but only because i wanted to tell them to stop calling me. the call did not last 3.5 hours and now ive been charged this ridiculous price! i dont understand.

And these were all different victims. I would suspect a smartphone and some malware, but why incoming calls?

savdefriz

Well one of them was me! The talkmobile one...

savdefriz

I think the common thread is that we all received unsolicited calls from a scammer and tried to call them back but then another phantom phone call has appeared at a later point.

My main worry was the fact that I have no power to stop this fleecing me big style due to the direct debit!

savdefriz

No the call was allegedly made from my phone which I had with me.

wantmemoney

savdefriz wrote:

After looking through my itemised bill there was a call for around £8 to the number 08434100683 which I definitely did not make. I had previously had a call from the number and foolishly called them back and unsurprisingly it was a PPI scam.

More intriguingly though 2 days later my bill shows that I had a 40 minute call with this number at precisely the time I drive home from work, sandwiched between 2 calls I remember making to my friend.

Top and bottom I have disputed the call with Talkmobile but they insist I made it and have already deducted the money vis Direct Debit from my account.

grumbler wrote:

And these were all different victims. I would suspect a smartphone and some malware, but why incoming calls?

this is a SPAM number that is SUPPOSEDLY being used to generate PPI leads but from the two ring and hang nature they are also possibly being used in a missed call/call back scam.

The Networks and company that Ofcom alocated the numbers to share the revenue from all those that call back.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/57958327#Comment_57958327

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=57958845&postcount=13

Ofcom has allocated this block to Recruitment 4U Limited who share the money with the Networks.

they don't appear to have any advertised legitimate business model.

From the tens/hundreds of thousands of missed calls generated using the 08434 10 xxxx (and others) it's inevitable that this type of phone bill will arise.

grumbler

I can only guess what a 'missed call' scam is, but the above victims were confident that they didn't call back. And one has to be mad to deliberately make a call to such number lasting for tens of minutes.

billsavings

Useful service for calling 08 non geographical if you dont have an alternative geographical number you can use from your inclusive or cheaper minutes.

http://www.weq4u.co.uk/

Works for many 0845, 0843/0844, 0870, numbers and even some 0871

wantmemoney

Buzby wrote:

I've seen this happen too - but it was my fault. Depending of the phone and firmware - it is possible to instigate a second call from a phone with the number in last number memory. This will not show in the phone's log.

Because you called the number before, this is all the more likely, and in my case the handset was in my back pocket, but the keypad unlocked.

there may be someyhing in what Buzby suggests and what locutus on consumeractiongroup forum says.

locutus wrote:

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?334247-Accidental-0843-call-on-vodafone-mobile-cost-me-over-%A353-any-help-please
18th January 2012 16:42
Re: Accidental 0843 call cost me over £53
Stange thing with landlines, if you call a landline and the landline hangs up, the call does not terminate, it will onlyterminate by the person who initiated the call. (try it... call your home landline from your mobile, hang up the landline, 1 min later pick it up and you'll still be connected)

grumbler wrote:

I can only guess what a 'missed call' scam is,

calling thousands of phones and hanging up after one or two rings in order to leave a revenue share (premium rateish) number on their CLI.
The scammer hopes a percentage of the victims will call the number bach thus earning the scammer a percentage of the call cost.

here's today's offering from the scammer using this block(0843 410 xxxx).

http://whocallsme.com/Phone-Number.aspx/08434106676
unknown thousands of automated calls in a 24hr period!
is it a genuine attempt to obtain marketing leads or is it a missed call scam?

grumbler wrote:

http://whocallsme.com/Phone-Number.aspx/08434100683
but the above victims were confident that they didn't call back. And one has to be mad to deliberately make a call to such number lasting for tens of minutes.

you have to be careful how you interpret the information on those whocallsme logs.

Anyway this thread is missing one of the main points......why should we all have to be putting up with these daily mass- marketed frauds and scams that obviously have no use or value to the General Public?.....they are only benefiting the scammers and the Networks!