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Possible Scam? Do Not Call Register

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I took a call this afternoon from (possibly) an Indian call-centre with the guy purporting to be calling from a government backed agency called the Do Not Call Register. He claimed that he knows that we have been receiving numerous cold calls lately (which we have, but how would he know!).

I was immediately suspicious as in the UK we have the Telephone Preference Service (which admittedly doesn't seem to deal very well with preventing cold calls - we are already subscribed to them). The guy called from a number shown as "unavailable" (thus lending credence to the idea that he may well have been calling from outside the UK). A check on-line shows "Do Not Call Register" as a service operatiing in the USA and Australia, but I could not see a UK version.

He offered to send a unit for a minimal cost (I think he said £1.99) which you can connect to your phone line which would block calls from known numbers which I declined.

I have a few questions (if anyone knows):

1) Is this agency legitimate in the UK,
2) If not, is the scam just to get your card details or is it possible that the unit they may send can trap other information for them to retrieve remotely?
3) If this is a scam how can we publicise that?

Comments

  • robatwork
    robatwork Posts: 7,266 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    If you have to ask.....
  • yeh right! yet another one, all dead legit and everyfink.

    ITS A CON!


    Just like other - see this thread:-

    https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4907576
    I am a cow so cannot speak Bullshine but I do recognise its smell when I come upon it.
  • It seems very scammy to me. There are gadgets that you can use to block/filter unwanted calls but I think they cost more than the sum you mentioned. The golden rule should be never to buy anything from someone who contacts you and who is unknown to you.
  • retep53
    retep53 Posts: 40 Forumite
    It seems very scammy to me. There are gadgets that you can use to block/filter unwanted calls but I think they cost more than the sum you mentioned. The golden rule should be never to buy anything from someone who contacts you and who is unknown to you.

    No worries, I didn't, but as this scam was new to me it made me think that possibly it should be publicised more., especially as everyone and their wife gets nuisance cold calls.
  • peter_the_piper
    peter_the_piper Posts: 30,269 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    retep53 wrote: »
    I have a few questions (if anyone knows):

    1) Is this agency legitimate in the UK,
    2) If not, is the scam just to get your card details
    3) If this is a scam how can we publicise that?

    1) No
    2) yes
    3) you have.
    I'd rather be an Optimist and be proved wrong than a Pessimist and be proved right.
This discussion has been closed.
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