Community Chat

[StraytoStay]

I've noticed that some call back in two hours using another burner phone.I mess with them.  If it's not a recording, I hang on the line and listen for them to try to hang up to disconnect--it wastes a couple minutes of their time (&mine) or if I have music on, I put the phone in front of the speaker, or in front on the TV, and waste their time, too.

[StraytoStay]

You can search or add bogus numbers at http://800notes.com and see what others have had happen. I don't think the breast cancer number is legit, but a scammer, at least the number I looked up.

[dmod nj]

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@StraytoStay wrote:

I've noticed that some call back in two hours using another burner phone.I mess with them.  If it's not a recording, I hang on the line and listen for them to try to hang up to disconnect--it wastes a couple minutes of their time (&mine) or if I have music on, I put the phone in front of the speaker, or in front on the TV, and waste their time, too.

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I mess with them too, some days. I got a call from them telling me they were the IRS.  I told them my husband was the sheriff and he could arrest me for them.  lol lol 

I've also waited until they say hello and blow a whistle in the phone.  I was told.........don't know if it is true...........they wear a headset. So, if I blow the whistle, it is a bit harder to escape the sound.

[jackthebear]

just don't answer the phone unless you know the caller.

even messing around with a scam caller lets them know there is an actual person there,

let it go to voice mail, anyone that want's to get in touch with you will leave a message

[Cats3000]

Unfortunately, the scams are there by the thousands.  We have an answering machine on our land line.  We let it pick up the call.  If it's someone we know, we can interupt to answer.  Have only gotten less than a handful of these calls on our cell phones.

[dooBdoo]

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@StraytoStay wrote:

I've noticed that some call back in two hours using another burner phone.I mess with them.  If it's not a recording, I hang on the line and listen for them to try to hang up to disconnect--it wastes a couple minutes of their time (&mine) or if I have music on, I put the phone in front of the speaker, or in front on the TV, and waste their time, too.

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          @StraytoStay,  They don't use burner phones -- they have software to illegally "spoof" and constantly change the caller ID info.  

          For anyone who's answering these calls, as others have said it's not a good idea.   For the most part, they're using a computer to randomly scroll numerically through potential phone numbers.   They don't know which ones are actually in use until someone picks up...  then, the number is marked, shared and in some cases sold to other criminals.   The result is even more unwanted calls.

[jaxs mom]

I've never gotten the IRS one, but I'd never fall for that I know my tax status with the IRS clear. As for others, Unless it's a wrong number or I know you, I hang up. 

[jaxs mom]

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@Ptaz wrote:

if you challenge some of them they get nasty.  I've gotten the one from the treasury department saying they had a $7000 check for me.   Then there's the one about Microsoft Support wanting to help me with my computer.  Then there's the medical payments group wanting to help me receive payment for my pain.      

Most of the callers don't speak English well.  You can hear lots of phones in the background.   Don't fall for these people.

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LOL I've had a lot of calls saying they are from Microsoft support. At this point, I just hang up as soon as they say that, I used to tell them the truth, which is that I don't use a computer with windows anyway so obviously they aren't calling me. 

I rarely answer the phone without checking the caller id anyway. So I just hit off on the phone so it stops ringing and goes to voicemail. 

[wilma]

We gets tons of weird calls on our landline. We never pick up unless we know the number and recognize the caller.  We give to plenty of charities, but never over the phone. I was told that the IRS never calls you; they always send you info in the mail first if there is an issue. The same thing is true for jury duty.  Do not give your info over the phone. 

[StraytoStay]

If called and it goes to voice mail, is it still marked as an active line? I really don't know, not trying to come across as a beotch.  

My husband answers these, when home, but often they hang up so I wonder how they plan to make $$ doing that? 

I'd also heard on the news that AARP got hacked by Nigeria scammers and all on the AARP list were being hit by these calls. (Google for more info, I can't count on my memory) My husband is in their database so we get at least a dozen calls per week.