9 replies to this topic

[coding_monkey]

Hello,

So I keep getting called from these scammers who want me to press 9 so I can win a chance to get a holiday on mars or something - it gets tiresome...

I've been trying just to work out which company is actually doing the calling. The caller ID is of course, spoofed (02030265001 - which is registered to SIMWOOD ESMS LTD but not active). BT have agreed to put a trace on the line but have already warned me that it's most likey comming from the USA or something and in which case 'they don't have the technology' to trace the call (WTF)? IS there any way I can work out who the hell these people are without actually pressing 9 and risking a huge phone bill?



EDIT: oh, btw: I am in the UK.

Edited by coding_monkey, 15 December 2010 - 10:24 AM.

[rbcp]

You're not going to get charged just for pressing 9. You should definitely do that and try to talk to a live person. Find out who they are and ask if they can remove you from their list. Seems like that'd be the only way to stop the calls.

[coding_monkey]

You're not going to get charged just for pressing 9.

Really? I thought that was the whole point of the scam? I could try it I guess and just make a note of the date and time and check my phone bill later but it's a little scary...

I have to admit when it comes to phones, I am a total n00b.

[rbcp]

You're not going to get charged just for pressing 9.

Really? I thought that was the whole point of the scam? I could try it I guess and just make a note of the date and time and check my phone bill later but it's a little scary...

I have to admit when it comes to phones, I am a total n00b.

I'm in the U.S., so maybe I don't know about some U.K. scam where pressing 9 will charge things to your bill. It seems kind of unlikely, though.

[Afterm4th]

I hate to say "use google" but this may give you some leads:

http://www.google.co...a05a7bb65e82229

[ver_01]

Hello, The people who are calling you are probably using a voip account on an automated dialer to make these calls, if you hear a recorded message that's asking you to press 9 to speak to a live person, then rest assured you will not get charged for it ,the company calling will bear the cost. This method is called voice broadcasting which is a bad replacement for actual telemarketing calls wherein companies tend to play these recorded messages on several million calls to households nationwide to generate interested leads on the phone that can be transferred to live salespeople. If you are in the UK, registering with the TPS may help but it will take approximately 3 months before you notice a reduction in the amount of calls. If the people calling you are based offshore then the TPS would not help because these guys do not care about UK jurisdiction. In that case the best thing would be to tell them you are flat broke and cant afford anything and the calls will stop.

The easy way to figure out the identity of the company calling you would be to speak with a live sales agent and ask for details. The hard way would be to ask your provider to tell you the name of the carrier through which the call is being terminated in the UK and eventually to you and then ask them to provide the details of the company that called you but this involves talking to too many entities who may or may not be legally bound to give you the information that you need.

Cheers

[coding_monkey]

Spoke to a live sales agent, asked her what her name and company were called, she replied, found the web site. She also asked if something was wrong, I said yes, I'm on the do-not-call list...

'oh'...

/click.

So I faxed them a white on black 20 page opinion of what I think of their calling practices.

[ver_01]

Spoke to a live sales agent, asked her what her name and company were called, she replied, found the web site. She also asked if something was wrong, I said yes, I'm on the do-not-call list...

'oh'...

/click.

So I faxed them a white on black 20 page opinion of what I think of their calling practices.

Just curious was it a UK based company, and the caller you spoke with, was she from the UK or had a foreign accent?

[coding_monkey]

Spoke to a live sales agent, asked her what her name and company were called, she replied, found the web site. She also asked if something was wrong, I said yes, I'm on the do-not-call list...

'oh'...

/click.

So I faxed them a white on black 20 page opinion of what I think of their calling practices.

Just curious was it a UK based company, and the caller you spoke with, was she from the UK or had a foreign accent?

It was a company in the USA, allegedly. It's one of those 'you've won a chance to have a free holiday' bullshit things. She gave me the website address which was a Mexican resort, if I remember right. She did have an American accent.

I called BT about it and they said that whilst it wasn't against the law to call from the USA to the UK and pester me, it in fact was illegal to spoof the caller ID, which is interesting, I didn't know that. Still, they haven't called me back.

Apparently there's an ongoing investigation or something, because they're pissing an awful lot of us Brits off.

[MaD-hAtTeR]

A wee bit paranoid are we.... lol