New Phone Scam

[dyqik]

I often look up the scammer's number on one of those "who called me" sites, adding my own report. But lately I've noticed the numbers aren't already in there so they seem to have an endless supply of new numbers. Or else they're simply spoofing them.

They are spoofing them.

Definitely. I've had a bunch on my mobile lately that all come from numbers that match the first 6 or 7 digits of mine. Apparently that's a thing because you'll be so intrigued you'll call back. I don't get why; it's not like friends are likely to have numbers close to your own...

It makes some sense in the US, where local numbers might share the same first six digits, and cell phone numbers have the same area codes as local land lines where they are purchased. Doesn't work with the UK numbering system for mobiles though.

[dyqik]

Isn't the point of those scams that if you press 1, you find yourself calling a premium-rate number? Or is that an urban myth? (Whaddaya mean, JFGI?)

No. It's to gather details for ID theft, to get you to install malware on your PC, or to threaten you into wiring them money.

[Sciolus]

Isn't the point of those scams that if you press 1, you find yourself calling a premium-rate number? Or is that an urban myth? (Whaddaya mean, JFGI?)

No. It's to gather details for ID theft, to get you to install malware on your PC, or to threaten you into wiring them money.

I had a rummage around the internet and all the premium rate warnings were from unofficial sources and copypasta newspapers, so yeah.

[Little waster]

They are spoofing them.

Definitely. I've had a bunch on my mobile lately that all come from numbers that match the first 6 or 7 digits of mine. Apparently that's a thing because you'll be so intrigued you'll call back. I don't get why; it's not like friends are likely to have numbers close to your own...

It makes some sense in the US, where local numbers might share the same first six digits, and cell phone numbers have the same area codes as local land lines where they are purchased. Doesn't work with the UK numbering system for mobiles though.

Same in Canada.

There was one spectacularly irritating one which would start with an ear-splitting air-horn to announce you had won a MASSIVE YACHT! a cruise or something in a competition you hadn’t even entered. Or least I would assume that was the case as the air horn always temporarily deafened me and the pain would make me instantly hang-up.

I would get that one several times a day and judging by the numbers of people out and about I would see randomly swearing and rubbing their ear, looking furious, after answering their phone, so was every f.cker else.

God knows what the logic was behind it as even if I was gullible enough to fall for it I wouldn’t have been physically capable to carry on the call. It was the phone-call equivalent of gluing razor blades into your junk mail or a double glazing salesman starting his pitch by punching you in the mouth the second you open the door

[dyqik]

Isn't the point of those scams that if you press 1, you find yourself calling a premium-rate number? Or is that an urban myth? (Whaddaya mean, JFGI?)

No. It's to gather details for ID theft, to get you to install malware on your PC, or to threaten you into wiring them money.

I had a rummage around the internet and all the premium rate warnings were from unofficial sources and copypasta newspapers, so yeah.

It doesn't make any sense, anyway. A premium rate number needs a legal entity to collect the money from the phone companies, which means it can be tied to a person, who can be sued or prosecuted.

[Martin_B]

Had a weird (potential) scam last week.

I got calls on both Thursday and Friday from different random, unblocked numbers (one an Aussie number, one NZ) saying that they had a missed call and when they went to call the number back they got through to me. For both I checked my phone and there didn't appear to be a pocket dial. When I told them that it wasn't me who called them, they rang off.

I've checked my phone account and it doesn't appear as if my phone has been cloned so as to allow someone to make calls from the number. And if it is a scam, they don't seem to be insistent that I stay on the line such that they could get me to check a website or send me a dodgy link.

Unless it's a check to see if someone is tech-savvy enough such that they wouldn't fall for a scam (in which case I get deleted from their list of targets) I can't work out what the angle is.

[Gfamily]

Had a weird (potential) scam last week.

I got calls on both Thursday and Friday from different random, unblocked numbers (one an Aussie number, one NZ) saying that they had a missed call and when they went to call the number back they got through to me. For both I checked my phone and there didn't appear to be a pocket dial. When I told them that it wasn't me who called them, they rang off.

I've checked my phone account and it doesn't appear as if my phone has been cloned so as to allow someone to make calls from the number. And if it is a scam, they don't seem to be insistent that I stay on the line such that they could get me to check a website or send me a dodgy link.

Scammers can fake the number that they 'send' to the people they call - so it is possible that they had randomly used your number to be the 'calling number' for some of their scams to the peeps in Oz and NZ

[Chris Preston]

Had a weird (potential) scam last week.

I got calls on both Thursday and Friday from different random, unblocked numbers (one an Aussie number, one NZ) saying that they had a missed call and when they went to call the number back they got through to me. For both I checked my phone and there didn't appear to be a pocket dial. When I told them that it wasn't me who called them, they rang off.

I've checked my phone account and it doesn't appear as if my phone has been cloned so as to allow someone to make calls from the number. And if it is a scam, they don't seem to be insistent that I stay on the line such that they could get me to check a website or send me a dodgy link.

Scammers can fake the number that they 'send' to the people they call - so it is possible that they had randomly used your number to be the 'calling number' for some of their scams to the peeps in Oz and NZ

Yes this. It has happened to Mrs P as well.