Popular Scams
Cox and NCOA want to keep you informed of popular scams that take place over the telephone.
Tricking consumers to call international numbers
There are many scams that trick consumers into calling international numbers. You may see an ad for a service that directs you to call a particular number, or you may receive a message via email, your answering machine or pager instructing you to call a long-distance telephone number. Area codes 809, 284 and 876 may look like domestic long-distance calls, but may actually be calls where international rates apply. The scam artist attempts to keep the caller on the telephone for as long as possible to increase your long-distance charges.
To avoid falling prey to this scam, Cox recommends that you know where you are calling before dialing. The Internet (http://www.bennetyee.org/ucsd-pages/area.html) is a useful tool to look up area codes and worldwide country codes. If you receive a message from someone you don't know, simply disregard it. Also be mindful that it is usually necessary to dial 011 to reach an international location. However, there are some locations outside the United States, such as the Caribbean and Canada, where telephone numbers resemble domestic long-distance calls, but carry a higher international rate.
Tax and rebate scams
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is cautioning consumers looking forward to rebate checks from the government that they may be targets of scammers out to steal their identity. The agency has issued an alert to help consumers avoid this situation.
The schemes work like this: consumers get a call or an e-mail claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Social Security Administration (SSA) or some other government agency, and claiming to need some bit of personal information to process the rebate check. Consumers may be asked to provide their social security number, bank account number or another piece of personal information that a skillful crook can use to commit identity theft. E-mails often include a link for a consumer to click: that link may take the consumer to an official-looking – but phony – website that is simply looking, or phishing (the technical term), for the consumer’s information. Or, the link may take the consumer to a legitimate site but install spyware or some other form of malware on the way.
Neither the IRS nor the SSA collects information about government rebate qualifications by telephone or email. The FTC urges consumers who are contacted by phone or e-mail not to provide any personal information and to report the contact to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov or the SSA at 1-800-772-1213.
For more information, click on www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt033.shtm
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