Had an interesting phone call yesterday from a person claiming to be working for a certain bank, trying to get me on board for Identity fraud protection…I didn’t divulge any personal information, the conversation continued until the question was asked ” Have you checked your credit lately? ” told this person that I just did at Equifax. Needless to say the call was short lived and they hung up. just want to throw this out so people can be on guard against such calls. Protect your credit score. —Klyde
This article appears in Sep 5-11, 2013.
Ask them whereabouts in Nigeria they’re calling from
There’s also quite a few sites on how to “scambait”, looks kind fun, if you have the time.
Btw, I’ve won free cruses, time shares, and am the sole heir to $385,000,000 from some relitive that I never heard of.
Yeah, I know. Someone the otherday called and offered me a job. I told him to go to hell.
Ask for their number, telling them you are going to call the bank and see if the call is legitimate. I bet you get to the point of saying you’re calling the bank when you hear the click.
What was interesting about this call? I fail to read anything interesting at all. Someone called to gain personal data. You called them on it. Call ended. Still waiting for the interesting part so perhaps I’ll tune in tomorrow for the conclusion.
Here’s one for you: My bank calls me from time to time (from their call centre, so no recognizable local phone number) and after they’ve introduced themselves they ask me for personal information (dob, address etc.) just like a scammer would. They say it’s to confirm that I am really who I say I am before they can discuss the reason for their call with me.
I know it’s genuine as I get an email or letter a week or so later, but in this world of scamming what kind of stupidity is this to _appear_ to be a scammer (which always ends with me politely putting the phone down just to be on the safe side)?
my bank never calls me, I like that.
If these dudes call me, I will know to hang up after 5 seconds, instead of having to listen until they reveal themselves. thanks klyde!
landlord, that sounds kind of freaky. why would a legit call ask for dob? they’re the ones calling you. they should be providing proof of who THEY are to YOU. like giving you your date of birth.
GdM : I know!!! If they hadn’t have sent official follow-up letters then I would have assumed it was an attempt to scam me, but they really were legit – but stupid – calls.
I even asked them how I knew it was really the bank and the silly women said “Because I introduced myself as X from bank Y”. LOL.
Honestly, they were legit calls – again, in each case I received an official letter from them to my home address about a week later.
Stupid but true.
I keep a FOX whistle around for those. Once nice good blast in the mouthpiece ends the conversation right quick.
If the voice on the phone sounds like someone who failed the audition for Slumdog Millionaire, you know it’s legit as all the banks outsource to call centers in Bagsuckistan.
This specific phone call originated from a N.S. number and seemed to be legit, they knew which bank I dealt with. I understand that most people as soon as they start hearing their spiel simply hang up. I am polite with anyone in person or phone. Scams happen all the time, even well intentioned as they may seem. I just threw this out on this forum, as students are now back, and the people who comment on here are a small amount compared to ALL that read the Coast.
Every day one has to keep their guard up on such things, and STL, I truly hope that your calls are always legit, cause a lot of damage can occur before you get a confirmation email a week later. One phone call can wipe out your money or credit rating in seconds that took years to build up.