Tingting Posted June 25, 2019 Report Share Posted June 25, 2019 Hubby took a call (332-939-3780) and was instantly greeted by the "This is your old friend" (but name not given) schtick. He goes, "Howie?" and, of course, is immediately told that, "Yes, yes, this is Howie." Well, since we haven't heard from Howie in about....oh, 30 years...it's safe to say that it wasn't. So, on and on they go for a bit and then hubby finally asks, "What's my wife's name?" He repeats it and suddenly Howie has hung up! I guess Howie was ashamed of forgetting my name, Prunella. Shame, I never got to talk to my old boss and friend. Yeah, folks, they're back, but I have a feeling they never really disappeared. They just go to ground for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmh Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 They speak English? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chapalence Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 With all the prior reports of this and other phone scams I'm surprised that 1) people freely post their phone numbers on forums, facebook, and other public places and 2) people answer calls from numbers they are unfamiliar with. It's only on rare occasions that I'll answer a call from a number not in my contacts list and then only if I strongly suspect it might be a call from a local business or person having a reason to call me. You can't be scammed if you don't answer. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortstop Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 Have had 5 over the past few days. 473-149-1391 833-244-4334 444-171-1757 669-256-3302 449-462-9982 No caller left a message so assume its scammers. I do not recognize any of these numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngusMactavish Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 2 minutes ago, shortstop said: No caller left a message so assume its scammers. Assuming they were telemarketers would be much more accurate. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chapalence Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 2 minutes ago, shortstop said: Have had 5 over the past few days. 473-149-1391 833-244-4334 444-171-1757 669-256-3302 449-462-9982 No caller left a message so assume its scammers. I do not recognize any of these numbers. That's a drop in the proverbial bucket. I've had HSBC bots change numbers up to 4 times in a matter of minutes. When one number is blocked, they simply use another. Most unwanted calls are not "scammers", though prudence suggests not answering calls from anyone you don't know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tingting Posted June 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 bmh, yeah, these guys do speak English. At first, hubby said there was a pause when he answered and then the guy spoke in English. It's safe to say that many are bilingual. As for me, I'll answer the phone because it's fun to play with them for a while. If you prefer not, I don't blame you. FWIW, our number is not on FB (we don't use it) or any other website. I'm sure they're tech savvy enough to have some sort of rote dialing or whatever it's called. Meanwhile, if you want to have some good laughs, check out James Veitch on youtube. He has several videos on responding to spammers and they're hilarious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmh Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 I answer the calls if it is something I do not want to hear I just hang up.. it is simple enough not to enter into a conversation with anyone calling..I can tell you that 99 per cent of the calls I do not recognize are telemarketers and not scammers , then there is always a repairman or someone who is ddelivering somethng etc.. I just answer and I have never been scammed..I had a few we have your nephew or your daughter with someone crying in the background calls and I hang up.. I have an unlisted number but it makes no difference to telemarketers.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayBearII Posted June 26, 2019 Report Share Posted June 26, 2019 I've been getting calls from a lady who is crying and asking for help in Spanish. Since the exact same call has been made at varying times to more than one of our phones in quick succession, and since I don't know any Mexican ladies who are at all likely to be distressed and think I could be of help, I hang up. This scheme seems to have replaced the one where a man calls and says "you know who this is, it's your neighbor" and says he is stranded and needs cash deposited to his account right away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tingting Posted June 28, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2019 Well, I guess it beats the old "I have a bridge I'm selling in Brooklyn..." 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrod Posted June 28, 2019 Report Share Posted June 28, 2019 Not all unknown callers are scammers: currently, the phone companies are leaving recorded messages to notify their customers of the dialing changeover that takes over Mexico-wide on August 3. I guess we will be re-inputting our contacts in landlines and cells. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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