I was snookered!

[Rockbadchild]

The new scam out here is (it's been going on for a while) it they set up a website to generate a vehicle history report and they want you to go in and enter your vin number to generate the report yourself they charge from $20 to 30 and the money goes to them. I kept one on the phone for hours once, just playing with him in a circular conversation I have to admit he was very persistent ... I figured while he was on the phone with me, he wasnt scamming anyone else it took a while before he stop trying.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

My favorite was when both my landline home and cell phone rang simultaneously.
Caller ID I knew they were scammers so I held phones together, one flipped so mic to speaker. Both hindustani and they talked to each other for 20 minutes until they cursed each other out and hung up.
My wife was in stitches!

 

[scootr]

This is old but it is my favorite cold call prank

 

[gstrom99]

Glad everyone's posts showed good outcomes here. Before I retired, our company had video "courses" for us, to train against scammers, phishers, etc... We were all pretty annoyed about being REQUIRED to watch and then pass the quiz at the end of them.

I consider myself savvy enough (of course, right?), but it's good to read these and remind myself to be careful.

 

[fruitcakesa]

You realize that almost all legit outfits will send a letter if there’s any issues concerning your business be it IRS, bank, credit card etc. They rarely if ever call. I don’t give any caller or emailer the time of day.

 

[Thomas]

Wish they could catch these scammers etc. and give them some old fashion justice

 

[MF243RedTop]

These scammers are a real problem. They are getting better and better.

A few weeks ago I got a text message from my bank fraud department asking if I just spent Five Hundred Something dollars in Salt Lake. Reply "No" yada yada yada.
Of course I wasnt in Salt Lake, so I replied No. And then my bank fraud line called me.

He verified that the charges on my account, even the ones I DID preform without giving him access to my account. I double check the number he was calling me from, the actual number, not just caller ID. It was correct for my bank fraud department. EVERYTHING about this guy seemed legit, spoke perfect English, knew my account info, personal info, etc. Until he needed my online username and password texted back to the text I got the original text message from. When I asked why, he said it was to secure my account.

I hung up!

Considering if I just made a mistake by hanging up, I called the bank fraud department and spoke with someone else about my account. Took them a minute to realize that I was in fact being groomed by a scammer. The legit guy looked at my account and said everything is fine, but suggested that I change my username and password, and keep an eye on my account.

Then he gave me the best advise: If a fraud department calls, hang up and call the number. They can (for now) spoof the incoming call number, which will show up as legitimate on your phone. But they cannot intercept incoming calls to the bank fraud department. And of course, they will NEVER ask for username and/or password.

I almost got duped out of a lot of money and headache. I'm into technology and keep up with the latest trends. I did not see that one coming, well, not until they asked for my password. I felt completely violated and still, to this day, have trust issues with myself. Do I have the confidence to know that I will not be duped by a scammer?

Be careful out there people.

Wait until you get a call from yourself... They spoofed my own cell number and called me with it..
I just looked at it and laughed, didn't even answer.

 

[Jstpssng]

I had my CC compromised about 5 years ago. It peeved me because it happened when I went down to visit my father while he was in the nursing home, and they must have skimmed it when I got gas. I checked my account when I got home that night but somehow missed the charge for a $90 gift card to Macy’s. I did see it the next day but by then the card had been spent.

I’ve always wondered at the amount. Presumably that’s below where most people get a notification from the bank. I have also wondered how many people don’t even notice something like that, and if they tried to use my card again.

 

[Dftodd]

Glad everyone's posts showed good outcomes here. Before I retired, our company had video "courses" for us, to train against scammers, phishers, etc... We were all pretty annoyed about being REQUIRED to watch and then pass the quiz at the end of them.

I consider myself savvy enough (of course, right?), but it's good to read these and remind myself to be careful.

Company I work for has E-learning we have to do periodically on a whole bunch of those topics. From data security, code of ethics, code of conduct, and a whole slew of others.

 

[groundcover]

 

[Jstpssng]

View attachment 773820

The rest of WHAT? It appears that you're a Jeep guy. Is he threatening to put you in a minivan?

 

[scaredychicken]

It's been a while since I've advertised online so had forgotten what it's like. I had the old Curtis cab from my father's 4400 Ford advertised and had completely forgotten about it until I got a text yesterday asking if we still had it. I said yes, and we went back and forth a few times. Then he asked where it was, and I gave him the town it's in, telling him we are cleaning out the barn and aren't normally there but that my brother could meet him next week. THEN it came...
"I am out of town but if you will give me your address or account number I will send you the money, and my agent will pick it up."

I read that and thought to myself "You stupid , you fell for it.

I sent him one last text which read simply "Yeah, RIGHT".

Too Kind

I ask scammers to call me on another line for better reception (whatever ... ) then I give them the NON-EMERGENCY LOCAL POLICE NUMBER ... oh to be a fly on the wall, when they call back. .



Try to avoid answering questions, even simple yes / no answers ( ie are you the homeowner ?) ... they can record the answer and then switch the question ... would you authorize this $200 purchase ? (they may not have even asked you that) and the YES respond is used to process the transaction. Do you have any further questions for me ? and the NO is used.
- very concerning
- I know way more than I should

 

[Alan W.]

Ive had the Bangladesh IRS field office call me. Gave me a # to call and settle up before they had the local cops arrest me. So I called and called and called. They finally blocked my #.

 

[Oaktree]

Try to avoid answering questions, even simple yes / no answers ( ie are you the homeowner ?) ... they can record the answer and then switch the question ... would you authorize this $200 purchase ? (they may not have even asked you that) and the YES respond is used to process the transaction. Do you have any further questions for me ? and the NO is used.
- very concerning
- I know way more than I should

I've heard that one common opening question is "can you hear me OK?" to get that initial yes. Caller ID is a wonderful thing...I NEVER answer the phone unless I recognize the name/number (I figure if it's legit they'll leave a message...I can pick up if I'm nearby, if not no big loss), but if someone ever said that my response would be "what? could you speak up?", repeated as many times as necessary.

 

[Oaktree]

Wait until you get a call from yourself... They spoofed my own cell number and called me with it..
I just looked at it and laughed, didn't even answer.

I got one of those once too. I wonder what I wanted, I never left a message.

 

[WinterDeere]

I'm getting phishing emails more frequently. You just won, or you just bought, or whatever, - don't reply just report them all.
You really have to stay on your toes these days.

It got infinitely worse for me when I started a business. Too much public info now available in the state databases. Some of them have been very well-done, to the point where I actually called my bank yesterday to follow up on one, as the scammer somehow knew what bank I used and what name the account was filed under.

Also, whereas I used to screen my calls and only pickup numbers I recognized, I have to answer every call coming in on the business line.

 

[Oaktree]

My Mastercard number was stolen a few years ago by some California guy charging $3,000. They did a merchant charge back asking if I knew who it was. I said I had no clue but should be easy to find ordering a case of men's pink panties and 33x12.5R20 mudders and mags, obviously a gay guy with a 4 wheel drive.
She dropped the phone...

Maybe 5 years ago I had a message on my answering machine from someone for whom English was clearly not his first language saying something about an Amazon order, and wondering if it was legit. Caller ID just said Seattle Wash.
Logged into my Az account, didn't show anything out of the ordinary. Then called my CC company and they showed a charge of ~$500 that I didn't make to Az. They immediately cancelled that card and issued a new one.
A couple days later a mystery package with a pair of very expensive headphones inside arrived UPS. I found it very odd that someone would steal my cc#, then ship the merchandise to my address...maybe they were hoping no one was home and they could scoop it up, but I was here when it was delivered.
Returned it to Az, got the full amount credited back. Changed my Az password to something a lot harder to hack.

It is scary how much info someone can obtain about you with just a simple internet search.

 

[ponytug]

Maybe 5 years ago I had a message on my answering machine from someone for whom English was clearly not his first language saying something about an Amazon order, and wondering if it was legit. Caller ID just said Seattle Wash.
Logged into my Az account, didn't show anything out of the ordinary. Then called my CC company and they showed a charge of ~$500 that I didn't make to Az. They immediately cancelled that card and issued a new one.
A couple days later a mystery package with a pair of very expensive headphones inside arrived UPS. I found it very odd that someone would steal my cc#, then ship the merchandise to my address...maybe they were hoping no one was home and they could scoop it up, but I was here when it was delivered.
Returned it to Az, got the full amount credited back. Changed my Az password to something a lot harder to hack.

I suspect it was a variant of this eBay scam;

How eBay scammers turned Nespresso lovers into money mules

One woman's search for cheap coffee uncovered a strange world of eBay credit card fraud.

mashable.com

Another "if it sounds too good to be true..."

All the best,

Peter

 

[scootr]

It used to be that somepeople would occasionally be subjected to credit card fraud. Now it is a constant threat to all of us.
Keep 2 cards so you can cancel one when needed and still have one to use

 

[gstrom99]

It used to be that some people would occasionally be subjected to credit card fraud. Now it is a constant threat to all of us.
Keep 2 cards so you can cancel one when needed and still have one to use

That's good advice. Over the last 10 years, I parred down the number of cards I have to only one, which I'm able to pay off every month. I use my debit card except for online stuff. I probably should get another, as backup, but the banks don't like them to just sit. I would need to remember to use them both.

I bet there are not many "deals" for new cards these days...