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So I called back an IRS scam call - talked to this guy in India.

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I wonder if they are ever going to stop or at least make these calls less frequent. You'd think there'd at least be some way to trace the source of the spoofed number and cut off their telephone service.

The IRS is after me at least once every other day. Someone can lower my interest rates at least daily. Oh, and my Microsoft license is due to expire like every other day. At least once a week someone can lower the cost of my natural gas bill (probably somewhat legit). Oh, and the endless surveys. If it wasn't such a pain in the ass I'd cut my landline.

EDIT: I forgot about the fact that someone at the Microsoft security center has detected that my computer has a virus.

Somewhere I'm on the list of stupid people likely to be defrauded. 🙁
 
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Red Squirrel said:
There is a scam going around where if you answer the phone, they ask a simple question and the act of you saying yes is enough to be used against you. Basically it becomes legally binding as you having agreed to some kind of service where they charge your credit card or w/e. I presume they have all the rest of they info they need thanks to the fact that companies don't care about your privacy and just sell info to the highest bidder, or allow it to leak (ex: Equifax).
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Nonsense. They are robo calls, they don't know who you are, or have a credit card to charge. If they did, they wouldn't even bother calling you.
 
highland145 said:
We went on a RC cruise 2016. The wife used my # with AAA and the other booking paperwork. I have been called non stop since. "Thanks for staying at a Marriott Resort...."
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That sucks.

I don't typically share my primary numbers with anyone. I have a few Google Voice numbers I use for that. I created a contact in my google accounts called "CALL BOT" and I add numbers to that contact that I want to block. It seems to work to at least help filter the junk. I'm reluctant to change my cell number because I don't want to end up getting a number someone else had that was on a bunch of lists...
 
WilliamM2 said:
Nonsense. They are robo calls, they don't know who you are, or have a credit card to charge. If they did, they wouldn't even bother calling you.
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Actually, that scam has been documented. It's where a scammer buys your info or obtains it somehow from a 3rd party.....then when you answer, they say your name and ask if they have the right person...that's where they record your voice saying, "Yes".

I feel fairly certain that with all this identity theft going around, we're going to resort to having to provide more biometrics. It'd probably be a boom to the economy too. I'd be eager to buy more stuff if I got to seal the deal by providing a semen sample.
 
Scarpozzi said:
Actually, that scam has been documented. It's where a scammer buys your info or obtains it somehow from a 3rd party.....then when you answer, they say your name and ask if they have the right person...that's where they record your voice saying, "Yes".

I feel fairly certain that with all this identity theft going around, we're going to resort to having to provide more biometrics. It'd probably be a boom to the economy too. I'd be eager to buy more stuff if I got to seal the deal by providing a semen sample.
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I Know, I was referring to the IRS scam in the OP's post. He was told he shouldn't even talk to them, which is nonsense. Same with the Microsoft Support scam calls.
 
Capt Caveman said:
Stupid to even speak to them, if they record your voice they can edit it to say that you said yes to something and then screw you over.
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I get around this by only screaming German obscenities into the phone, followed by monkey noises and a few prominent belches.
 
Zeze said:
I wanted to see who this very person was. What kind of world he's in - the things he deals with, etc.

I was pretty surprised he kind of opened up to me.
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so what makes you believe anything else he said was true? i mean, the dude was lying to try to scam you in the first place, why would be tell the truth afterward?
 
So this is what English-speaking Indians do with their spare time at home? Call up random Americans and cheat them out of money??? People like that make India a great place to live. Not.
They probably spam us with texts as well.
 
I personally like the ones that say "There are 4 warrants out for your arrest and the local authorities are on their way. Please call me at ***-^^^-%$#$ so I can help you."
 
pontifex said:
so what makes you believe anything else he said was true? i mean, the dude was lying to try to scam you in the first place, why would be tell the truth afterward?
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People are complex. They can have different sides to them, which can look contradictory from the outside. This fellow could be a half decent guy who accepted this job because the alternatives open to him payed one eight as much and involved truly hazardous, sweat shop labor.

And sure, you can say you wouldn't ever do this from the safety and comfort of your fancy indoor toilet and your house with a roof and all . . . /s . . . but try not to be so quick to judge.

What I'm saying is, sure, this one guy (and others) could be a complete asshole. You just don't know, is all.
 
I think the next time I get one of these calls (which actually isn't often) I'll load up some porn and play it so it sounds like I'm pounding some chick in the background. Then about 15 seconds latter answer with an out of breath voice, "hello, can I help you? You're interrupting me here. "

Would be great for the shits and giggles anyway.
 
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