Phone scam - pretending to be police

Last week DD had a text purportedly from her credit card provider asking her whether a list of three transactions on her credit card were made by her. She was asked to text Y or N for each one. She was just about to start work so had a quick think and decided that as she recognised one transaction but not the other two and the answer was just one of 2 letters she would risk it and did so.

As soon as her coffee break started she rang her provider on a different phone using the number on the back of her card. It turned out that the text was completely genuine. Her credit card had been compromised, she knows not how and someone had tried to charge half a dozen purchases totalling over £1,000 to it. The credit card provider had processed the first two but then bounced the rest. She now has a new card , but says she is really impressed by the algorithm her card processor used to flag up doubtful transactions as, although the sums were each for several hundred pounds, the places they used them; the Nike store, Ikea and Tesco are not completely out with her spending patterns. She doesn't shop at Ikea and Nike but does use Tesco.

Mishap that book may well be from the website I mentioned up there^^

It is all about people stringing the spammers along, one even got the spammer to send him some money!

I'm still interested to know how sarahc446655 managed to get it dealt with though.

There is a book (I cant' remember the name) which contains email correspondence by these scammers and the recipient is stringing them along - it is very funny indeed.

My brother used to work for BT and tells me that some of these silent calls are simply from call centres - they set several calls in motion at the same time and if they are tied up on another one by the time you pick up you get the silent treatment.

The above scams have been around for so long, esp. the Nigerian one that I'm surprised anyone actually bothers to reply.

If you've got some time to kill, have a look at a website called (I think) "what's the bloody point.com"

There was a scam that involved criminals hi-jacking a friends business online address book and contacting everybody that she had been mugged while in europe and needed money to get back.
I went along with it as I was worried about what state she was in, far from home and made helpful suggestions like go the embassy and get an economy flight back. When they said they needed one and a half grand I smelled a rat - then was told by my friend what had happened.

I had an a**h** contact me from Nigeria telling me a relative had been killed in a car crash and had no family to give his millions to. If I agreed we could have fifty fifty - he was claiming to be a barrister so I said arrange it through an english solicitor which got rid of him.

The worst deception I've ever encountered was someone pretending to be someone else - in a professional capacity similar to dating sites in that he seemed genuine at first - then systematically started using manipulative, abusive language that was designed to take your self-belief and sanity apart bit by bit - on realising this it was the strangest feeling being able to intuit this person as being somebody else, which became very apparent. What was worse was that if he'd done it to someone with any self-doubt or mental vulnerability it could have destroyed them - that is no exaggeration.

I returned emails saying that I had alot of friends who didn't like the way he was talking to me and full of other full on accusations that his game was up - until he told me to stop.

At a later stage he tried to contact me again through Linked in- which was worrying at first but then put down to him having a defective memory.

How did you (or the police) know who it was calling if they were silent calls? Usually dialing 1471 doesn't work in these cases as the callers usually withhold their number.

A few years back - I kept recieving the silent phone calls that were/are generated by automatic call centre systems I contacted the maliscious phone call bureau and the police apparently told them to stop doing it and they did immediately - the police called me to let me know.
It may be still the case that the police can directly intervene as all these lists you can go on are a waste of time.

I've had a couple of phone calls from my bank in recent years, quite genuine calls but I always refuse to speak to them.
I request something in writing or ring the bank on my mobile.

I've just recently again started receiving nuisance phone calls, I need to register again to get this stopped.

Threads like this do help to keep us alert to the dangers.

I found this story mind-boggling. I was amazed how easily she was duped. A cold call, claiming to be the police, asking her to do the things she was asked to do. Why didn't the alarm bells ring?

Some years ago I had my handbag stolen and half an hour later I was rung by the 'police' to say that someone had been caught trying to use my bank card. He then asked to do some security checks starting with asking me my bank account number - which he already knew because he had my cheque book. At that point I still thought the call was genuine but I refused to give him the number because, as I told him, I never gave numbers like this over the phone to anyone, not even the police.

I rang off and dialled my bank, who said no-one had been arrested in the branch, so I then rang the police station on the number in the telephone book and they confirmed that the phone call was not genuine.

These "scammers" get more devious every day!

Some years ago our son had what transpired to be a genuine call from his bank.
He refused to answer any of their questions and drove to the bank where he told them that he wasn't impressed!
They were duly apologetic and have since changed the policy.
This lady seemed so with-it yet still was duped mega time!

I've heard of this scam a few times - it's not all that new. Still, the more people are made aware the better. My bank have a hard time getting me to believe it's ever them I am so suspicious! If in doubt try to phone the bank independently from a neighbour's house or someone else's mobile.

I heard this as I was driving along and was totally mind-boggled. She got sucked into thinking she was part of a police undercover operation and transferred £31,000 into her current account on the scammers instructions and then drove 23 miles in a taxi to Selfridges to buy an £11,000 rolex which she was then being asked to send to an address - but the sensible shop assistant called security and the woman was informed that it was a scam - but it beggars belief that she could have let things go that far! She must have left her brains in bed that morning!!

Its the time between them phoning and you calling that counts I believe. If you are too quick the line is still occupied....best to use a different line altogether....certainly wait a few minutes and make sure line has cleared.

I listened to this too; the lady was fully aware of these scams yet still got drawn in, the scammers were so plausible. I assume best to put phone down and go to your bank as it seems using a mobile didn't stop them.
Be aware!