New telemarketer/telescammer trick?
2Telemarketers/telescammers come and go in their ‘fads’ of what they do/say.
Lately I’ve been getting calls that go directly to voice mail, in a way that no phone # even shows up, and my phone doesn’t even show that I had a missed call.
It always is a robot voice cutting into their message in the middle of a sentence “…matter at hand is extremely important. Please call us at ########”
Anyone else getting this lately?
Since the phone # doesn’t show up, there’s no way for me to block their calls.
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Sounds like the IRS scam.
https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/fake-irs-collectors-are-calling
Could you have blocked them in the past? I know on my google voice numbers I get the voicemail but it never rings since I previously blocked them.
@thismyusername I actually haven’t every blocked anyone yet, so definitely haven’t blocked them yet. Even if you block, can they still leave you a voice mail though?
@luvche21 usually they can…
if the block is done at the phone level (iphone / android) basically the phone is just sending a refuse call when it sees the caller id matches, so technically if they stick around they will get the voicemail (since the voicemail is on the network level not the phone itself)
if the block is done at the network level (like if you use a * code on home phones or the website or an app that talks to their website with your cellco provider) then it will usually block them from the voicemail as well as the call is terminated by the network when it sees the caller id.
on google voice you can block and the call wont ring but it will still let the voicemail come through, but… you can mark it as spam and it will auto block them and also move any voicemails they leave into your spam folder. The block method is best on google voice imo as it plays an out of service message (with the tones) so most automated systems just remove you as they think its a dead number… also if you have the google spam filters on it might keep random scams/telemarkers from ringing your phone, but they still show up in the spam folder.
@luvche21
I have been told that all the big businesses and many smaller ones can bypass a call connection and send a message directly to voicemail. The carriers can do this also.
I don’t know how.
Tye carriers themselves may be blocking the ring-phone connection of some if these, as fraud prevention.
@f00l if its a cdma network (verizon sprint) you used to be able to just 11 to the number to skip directly to voicemail… not sure of the trick for att/tmo
@luvche21, maybe it’s the fat woman in the van?
@baqui63 lol, probably, haha
she’s a creeper!
What if I really did win a free cruise??
@stephanieg We can go on the cruise together, I have some money coming from a Nigerian Prince.
@caffeine_dude Save your money. It’s all free!
My husband gets these too!
Another trick for google voice users-- Record a greeting to fuck with them. "Hello? Can you speak up, I’m having trouble hearing you. Hold on a minute… " Save this greetings as “Fuck with” or similar. When you receive a call from a person you want to screw with next time, instead of blocking them, add them as a contact and add them to a group that goes directly to voicemail and gets that greeting.
@caffeineguy that would be awesome, except they’re calling my cell #, not my google voice #. Unless there’s a way to push some calls over to google voice?
And on a related note-- Whenever I get junk mail from some business try to sell a scam (like Exterior Line Protection “From the power company”), I return the postage-paid envelope empty, no return address. At least I’ll cost them a stamp and some human’s time opening it.
@caffeineguy I always thought those were asking to be filled with glitter before sending back.
@djslack Glitter! That’s fucking awesome! I might just go door to door and ask my neighbors for all of their “Exterior Line Protection” “Insurance” paperwork… (It’s particularly useless in our neighborhood because our lines are underground)
@caffeineguy haha, that’s a great idea!
@djslack … or spent batteries.
@caffeineguy depending on your post master; postal codes allow for the envelope to be affixed to a box of no more than 108" girth and 70lbs. Then it would be delivered to the pre-paid postage issuer at 20 cents an ounce; and they Must Pay. I got capital one to take all the construction waste from the broken fence.
@Pete_Conrad
Oh shit thank you for that. Even better than glitter.
@Pete_Conrad GOAT nomination for this comment
On a related note, what’s up with getting a call from the same number at the same time, EVERY DAY? They don’t speak and they don’t even leave a message. I’ve googled the number and lots of people have reported the same issue/complaint. Is there some giant ring casing houses across the country??
@pitamuffin
Yeah have been getting those silent calls for a few years. Perhaps they’re checking whether the # is live?
Samsung lets you set blocking mode to dump any # not in your address book to voicemail. That’s how I dealt with it.
Do other handsets let you block non address-book calls this way? Does the iPhone?
@pitamuffin I just got one of those last night. And this morning
@f00l yes, just hit the i in a circle (info symbol) next to the number in the recents list, then scroll all the way down and click “Block this caller”.
I use an app called Mr. Number. It automatically blocks spam calls (it uses the websites where people report complaints and compiles a score). You can also manually block numbers. The downside is that sometimes my phone will give half a ring before it cuts them off, but they do not get to my voicemail.
I hadn’t got spam calls for years, then my number got out to someone when I was purchasing a house and I’ve been getting slammed daily. Cruises, insurance, credit card interest rates. The problem is the free use of IP calling by spammers now, so the do not call registry has been rendered largely ineffective, but I’ve read they’re working on a solution.
@meh
One reason the Do Not Call registry does not work:
Our fab govt publicly announced that they they would not prosecute or enforce abusive calling, and would rely on voluntary private tech solutions. The law does allow you to sue, if that’s any comfort.
@f00l It seemed to work great for me for years until this year, though it sort of makes sense the Fed didn’t invest in prosecuting them, prob would cost a fortune. Now, every single spam call I get blocked in Mr. Number is a spoofed voIP number that can’t be traced.
Also worth noting, though, there is a loophole in the law that allows you to be spammed by company’s you current or recently have done business with.
@meh
Congress passed the law, clearly intending enforcement of some sort.
I thought the Feds would at least prosecute a few big $ violators, in order to create news buzz and a credible threat to the assholes. This would have gotten great press.
Also thought the Feds might cooperate actively - and with legal weight - with tech companies to create national blocking standards or usable non-fake-out caller ID standards of some sort.
Instead, the DOC or the FTC or the DOJ or the FCC or whoever announced publicly that there would be zero federally approved tech and zero federal enforcement.
So smart. A lot like a bank putting up a billboard saying "Hey, thieves, not a joke, we unlocked the vault, left the door open, sent all the guards on holiday, removed all the cameras and security! We’re going on a cruise now. You thieves, have a great weekend!"
And meaning every word. Just in case someone didn’t hear it on the street already.
I use a similar Android app called “should I answer?” Makes me happy to bump annoying robocalls.
My Motorola phone has the dump to voicemail feature.