(312) 267-1253

SPAM

I just received a phone call from a number I do not recognized. I NEVER ANSWER UNRECOGNIZED NUMBERS. The caller did not leave a voice mail. SOUND FAMILIAR? THIS IS WHAT IS GOING ON: IT IS A ROBOCALL USED TO DETERMINE IF YOUR PHONE NUMBER IS A VALID, WORKING NUMBER THAT IS BEING ANSWERED BY A REAL LIVE PERSON. IF YOU ANSWER, THE TELEMARKETERS/SCAMMERS WILL THEN PLACE YOUR NUMBER ON AN “ACTIVE/LIVE NUMBER” LIST AND YOUR NUMBER IS THEN SOLD TO OTHER TELEMARKETERS AND SCAMMERS. HERE IS SOME ADVICE: ***First and foremost, DO NOT ANSWER CALLS FROM NUMBERS YOU DO NOT RECOGNIZE!*** This is your best defense a***nst further unwanted calls. Period, end of discussion. DON’T EVER CALL THESE IDIOTS BACK OR ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR CALLS IN ANY WAY (i.e. press 1 to remove from list, press 2 to speak to someone, call the number on your caller ID back, etc.) as they will put your number on an "active/live number" list and you will actually get MORE calls from other scammers. Check out the November 2015 issue of Consumer Reports for more information on protecting yourself from scammers and the February 2016 issue of the same magazine for info on scams similar this as well as the notorious IRS SCAMS. Also, IF YOU CALL THE NUMBER BACK, IT WILL BE VIEWED AS YOUR ATTEMPT TO DO BUSINESS WITH THE “COMPANY” that contacted you. What does this mean? IT MEANS THAT YOU ARE NOT PROTECTED UNDER THE DONOTCALL.GOV umbrella and that particular scammer/telemarketer you called back can then LEGALLY CONTACT YOU FOR THE NEXT 18 months and there’s nothing you can do about it. Just BLOCK the number and go on with your life. There are free apps for both Android and iPhones that you can download in order to block further calls from that particular number. Landline customers may be able to use the FREE service at www.nomorobo.com.

call about 9:15 am. Convincing imitated human s***ch "HELLO, THIS IS THE ONLINE REWARDS CENTER..CAN YOU HEAR ME OK?" I ***g up and will check if my phone number is on the DO NOT CALL LIST