GolfGTIforum.co.uk
General => General discussion => Topic started by: lewis1641 on 27 October 2011, 13:04
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just read this on the www.retrobike.co.uk forum, thought i would spread the word...
"I received a call from a 'representative' of BT, informing me that he was disconnecting me because of an unpaid bill. He demanded payment immediately of £31.00 or it would be £118.00 to re-connect at a later date.
The guy wasn't even fazed when I told him I was with Virgin Media, allegedly VM have to pay BT a percentage for line rental!
I asked the guy's name - he gave me the very 'English' John Peacock with a very 'African' accent - & phone number - 0800 0800 152.
Obviously the fellow realized I didn't believe his story, so offered to demonstrate that he was from BT. I asked how & he told me to hang up & try phoning someone - he would dis-connect my phone to prevent this. AND HE DID !!
My phone was dead - no engaged tone, nothing - until he phoned me again.
Very pleased with himself, he asked if that was enough proof that he was with BT. I asked how the payment was to be made and he said credit card, there and then.
I said that I didn't know how he'd done it, but I had absolutely no intention of paying him, I didn't believe his name or that he worked for BT.
He hung up.
I dialed 1471 - number withheld
I phoned his fictitious 0800 number - not recognized., so I phoned the police to let them know. I wasn't the first! It's only just started apparently, but it is escalating.
Their advice was to let as many people as possible know of this scam. The fact that the phone does go off would probably convince some people it's real, so please make as many friends & family aware of this.
How is it done?
This is good but not that clever.. He gave the wrong number - it should have been 0800 800 152 which takes you through to BT Business.
The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
You could almost be convinced!
The sad thing is that it is so simple that it will certainly fool the elderly and vulnerable.
By the way this is not about getting the cash as this would not get past merchant services - it is all about getting the credit card details which include the security number so that it can be used for far larger purchases. "
this was passed to me by a local Police Community Support Officer
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I never answer calls from numbers I dont recognise!
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I never answer calls from numbers I dont recognise!
+1
me neither
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The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
What a load of sh!t.
If one end of the connection is severed, no matter whether by dialing out or being the receiver the connection is terminated.
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I never answer calls from numbers I dont recognise!
You're not paranoid then.
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It used to stay active if you (the receiver) hung up and they hadn't, think that was changed.
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The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
What a load of sh!t.
If one end of the connection is severed, no matter whether by dialing out or being the receiver the connection is terminated.
Not true :wink:
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I never answer calls from numbers I dont recognise!
You're not paranoid then.
Nope! Just dont want to waste my time with cretins trying to sell me crap!
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The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
What a load of sh!t.
If one end of the connection is severed, no matter whether by dialing out or being the receiver the connection is terminated.
Not true :wink:
How so? I've tried this a couple of times land lines to mobiles, mobiles to mobiles, land line to land line. Everytime if I hang up being the receiver I can dial out straight away.
I've even just tried it now being a dialer. I hung up the other phone, phone got severed connection tone, then kicks back to dial tone.
I still call bull.
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If someone calls you the line will stay active until they hang up,this is a well known scam that has been going on for a while.I work for B.T
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If someone calls you the line will stay active until they hang up,this is a well known scam that has been going on for a while.I work for B.T
Ok, just tried it again.
Rang myself, answered, then hang up, kept the other phone connected, tried to dial out from phone I just hung up and it worked first time. Other phone got hang up tone, then kicked back to dial tone.
Either the phones have had a fix or I have unscammable phones :laugh:
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The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
What a load of sh!t.
If one end of the connection is severed, no matter whether by dialing out or being the receiver the connection is terminated.
No, the person who made the call has to end the connection on a landline, that is how the scam works.
Back in the day of using a landline to call people, it happened to me a few times where someone would call, have a chat, then later you'd try and use the phone only to find it 'dead' because the person who rang earlier hadn't put the phone back in the cradle properly!
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You used to be able to do this if you had a phone upstairs as well. Somebody would call and would answer the downstairs phone. I would be upstairs. They would hang up the phone downstairs and I would pick up the upstairs phone and the caller would still be connected.
Go figure.
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You used to be able to do this if you had a phone upstairs as well. Somebody would call and would answer the downstairs phone. I would be upstairs. They would hang up the phone downstairs and I would pick up the upstairs phone and the caller would still be connected.
Go figure.
I think we have just found the scammer..... living upstairs in Mighty Elvi's house
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do people still have landlines these days? I havnt had one for years, every now and then I plug the phone in when I have to give a number out for a delivery or something and dont wanna give out my mobile, but the cold calling and saleman crap starts within a few hours and I just disconnect it again
everyone who I want calling me has my mobile number :)
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I have one, it makes a good dog chew toy apparently :rolleyes:
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its more to do with landline phones that are still connected by wire, i cant see cordless phones or mobiles being affected as these work off a 'hang up' button
i remember as a kid, when we had a phone with cable (before mobiles were really used) if you received a call, and hung up, but the caller didnt, you get still talk to them, and you could have a 3 way conversation if you was upstairs, dont know if you can do this anymore
when my landline rings, i ignore it, itll be nobody for me, and if it is, they have my mobile number
unfortunately, my gf is dumb enough to fall for this! :undecided:
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Thanks for the heads up. Here is more info from bbc news
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8263637.stm
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I just ask for a number which I can call the person back on or if it's a bank tell them that I'll call them on the number that's on my statement. That normally gets rid of them sharpish
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The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
What a load of sh!t.
If one end of the connection is severed, no matter whether by dialing out or being the receiver the connection is terminated.
Not true you can keep a connection live on a landline
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The cutting off of the line is very simple, he stays on the line with the mute button on and you can't dial out - but he can hear you trying (This is because the person who initiates a call is the one to terminate it). When you stop trying he cuts off and immediately calls back.
What a load of sh!t.
If one end of the connection is severed, no matter whether by dialing out or being the receiver the connection is terminated.
Not true you can keep a connection live on a landline
But he says he's done it and it cuts out. Maybe different network areas are different.
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What did you do Slick, go next door and ring your home phone? :grin:
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:laugh: - Well obviously I don't have two landlines, but tried mobile to mobile, landline to mobile, mobile to landline. I've also tried it with the missus when she was at home. I rang her and told her to hang up and try ringing someone else. Sure enough I got cut off. How rude.
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Do you mean you tried landline to landline?
If some irritating sh!t(sales company) rings me at work, if i hang up the line will not cut off until they hang up.
I thought this is how it worked?
Anyway its good to warn people, these scammers need shooting :angry:
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Had a customer phone us accidently from his mobile once. Non stop ringing til he switched it off. Could get a dial tone occasionally if you battered the hang up switched enough.
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:laugh: - Well obviously I don't have two landlines, but tried mobile to mobile, landline to mobile, mobile to landline. I've also tried it with the missus when she was at home. I rang her and told her to hang up and try ringing someone else. Sure enough I got cut off. How rude.
Nooo has to be landline to landline I think and it has to be the person who made the call that keeps the line open
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Just tried calling my landline form my mobile...It does work, the phone keeps connection.
O2 mobile-BT landline
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:laugh: - Well obviously I don't have two landlines, but tried mobile to mobile, landline to mobile, mobile to landline. I've also tried it with the missus when she was at home. I rang her and told her to hang up and try ringing someone else. Sure enough I got cut off. How rude.
Nooo has to be landline to landline I think and it has to be the person who made the call that keeps the line open
Which is what I did each time. I always kept the line open, but hung up from the receiving line.
Mobile was the same as was landline to mobile.
Seems this appears to work randomly as a pose to everyone every time then. :huh:
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If I ring my house from my mobile and hang up at the house, the phone just stays on and dead and if I open the line on the house again it will be back in the call, so it works.
Do it the other way round and obviously it doesn't work.
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Just tested it and it works, I thought that had been changed years ago for this reason :undecided:
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So...does this work with chatlines? :lipsrsealed:
Not for me of course, for the...
http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=210866.0
:grin: