There's a new scam in town

Even if phone has caller I.D. call centres now use fake UK or mobile numbers. T.P.S. can only regulate on calls from within the UK.

 

I'm registered with T.P.S. and rarely answer my landline. Last week after making several calls on it, I answered it thinking one of my callers whose number was wasn't on my phone was ringing back. It was a call centre from outside the UK. I sang at him. As I've a terrible voice and singing soprano rather than my ( I'm told ) normal contralto the poor chap tried politely to interrupt before giving in and hanging up.

I love that story. A nice long blast of a whistle , at full volume, would be fun too.

---------- Post added 18-02-2015 at 16:35 ----------

I am already signed up with the Telephone Preference Service which, as you say, is free. However, unfortunately it hasn't prevented me receiving nuisance calls such as that one, as it only filters out companies, not private callers. All my nuisance callers have an Indian accent, which leads me to believe they are all part of the same gang of scammers - one of them nearly led me up the garden path by tricking me that he was calling on behalf of Microsoft. It was my bank (bless them!) who alerted me, after money started disappearing from my account. Thankfully they cancelled the debits and I got my money back. Since then, I simply end the call as soon as I hear someone with a dodgy accent on the other end of the line. I don't bother to get into a conversation with them.

 

One way of filtering out nuisance calls if you are really fed up of being pestered, is to use the answering service on your phone - if the caller is genuine, they will leave a message which you can reply to or delete.

 

I am very wary of giving out my telephone number now, as I am ex-directory, but, unfortunately, it already exists on the Voters' List which, as we all know, is open to all to view - hence the scam phone calls.

 

---------- Post added 12-02-2015 at 10:26 ----------

 

 

Nobody sold TPS to me. I simply googled "nuisance calls" and came up with the results. I agree that TPS is a great service though.

 

---------- Post added 12-02-2015 at 10:43 ----------

 

 

The majority of my nuisance callers have had Indian accents, despite having English names, but they are all scammers. However, there is nothing the TPS can do, as the calls are either private or come from outside the UK. I got so fed up that all my calls went to my answering service and, strangely, none of them left a number to call.

 

Of course, the next time you answer the phone, you could say "Hello, South Yorkshire Police...". Mind you this could put the wind up a genuine caller....

Never, ever, ever, allow scam merchants saying Microsoft you got a virus, to get your bank details or computer login. Absolute scum these people are.

---------- Post added 18-02-2015 at 16:37 ----------

Mine was I am ringing about your accident have you had one? Yes its his birthday next week,when was that then, well he will be 45 week so you work it out and he still wanted to carry on so I put the phone down

Hahaha..some right Muppets making these calls.

 

Never, ever, ever, allow scam merchants saying Microsoft you got a virus, to get your bank details or computer login. Absolute scum these people are.

 

If they cannot give you the account or membership details and or date of last transaction you can never know for certain who is at the other end and what their real intentions are.

We always ask for account or membership number when someone calls and say we do not talk with strangers on the phone when they cannot supply one.

Can't you use "caller ID"?

The use of "caller id" is of great use in identifying nuisance calls.

However I have an elderly Mother and many calls from the NHS (doctor, nurse etc), relating to her care, are from with-held numbers. I therefore have to answer with-held number calls ‘just in case’.

It is extremely annoying to then find they are scam calls. I just tell them to go where the sun doesn’t shine

same here ,ive got to the point now where I don't answer the landline . I wait for it to stop ringing ,use 1471 , if its friends or family I ring them back

Yes, likewise here too.

I've received two calls in two days from some sort of agency wanting to know if my hearing was damaged. Normally I'd just hang up, but this was a Sheffield number as well, I made clear I wanted to be taken off their database, twice, it seems to only have worked on the second. Considering we are on the preference scheme I was very annoyed they rang us twice.

I previously posted that I'd had these calls occasionally over the past few years, but in the last couple of weeks I've had several. Each time I've asked to be taken off their list, which they've said they will do, but it seems to be different companies calling. They seem to be in the UK, and we're with TPS. Where they've got my name from, I've no idea.

yes i do the 1471 if its family they will txt me first,

usualy when i have had to call virgin media it always seem to happen about a week later i get those scam calls from the indians