"Molly from Amazon"

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
So far this morning, we have received AT LEAST a half dozen calls from "Molly at Amazon" telling us there's been some Mickey Mouse charge (the amount of the charge varies with each call) made on our account and that, if it's not legit, we need to call Amazon @ ***-***-**** to have it removed, blah, blah, blah.

IT'S ALL B.S., of course.

I haven't bothered to CALL the number because I'd bet my last DIME the scam is they'll remove the charges for a 'restocking fee' of 'x' number of dollars or something similar.

'Anyone here work in comm tech who can suggest a way the PHONE COMPANY can head off these calls at THEIR END so we don't need to buy/set up/put up with a 'call blocker box' that tells callers to "press 9 (or whatever) if you're not a robot and you'll be put thru"???

Simply BLOCKING these calls is a waste of time because, as you all know, they just SWITCH NUMBERS/AREA CODES and keep calling.

I'm tired of this crap...
 

Rick Muck- Mark IV

GT40s Sponsor
Supporter
At least 5 scam calls a day. They all "spoof" your area code so you are more likely to answer. Sometimes I hang on and ask "where are you calling from? What is your area code? When I ask they either hang up or claim "that's the way the system works" Bullshit! When I call area code 313 my 716 comes up, not 313.

Scary, the government can't protect us from these scammers........how will they protect us from terrorists?!?!
 

Doc Watson

Lifetime Supporter
I have a few ways of dealing with this
1) Start talking to them and pick my moment to ask them for their credit card number, sort code and 3 digit security code... they usually ask why so I tell them I want to rip them off.
2) Start talking to them, put the phone down but dont disconnect and make a cuppa.
3) Put your hand half over the phone and say 'start the trace'.
4) ask them what they are wearing, and then move on in a sinister voice from there.

You get the idea.... my fav is no 4.....
 

Scott

Lifetime Supporter
Register your phones with the National Do Not Call Registry (National Do Not Call Registry | FTC Consumer Information), configure your lines to not accept anonymous callers, and subscribe to a spam service. Both iOS and Android have call SPAM applications and most wireline and wireless providers offer services. I pay $4/month for AT&T's service and it's worth it.
 

Rick Muck- Mark IV

GT40s Sponsor
Supporter
Register your phones with the National Do Not Call Registry (National Do Not Call Registry | FTC Consumer Information), configure your lines to not accept anonymous callers, and subscribe to a spam service. Both iOS and Android have call SPAM applications and most wireline and wireless providers offer services. I pay $4/month for AT&T's service and it's worth it.
Does nothing. The scammers use spoofed numbers, the good guys use real numbers. The "DNC" is useless against the basterds.
 

Neil

Supporter
That DNC registry is useless- no one enforces it. Start sending people to jail and we'll see a noticeable drop in spam calls & e-mails.
 

Scott

Lifetime Supporter
You are correct that the registry doesn't do a lot, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. My subscription service has massively reduced the number of SPAM calls that I receive. If you want to put a big filter up, use a service that screens calls. It lets numbers in your contact list straight through and it screens all other numbers by asking several questions. You're presented with the responses and you can accept, decline, report as SPAM, etc. Paying for a service allows the good guys to fund R&D to keep the bad guys under control.

I agree that laws should be passed and people should be sent to jail.
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
Thanks for the replies, gents...but at one time or another I've tried just about all of the things suggested, and the nuisance calls just 'adapt' and keep calling. (BTW, the "do not call" registry was a certifiable joke from day-one! lol!)

Almost always now, the only 'voices' on the line are robot voices such as "Molly" - OR (as is the case with most calls these days) no voices at all...just dead silence for as long as you want to sit there w/o hanging up - or the line instantly goes dead. These days there's always a name displayed with the number calling...so configuring my line to reject 'anonymous' calls is useless. I would ASSUME the same would be the case with anti-spam apps. I signed up with "nomorobo" quite a while back and that proved to be pretty much useless.

The only solution I can come up with that ought to work (as I alluded to in my OP) is to have the phone company(s) block this garbage on their end somehow...but, darned if I know how they'd accomplish it.

I be thinkin' that installing one of those "If-you're-not-a-robot-push-9" boxes in our landline ahead of the phones themselves is the way I'm going to have to go. BUT, as I understand it, the phone STILL RINGS before the device answers/blocks the call...so, we'll still be awakened at 'oh-dark-thirty' when those yo-yos call anyway. :mad:

Thanks again, All!
 

Randy V

Moderator-Admin
Staff member
Admin
Lifetime Supporter
I’m on the National DNC Registry - does little to no good, but it was easy to do.
I don’t subscribe to the $4 a month service from my provider.
What I do is this —
If my phone rings and it is someone in my contacts list or from an area that I am expecting a call, I will pick up. If not, they can leave me a voicemail. If I choose to return the call, I do.
Done.
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
I've often used that strategy as well, Randy...but, it doesn't eliminate being awakened by a call at 'oh-dark-thirty'...or having the phone ring about every 15 minutes for an hour or two...or filling up the voicemail box...or a number of other issues that would all be eliminated if the phone company were able to block nuisance calls before we received them.

One of the "number of other issues" that is of particular concern to me is the possibility of inadvertently blocking a call/calls from a couple of individuals I'd like to hear from who reside within known area codes, but whose actual phone numbers I don't know. (That's a long story I won't get into here. ;))

So, as I mentioned previously, I be thinkin' a "push 9" box is probably the best solution all things considered. I guess we'll just have to shut off the phones in the master bedroom at night and then hope there are no emergency calls.

"Life is not simple" as my Dad (God rest him) used to say...
 

Howard Jones

Supporter
I got a call for an extended service contract on my F150. I told the guy......... " oh the white f150?..............ya that one burst into flame and killed the owner........................"
 

Chris Kouba

Supporter
Larry,

Best way to avoid the undesired wake up call is set your phone on do not disturb. As someone who works nights, I do it every time I go to sleep.

If you have a cell (just an assumption), you can put people on a filter list where their calls will come through, if you want. This doesn't solve your problem of not having their real numbers, but it gets you closer.
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
Best way to avoid the undesired wake up call is set your phone on do not disturb.

Our landline phones don't have that feature, Chris. ;-( (Our kids don't refer to us as "Geriatric Jurassics" for nuthun!)


If you have a cell (just an assumption), you can put people on a filter list where their calls will come through, if you want. This doesn't solve your problem of not having their real numbers, but it gets you closer.

Our landline calls are the trouble area, Chris. We don't get many nuisance calls on our cells............YET. :mad:
We keep our cells off at night so we don't hear all the "Bing Bong" tones denoting this-or-that 'news alert' or ad or whatever else all night long. ;-)
We're kinda hopeless cases...aren't we!
 
We get all these scam calls in the UK too. Mobile & landline.
My last two were 'your washing machine extended warranty is about to expire.....' & 'amazon are going to charge you £xx'.

In the UK we have the 'Telephone Preference Service' a typically toothless body with very limited powers, & zero powers against calls from overseas.
My landline provider has a system whereby you can blacklist numbers & have them sent in future to a spam voice mail that you never listen too. Experience suggests that these companies have multiple numbers as we still get exactly the same calls coming through....
 
I added my cell # to the do-not-disturb list about 2 years ago, seems like the calls got worse shortly thereafter...
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
Experience suggests that these companies have multiple numbers as we still get exactly the same calls coming through....

"Suggests" NOTHING!!! They darned well DO just simply CHANGE numbers and keep calling!!!

That's why I mentioned; "I be thinkin' a "push 9" box is probably the best solution".
I'm trying to find a specific one of those currently. When I do find it - it'll be on its way here!
 

Randy V

Moderator-Admin
Staff member
Admin
Lifetime Supporter
Experience suggests that these companies have multiple numbers as we still get exactly the same calls coming through....

They can “spoof” any number they want to. As a matter of fact, I got a phone call from my OWN phone number claiming they were the IRS and were going to arrest and sue me if I did wire them money via Western Union within 6 hours...
I told the person on the other end that I wanted proof that they were the IRS. Tell me what my Social Security Number is? They could/would not.
CLICK!
 
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