Thread: Telstra Calling

"Can I speak with the householder?" they ask.

"Sure, I'll just go get him, hang on a minute please." I reply.

The phone gets put on the shelf and I walk away.

Phone goes back into the cradle 5 minutes later.

You've got to pity the people that need to do this to earn a few bucks and I equally pity the people that actually believe these scams.

Originally Posted by Fatso

Got a call yesterday saying (in real broad indian or Asian accent) that this is the Telstra tech Dept who said that my internet was going to be cut off and was I aware of that .
knowing this is a scam I said that was ok so go ahead and cut it off , she said that it could be sorted out , so I said ok every time I call Telstra they want my birthdate for security so you give me my birthdate and we can carry on this conversation -------- Clunk .
Will they ever give up !!!!!

I remember a few years ago I had a call from an Indian who said he was from Telstra and wanted to review my call plans.

He then asked me for my password.

I said that he was Telstra and he should know my password and hung up.

I then called Telstra customer support to alert them to the scam and they said the bloke was legit!!

I don't know whether someone was having a lend of the poor bloke or not but I reckon/hope he wouldn't have had too many positive responses .
Regards Philip A

The latest one we've been getting is people with an Indian accent claiming to be from the investigation / prosecutions department of the Australian Taxation Office, claiming that we have an outstanding debt to the ATO and that an arrest warrant has been issued in the name of whoever answers the phone. They know our surname and the initial of my first name, and will quote a tax file number and ask if this is the correct number (it isn't) - and will then ask for the correct tax file number so that they can correct their records. The phone conversation has only got this far once before I told them very impolitely where to go and hung up on them.

Have received this call three or four times now with different callers each time, mostly male but yesterday's caller was a female who claimed to be the ATO's "Chief Investigative Officer" (we must be higher up their scale than I thought to warrant a call from such a high ranking officer) - she got told to **** off as well. Even had a message left on the machine from someone with an American sounding accent claiming to be from the same office last week.

The fact that they are still trying this crap after being told to **** off a number of times suggests either that there are a lot of them doing it, or that there are some gullible fools out there who might actually believe them and give them the information that they are chasing.

Now, whenever the front doorbell rings, my daughter and I tell SWMBO that it is the Australian Federal Police with an arrest warrant for her (she took the first call and let it drag on for long enough to find out what they were after before I jumped in on the conversation on the other phone and told them where to go).

I will admit to being scammed on my computer - The email was from the AFP , with a letterhead and a phone number .......which was real .


However , they had been 'compromised ' when I rang to check ...after my computer was kaputed - the bird who answered admitted that it was possible a
'breach had occurred '

If you cant trust the police who's left .......


And Yes , I am normally a little more careful

I had one of those scam phone calls the other day, when I was asked for the person in charge of the account, I said
"One moment please, I have been given this special code to track the origin of this call, please wait while I enter the code'"
Indian: "Wha?"
(press random 7 digit number)
"Hello? Hello?"
Beep beep beep.

Other useful replies to superstitious scammers asking for "the owner of the business" include:
"I'm sorry, he is dead. I am just a common criminal stealing the furniture."
(Sound of indrawn breath)
"Oh...."
Beep, beep, beep.

Oh well - looks like we're not the only ones they're trying it on with.

Feel sorry for the 81 year old, but having heard this scam myself on the phone, it really has me buggered how anyone could be taken in by it.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa...0-to-ato-scam/

Originally Posted by BMKal

Oh well - looks like we're not the only ones they're trying it on with.

Feel sorry for the 81 year old, but having heard this scam myself on the phone, it really has me buggered how anyone could be taken in by it.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa...0-to-ato-scam/

He was taken in, because he was 81, he grew up in a time when people didn't pretend to be the tax office and his pride wouldn't allow the shame of a taxation debt.

The scammers know that and its why they target the elderly, my father was scammed by the asphalt driveway scam. He had been a businessman sole trader all his life, but in his eighties the memory and con-artist defences are down.

There used to be limits on the amount of money people could transfer out of an account without presenting at the bank in person. It would be a protection of the elderly if that was still the case, but I fear the bank staff probably don't have the relationships with customers they had 40 or so years ago.

I got a call last week from an Indian woman.
Said she was from the government department and can help me with my debts.We can pay half of your debts off for you.I asked which government department.She said internal revenue.
I thanked her for her offer and said I owed almost a million dollars.
She said I need your details sir,I confirm we can give you $490000 in 1 week.Offered her to go half in the windfall if she used here details.She hung up
Andrew