Who called from 2022410806

This is some coward hiding behind a magicJack device plugged in at some God-forsaken corner of the world where there is Internet service.  He's no better than a common criminal using a magicJack device and your fear the same way a common thief uses a toy pistol hidden in the pocket of his overcoat to make a bulge that looks like a real gun.

You can verify that this is a magicJack number by searching for it at http://www.phonevalidator.com .

Phonevalidator.com does not keep track of numbers ported into and out of the various blocks administered by each phone company.  The most accurate information is only available to the phone companies, and you aren't going to be able to access this information.  For example, it is possible for someone to port their home phone number to a magicJack number without phonevalidator.com knowing about that.

However, there is reason to believe that this is a number originally assigned to a magicJack device:

(1) YMAX Corp. is a wholly owned subsidiary of magicJack, and assigns numbers to their devices.  magicJack makes almost all of their money selling these devices and the phone service that goes with these devices.

(2) Although it is theoretically possible to assign a number out of a YMAX Corp. block of numbers, it seems very unlikely that anyone ever does this, because the cost of using a magicJack is so low that it would be uneconomical to do so.

(3) In theory, at least, in some states it may be possible to get a YMAX Corp. number without using a magicJack device, it seems very unlikely that anyone would actually do so, because they may use a proprietary protocol for their service, and interconnections to the nationwide telephone system may not be perfectly reliable or even available in some cases.

On the other hand, a magicJack device is very convenient for scammers, especially those from overseas:

(1) They can access the United States and Canada without paying overseas calling fees from anywhere there is Internet service.  This means that the incremental cost per call, incoming or outgoing, is zero or close to zero.

(2) They are assigned a U.S. or Canadian number from YMAX Corp., so the person being called cannot know where the scammer is actually calling from.

(3) MagicJack devices can easily be obtained overseas and appear to come with a "free registration" (i.e., a free number) that you can use for a period of time after the device is purchased, usually at a very low cost to the scammer.

(4) The audio quality is very good, and can be used to give the impression of a busy call center by playing recordings of people taking or making calls in the background, even if the scammer has only one device.

and

(5)  They are readily obtainable outside of the United States for about $100 US and can come with up to a year of free calling to the U.S. and Canada.  See, for example,
http://magicjack.in .

In addition to the regular reporting channels, e.g., the Department of the Treasury, the FTC, and/or your local state attorney general's office, you might also report the abuse to YMAX Corp.  I have seen reports that they are pretty good at responding to complaints and may be able to permanently shut off a magicJack device, if necessary, so that it can never be used again.

The YMAX Corp. main web page is at:
http://www.ymaxcorp.com
and their site giving information on how to lodge a complaint is at:
http://www.ymaxcorp.com/contact.html

Note that the "contact" website gives a clickable link to a "live chat" where you can make your complaint.

A computerized voice left a message claiming to be the IRS with a time sensitive matter, urging me to call back before they take action.

We received this call today, they claimed that we owed taxes. We are currently with a payment plan with the IRS so I am almost sure this is a scam. I would call the IRS directly to find out if there is any problem with our plan.

I just received a phone call from Officer Heather Gray from the IRS stating that it is important to call her back as soon as possible or have my lawyer call, so they wont take legal action against me. I called and music played. The second time I called a foreign speaking person answered the phone and as soon as I said, "May I please speak to Officer Heather Gray", he said, "Who?" and I repeated the name and then He disconnected the call. I called a few more times, it would ring and then disconnect.

Got this call today, and found these notes.  Will submit a report with FTC.