claimed to be an IRS agent acting like I was in big trouble.. Had a strong Indian accent. I called them back to screw with them just to piss them off. As if the true IRS would call and immediately threaten a tax payer. If they call you call them back and have some fun.
Message was left on my machine to have my lawyer call him immediately. He left his name as Shawn Watson and yes-either Indian accent or Middle Eastern. I called back at 10:00pm, but the call doesn't go anyplace. Phone doesn't even ring. The sound of the man's voice actually left chills on me. It's originated from Washington state-so says the caller ID.
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.
I received call from this number saying the call is from IRS and the conversation would be recorded.
I got a call threatening that I did some illegal fraud with tax filing. It started with some federal tax mistake of 2K+. Then the call is transferred to person with name Shawn and then he starts asking which country I am from and if I send any money to my home country. He starts asking me if I have lawyer to discuss this legally. The person with name Shawn threatens me saying go home and police will be waiting for me. He says documentation has been sent a month back and I did not respond. When I said I did not receive any documentation, he said it is not their mistake if I did not receive the documents. He asks me to hire a lawyer in 45mins and to go home before police comes and knocks the door. The entire call was just about threatening.