On the evening of 2/27/14 I received a call from (213) 568-1509. He said he was from the Fraternal Order of Police and was trying to raise money for police officers and/or their families. He asked me twice if I could be counted on to donate, even though I told him I couldn't help at this time.
I do not know if this is legitimate or a scam, but thought I'd make this entry since this phone number isn't in the WhoCallsMe database yet. I did note that the Fraternal Order of Police has a legitimate-looking website, so possibly it's not a scam. http://www.fop.net/about/faq/index.shtml
The FAQ on their website states this:
"Q. Does the Fraternal Order of Police solicit donations via the telephone?
A. The National Fraternal Order of Police does not conduct telephone solicitations. However, some State and local FOP lodges do. If you have a question about a telephone call you received requesting that you make a donation to the FOP, please contact the local FOP lodge in your area or the FOP State Lodge in your state."
On the evening of 2/27/14 I received a call from (213) 568-1509. He said he was from the Fraternal Order of Police and was trying to raise money for police officers and/or their families. He asked me twice if I could be counted on to donate, even though I told him I couldn't help at this time.
I do not know if this is legitimate or a scam, but thought I'd make this entry since this phone number isn't in the WhoCallsMe database yet. I did note that the Fraternal Order of Police has a legitimate-looking website, so possibly it's not a scam. http://www.fop.net/about/faq/index.shtml
The FAQ on their website states this:
"Q. Does the Fraternal Order of Police solicit donations via the telephone?
A. The National Fraternal Order of Police does not conduct telephone solicitations. However, some State and local FOP lodges do. If you have a question about a telephone call you received requesting that you make a donation to the FOP, please contact the local FOP lodge in your area or the FOP State Lodge in your state."
The caller identified himself as Eric Thornton on behalf of the Fraternal Order of Police, soliciting donations for <hearts, flowers, insert tear-jerking violin music here>. Sounded a tad mechanical, especially when certain phrases were repeated with the exact same intonation.
This appears to be a sophisticated computerized artificial-intelligence program that combines speech recognition with a hefty variety of possible responses including some catch-alls for when it would be stumped.
I asked if it's a real person; it said: "I'm a real person but I'm using a computer for quality-control purposes",
Described itself as "a paid fundraiser" and, when asked outright if it's a computer, replied: "Ha ha ha! Do I sound that bad?".
I asked if it could pass a turing test. It "didn't understand" at first, but after a few repeats answered "No." True enough.
I finally convinced it to say it would put me on its Do-Not-Call list. But since it's the second call I got from its ilk, I somehow doubt its sincerity...
I don't know who Eric Thornton is supposed to be, or why it seems to expect that I would.
Googling the name, I find several variants on the name (middle-names Michael or William or just "W", also Eric as the middle-name and Mark the first name) who are all registered sex offenders. If this thing calls again, I think I'll try asking why I should know his name, or what's his middle name, and is he a registered sex offender.
I live in Tampa, Florida. Got a robo call from the "Florida Troopers and Police Association." "Eric Thornton" is a computer, not a real person. Just ask "him" a nonsensical question that would upset a real person, such as "Is your mother still a meth head and how much does she charge for tricks?" A real person would get upset. A computer would respond otherwise.
Anyways, caller ID on my phone said "Unknown." I logged on my Verizon account and called up my phone logs. Hovering the mouse cursor over "unknown" revealed a phone number, (941) 205-0061. Called it back, computer answered as "Eric Thornton." I hung up.
Searched for "Florida Troopers and Police Association" and found it in Manatee, Florida. their website is http://fptadonations.org/index.html. Called their number, but it was after hours.