8-30-2014...Got a call this afternoon at 1:57pm from 323-144-1605...I answered by saying...Hello...but no one said anything...I then said, Hello...Hello...Hello & then I hung up...No one ever said anything. What is probably happening is that the people calling (spammers), are trying to find out if my number is a working number & then they will call back again. I called this number back & I have had this number before. When I called this number to try to find out who it is, a recording comes on saying that "This number is not a working number". That's a definite sign that this is a "spam" caller which is someone trying to steal people's credit card numbers & your identity.
I read a message from another website posting that someone got a call & the person wanted to renew his Ebony magazine subscription. This person did in fact "used to have an Ebony magazine subscription 2 years ago but let it expire & never renewed it. This person said they needed his "checking account number" so they could renew his subscription. He was smart enough not to give it out & ask the scam caller to provide him with his subscription number or an invoice number so he could verify the info that he had in his files. The scammer said he doesn't have an invoice number or any of that info & he would need to give it all to him again. He then ask the scammer to email any info he had & he would look into it. The scammer immediately hung up.
The scammer was scared off but don't be fooled. In a few days or a couple of weeks or a month or two down the line, that same phone number will call again try a different scam & will be either the same person calling or they will in many cases, have someone else or a family member call you back with a different scam.
A good rule of thumb, never buy/purchase anything over the phone. Know the number that is calling you. And remember, never, never, never give out any information on yourself or a family member. If a company is calling you to try to get you to renew a subscription, they already know your credit card number & information etc...No one will ask you for your credit card number, social security number, address etc., because they already have it on record...& if you are in a place where you have to give any personal info about yourself & there are people directly behind you that is close enough that they can hear you give out your info, ask them kindly to please step back while you take care of your business because it's between the cashier & yourself & not the persons behind you.
So be careful out there...the world is filled with scammers & crooks who don't care about you & will take you for everything you have & not even flinch!
I received a call this morning (08/26/2014) from a young man wanting to discuss my Ebony subscription. I listened carefully because I knew I had let my Ebony subscription expire a few years ago. He recited my name and address and mentioned that he would like to still provide me with the same $19.99 per year subscription that I had been having for the past few years. I allowed him to talk. Then he said he wanted to confirm my bank account information in order to continue the subscription and that he would give me time to retrieve my checkbook. So, I said - okay. Please recite my banking account information. He then said, "Oh, I don't have it - I need for you to provide it TO me." I then told him that I was uncomfortable doing that and asked him if he could send me an invoice. He then told me that they don't invoice. I then asked him if he could send me an electronic invoice via e-mail. That is when he hung up on me. BEWARE OF THE SCAM!