Please beware. They called me said they were Litigation Services collecting for Citibank Mastercard. Number was 323-300-5792 ext 223, man's name was Steve Cash. Gave me a Mastercard number said I owed $15K. Said I had to pay at least a third of it by tomorrow before it went to court. Had all my info, address, phone and SOCIAL!!!!! What the heck?!?! I don't have anything EVER from Citibank on my credit report. I called them and they said the account number Steve Cash gave me doesn't exist and never did!!!! I'm terrified of what they are going to do next. Have to report it with the district attorney in the morning and have added a fraud tag to my credit report and set it to notify me of any activity. Any other suggestions of how to better protect myself from what they might do?
Consumers across the country report that they're getting telephone calls from people trying to collect on loans the consumers never received or on loans they did receive but for amounts they do not owe. Others are receiving calls from people seeking to recover on loans consumers received but where the creditors never authorized the callers to collect for them. So what's the story?
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, is warning consumers to be on the alert for scam artists posing as debt collectors. It may be hard to tell the difference between a legitimate debt collector and a fake one. Sometimes a fake collector may even have some of your personal information, like a bank account number. A caller may be a fake debt collector if he:
is seeking payment on a debt for a loan you do not recognize;
refuses to give you a mailing address or phone number;
asks you for personal financial or sensitive information; or
exerts high pressure to try to scare you into paying, such as threatening to have you arrested or to report you to a law enforcement agency.
If you think that a caller may be a fake debt collector:
Ask the caller for his name, company, street address, and telephone number. Tell the caller that you refuse to discuss any debt until you get a written "validation notice." The notice must include the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor you owe, and your rights under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
If a caller refuses to give you all of this information, do not pay! Paying a fake debt collector will not always make them go away. They may make up another debt to try to get more money from you.
Stop speaking with the caller. If you have the caller's address, send a letter demanding that the caller stop contacting you, and keep a copy for your files. By law, real debt collectors must stop calling you if you ask them to in writing.
Do not give the caller personal financial or other sensitive information. Never give out or confirm personal financial or other sensitive information like your bank account, credit card, or Social Security number unless you know whom you're dealing with. Scam artists, like fake debt collectors, can use your information to commit identity theft – charging your existing credit cards, opening new credit card, checking, or savings accounts, writing fraudulent checks, or taking out loans in your name.
Contact your creditor. If the debt is legitimate – but you think the collector may not be – contact your creditor about the calls. Share the information you have about the suspicious calls and find out who, if anyone, the creditor has authorized to collect the debt.
Report the call. Contact the FTC and your state Attorney General's office with information about suspicious callers. Many states have their own debt collection laws in addition to the federal FDCPA. Your Attorney General's office can help you determine your rights under your state's law.
Also good info at the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau:
http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/1699/h ... legitimate.html
According to another post before you these scammers are checking victims facebook accounts.If you have FB or twitter or linkedin or other social media you want to make those private and remove all posted information such as employers or schools these types of debt scammers usually start calling everywhere trying to harass victims into paying to stop the calls.Inform your family and friends you are the target of scammers and to immediately hang up if receiving any suspicious calls regarding you and to release no information.
An individual names Karen Gier called my aunts home threatening her about a debt that belongs to a relative. The name on the called ID was Litigation Services (323) 300-5792 ext 221. She was aking for social security number and saying they came to the house with a warrant but no one was home. They also gave her a phony court docket number. In all they pretty much spooked her and I'm glad she didn't give out any information. I hope to answer the phone and give them an "ear full". Shameful tactics these people use
This is a total debt scamming operation. Do not pay them anything. Do not give them any information. Block their calls.
Just because a voice on the telephone claims you owe a debt does not mean you owe it
If a voice on the telephone claims you owe a debt:
1. Demand the person give you his or her name, company name, and address
2. Demand a debt validation letter by US mail. E-mail no good.
3. Do not pay the collection agent or anyone else a DIME until the debt is validated.
Of course they won’t do this, no scammer ever will, so simply block their calls and ignore them.
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0149-debt-collection (Threatening arrest or criminal process in order to collect a civil debt is a clear violation of the Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act)
Also contact your local attorney general
If they continue to bother you, and you know you do not owe any money, tell them that you know this is a debt scam and that you are making a complaint to the police for extortion. You might have to yell at the scammer and talk over him or her. Once you get a copy of the police report and they call you again , just read out the file number and the name of the PD or Sheriff’s office involved. Tell them you’ll be glad to send a copy to them at whatever address the jack***es are working out of now.