This number called this morning and claimed to be a Criminal Investigations Unit and need me to call the number back as I was named as a respondent to a court action, I was to share this info with my lawyer, giving me 24-48 hrs to reply and the claim was to show cause to a restraining order. They gave me a claim/affidavit number also. The call was a programmed one, not a real person....the call ended with "Good luck with your case"!!
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.
Got the same call ... called the company that they said I owed money to .. and they had no knowledge of any charges.
I called United Asset Services back and spoke to a Deborah Thomas... I pressed them for information and they would not give me an address of their business and she was stumped on a couple other question... They are scamers and I am concerned that they have my social security number... they knew the last four digits... The account number they gave me had my first 3 digits in it... Very concerning..
She finally hung up on me after pressing them for who and where they were..
I received the same calls on a daily basis. They say the same exact thing about contacting my lawyer, 24-48 hrs, a restraining order is in affect. What can be done with this type of harassment.