They call threatening to arrest you at home or work. Speaking so fast that you can't understand the company name if you ask them to repeat they hang up on you.
They do because they can. These extortionists are very convincing, which makes their scam so successful---in addition to the fact it is next to impossible to track them down because they are either using disposable cell phones or spoofing numbers and the names of firms utilizing VOIP to make them appear they are legitimate.Your best protection against becoming another victim of these criminals is to educate yourselves with the following facts (straight from the FTC's website):
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.
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.
Report the call. Contact the FTC and your state Attorney General's office with information about suspicious callers.
yea i got the same call too they left a threaten message dont even say who it is for or anything. i'm going to record it and give it to my lawyer so he can look into it.It's agianst the law to threaten people in any form you have to send them a court date in a letter postal and prove it. But they are in trouble for that. So im going to send that to my lawyer.
GOT THE SAME DAMN SCENERIO TODAY. Just got my phone number two weeks ago so no one has it and I don't have any type of debt in collections. You must be served law suit papers or any other type of court papers. So the court and petitioner know you recieved the papers along with court dates, and to give you a chance to reply to them.
Tell the caller to cease and desist. This is an order or request to halt an activity (cease) and not to take it up again later (desist) or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization. Cease-and-desist letters are also known as "infringement letters" or "demand letters".[1]