This is a phishing scam. Got a call and VM this morning from this number. The voicemail did a good job of making it sound like a legitimate call from American Express, with a reference number and extension. I called the actual American Express and they confirmed that this is not one of their numbers. Do not give any information to this number.
I did apply for an AMEX called a few days ago. They called and asked me to confirm the last 4 digits of my SSN and year of birth. They also mentioned that I had a fraud alert on my account (which is true, I put it on there myself). Then they told me I had been approved for my card and would receive it in 10 days or so.
It is a legit number. However, if you did NOT apply for an AMEX card, then I see how you could think it is a scam.
Caller ID showed "Unknown name"
They were calling to verify a money transfer I initiated earlier.
Not "unwanted", but I wish they would display their name.
This call was wasn't a hoax. I didn't give them any information (like SSN, etc.) and they didn't ask for it.
They told me they were asking about a transfer of $X to Y I made today and if that account was in my name.
And they asked about a second account at Z that I had linked to my American Express account and if that was in my name.
They told me X, Y, and Z which was information only American Express has.
Again, they asked me for no information other than to confirm my transfer request.
But if they did ask for information, I would have been suspicious and followed the above suggestions to call an known Amex number.
Rec'd call 6/21/2013. Didn't answer due to Caller ID = PRIVATE NAME and the "5000" looked like a spoof.
Turned out my wife had applied for an AmEx card recently so the call was probably valid. Will answer if they call again, but not give any info out. They can mail us if they need to.
The number could be used by Spoofer's though. An LA Times article reports that Caller ID spoofing is on the rise. Shady companies who somehow know how to do it perform the task, for a fee, any name, any number.
It's against federal law to use spoofing for fraud but perfectly OK to use it, like to fool your friends. The charge to you would be a little over $10 for the service the article says.
801-945-5000 is a legitimate AMEX number. I was on the phone with them FOREVER after dialing the 800# on the back of my card trying to get transferred to the correct department for my issue, the representative came back on the line finally and told me they were having phone issues and to give her a number where she could reach me within the next few minutes. I gave her the number and 10 minutes later, she called back from that 801 number and asked for me. She did NOT however, ask for any of my personal information. She just called back to tell me that she confirmed AMEX was having phone issues and I should try to call back within the next 24-48 hours to have my issue resolved by using the number on the back of my card.