Do NOT Return That Call

Phishing Calls May Leave International Call Back Numbers:
Do NOT Return that Scam Call

Today, I received an old scam call with a new twist.  The caller ID showed 833-539-8666, and when I let the call go to voicemail, I received the following message:

Attention this is from Social Security Administration to inform you that your social security number is going to be suspended for committing some fraudulent and suspicious activity. Please call 335-309-8666.  Thank you.

So I googled the callback number. The first page of Google results were all in Chinese characters.

Further along, one of the search results related to tracing a phone number in Japan. Another was in Italian.

In other words, it is quite likely that the callback number left was NOT a US-based phone number.  Had I actually returned the call, I would have likely incurred large International calling fees.

This type of scam phishing call is becoming more common.  If they cannot scam you out of money by scaring you, they can scam you out of money by having you make an expensive call.

A lot of folks, particularly those of "older generations," feel compelled to return every call, especially if the caller left a message.  The bad guys know this, and they will prey upon these proclivities.

A 2018 study showed a drastic increase in mobile scam calls. In 2017,  3.7% of calls were spam. That rose to 29.2% in 2018, and is projected to reach 44.6% by early 2019.  Personally, about 80% of the cell phone calls I receive are spam calls.  Phone screening call apps cannot keep their databases up to date, as the scammers frequently spoof legitimate numbers and employ hundreds of new ones every day.

The best thing to do is to NOT answer calls from numbers not already in your Contacts. If you must answer, merely hang up once you determine the call to be a scam call. I do NOT recommend you "play" with the scammers, as they may take "revenge" for you wasting their time. In fact, you may suffer from an increase in phishing calls and e-mails as a result.

Also, do not call back numbers just because you see missed calls in your "Recent" list. If the caller did NOT leave a message, chances are it was a scam caller.  And do NOT feel compelled to return calls just because the caller left a message.  They have NOT suspended your Social Security number, there is no warrant out for your arrest that can be stopped with phone payments, and no one is really performing [insert service here] in your neighborhood.  Returning such calls just confirms to the scammers that they have reached a patsy, and generally just results in more phishing attempts.

And you may find yourself with a HUGE phone bill if you return the wrong call.