Vocal Voices

Or are things made up?

The news services have been running stories about phone scams costing us £millions. The BBC's version featured a couple who looked quite ordinary in their well decorated living room.

The story went that their "Bank" phoned them to say that it was suspected their bank cards had been hacked. He then, for security purposes, gave them a number to ring their "bank" to have the problem checked. They ring* the number and another voice answers. For security purposes he asks them for the first line of their address and then their postcode. He confirms that their answers are correct and then tells them to try to enter their account by entering the PIN on the phone key pad. This apparently does not work and confirms the hack of their card. Now he tells them that XYZ couriers will be round to collect their hacked card and that a new one will be in the post, but, he warns them, they must check the driver's ID.

Not long after XYZ couriers are at the door, they check his ID and hand over their cards. A few days later they find themselves lighter by £1,800.

It might be me, but I cannot believe that anyone sensible enough to have a bank account would fall for such rubbish. I am more inclined to believe that this is a made up scenario.

*Ring back. It is an age old trick on landlines, especially cordless phones. I ring you and tell you to ring another number. You hang up but I don't - this keeps the connection open. You put in the number on you phone's key pad and hear the blips as each number is entered, but by the time you get the phone to your ear I am either playing a dial up tone or I answer straight away. You did not 'ring' a new number you simply carried on our conversation from before.

I also am amazed that people are still being scammed in this way.

We are constantly told in all forms of media that this sort of thing is a scam. Do these people not read the papers/watch TV/go on the Internet/listen to the radio. (Though I can understand how the elderly can be vulnerable to this sort of thing - just not how the "normal" person is taken in).

As I am now living in a retirement lodge, I am in frequent contact with many people in the 60 - 90 year age range,
and have come to the conclusion that probably the majority of them would be quite likely to fall for this type of
scam. Thank heaven, although I am one of the eldest of them, I have not yet 'lost my marbles'. and I don't intend
to, but many of them won't do anything positive to keep their brains in working order. So, the report that these
scammers are being so successful does not surprise me in the least.

I'm afraid it doesn't surprise me either. I think the thing is that it's an unexpected phone call in an uneventful day, you're swept along by the drama of it, and you've been caught out before you're aware of what's going down. One of the most crucial pieces of advice in that press release today is to wait five minutes, gather your thoughts together, and then you'll remember the advice to phone your bank using another phone ....

Another problem is that it's accepted practice for your bank to phone you if they note anything suspicious on your account, and that is of course the scammers' opening gambit. How can we get around that?

Another problem is that it's accepted practice for your bank to phone you if they note anything suspicious on your account, and that is of course the scammers' opening gambit. How can we get around that?

That fact is what bothers me too Os, Barclaycard make a habit of it, the latest one being when we paid for B's forthcoming African trip......

I think these scammers deliberately target the old and vulnerable, so I can also see how it might happen Mick and I both are always telling D to be careful, to ignore such and such phone call or email, but last week she told me she'd had a saleswoman at the house, who stayed for 3 hours, trying to sell her a shiatsu massage chair! The opening gambit was a phone call asking her if she'd agree to fill in a sleep diary, which she thought would be interesting, and then this woman turned up trying to sell massage beds and chairs!

To be fair D didn't feel at all harassed, in fact she enjoyed the chat etc, but relating some of the conversation to me, I could see she was being subject to quite a hard sell! She was tempted but luckily didn't sign anything, and I think M and I have managed to talk her out of it

Unbelievable that anyone sane could fall for a cold call or email scam. I like to play along with them and give phoney bank details. The best was a chum from Ghana who reckoned a relative had died on a flight and had left some money with him that he wanted to send to me. He had the name right too and it was true that this did occur though the source of the flight was wrong. We exchanged several jolly -for me - emails before he realised I was on to him.

Most people are trusting; some are a bit dim as well mind you.