posted on February 19, 2003 10:26:36 AM new
90 # on the telephone
PASS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW
I received a telephone call last evening from an individual identifying himself as an AT&T Service technician who was conducting a test on telephone lines. He stated that to complete the test I should touch nine(9), zero(0),
the pound sign (#), and then hang up.
Luckily, I was suspicious and refused.
Upon contacting the telephone company, I was informed that by pushing 90#, you give the requesting individual full access to your telephone line, which enables them to place long distance calls billed to your home phone number.
I was further informed that this scam has been originating from many local jails/prisons. I have also verified this information with UCB Telecom,Pacific Bell, MCI, Bell Atlantic and GTE. Please beware.
DO NOT press 90# for ANYONE.
The GTE Security Department requested that I share this
information with EVERYONE I KNOW.
PLEASE pass this on to everyone YOU know.
If you have mailing lists and/or newsletters from organizations you are connected with, I encourage you to pass on this information to them.
After checking with Verizon they said it was true, so do not dial (9),zero(0), the pound sign # and hang up for anyone.
posted on February 19, 2003 10:43:07 AM new
Yep, I got that email too.
www.snopes.com says it's sort of true.
Is this scam possible? Technically, yes. This trick can work with business phone systems or switchboards where pressing '9' is the signal to obtain an outside line, and where there are no restrictions placed on outgoing calls. (As many of us know, our employers' phone systems are often configured to prevent us from making long-distance calls from our desks.) We can't give any more definitive information than to say that this is possible, since there are so many different types of phone systems all throughout the USA and the rest of the world.
Do you, as the average residential or cell phone customer (in the USA, at least), have to worry about this scam? No, not unless your home phone requires you to press '9' to obtain an outside line. Otherwise, the only result you'll obtain from trying this is likely to be a fast busy signal. However, this isn't to say you shouldn't be wary of phone scams at all. Telecommunications fraud is a rather unfortunate, yet common, occurrence in today's high-tech age, and there are many ways that someone can run up your phone bill without your knowledge. This particular scam is usually directed towards businesses, government agencies, and universities. It is known as "social engineering," where a caller convinces you that they work for the phone company (usually AT&T or your local Bell company) and somehow gets connected to an outside line, where they can run up significant charges. Every phone system is slightly different, and it takes a different combination of numbers to be able to transfer a crook into high long distance bills.
posted on February 19, 2003 10:43:43 AM new
::I was further informed that this scam has been originating from many local jails/prisons.::
I have no doubt of the scam but this part is strange to me. Wouldn't the recording stating that you are recieving a collect call from whosiewhatsit prison, please press 1 to accept charges be a tip-off?
[ edited by neonmania on Feb 19, 2003 10:46 AM ]
posted on February 19, 2003 11:09:13 AM new
Linda - thanks for the link. What it does not address is the fact that inmates cannot direct dial out. They can only make collect calls.
When you receive a call from an inmate you get a recoding that in different vriations states "You are receiving a collect call from (insert inmates name), an inmate at (insert jail/prison name), if you wish to accept the charges please press 1"
I would think that this opening would be a dead giveaway something fishy was up when said inmate then informed you they were a phone company employee
posted on February 19, 2003 10:02:13 PM new
Were you aware of the fact that telemarketing companies often use prisoners to do the calling? I wouldn't be at all surprised if, between their "legit" calls, some prisoners slip in a few of their own. Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
posted on February 19, 2003 10:39:07 PM new
::Were you aware of the fact that telemarketing companies often use prisoners to do the calling? I wouldn't be at all surprised if, between their "legit" calls, some prisoners slip in a few of their own.::
They are taking incoming calls, cannot dial out. Considering that they are often taking check and credit card info. Phone do not have outgoing capabilities to avoid info from being given to friends/associates etc.
"Utah officials are considering whether to stop using prisoners to make telemarketing calls and answer phones after complaints that it gives inmates improper access to personal information and puts citizens at risk.
The prison system currently hires out inmates to man information lines for the state’s commerce and travel agencies, and to make telemarketing calls for a family-oriented video company."
"Other states also use inmates to take or make phone calls involving the public, Utah officials said"
"The chatty telemarketer started flirting with the 14-year-old girl moments after she answered the phone.
He wanted to know all about the Mesquite teen: her looks, her birthday, her astrological sign. He asked about her boyfriend and called her "sweetie."
He never mentioned he was a jailed convict. And within days, the telemarketer from SandStar Family Entertainment -- aka Derrick Cramer, inmate No. 21548 -- sold the girl's personal information to a fellow inmate at Utah State Prison."
"Telemarketers Behind Bars. Gold Domers got a good laugh last week when they took up legislation proposed by the Colorado Department of Corrections to help build the telemarketing skills of prisoners.
In the words of the Denver Post, the bill would have had, “Colorado murderers, rapists and thieves… calling people in other states to sell them magazine subscriptions.”
Both the House and Senate voted it down, amidst a chorus of guffaws, thinking it absurd to have prison-striped telemarketers interrupting dinners across America."
Censorship, like charity, should begin at home; but unlike charity, it should end there --Clare Booth Luce
posted on February 19, 2003 11:40:42 PM new
Thanks for the clarification. Last I heard, although many were still engaged in contracts with catalog companies taking incoming calls, after a rash of and fear of further abuses, outgoing call systems and contracts were being stopped.
I am curious as to why if they can already make outgoing calls they would need to attempt to hijack someone elses phone lines.
BTW - did anyone notice that this warning was explained on an urban myth site?
posted on February 21, 2003 07:58:29 AM new
I would suspect that the outgoing calls are made using auto-dialers that are preloaded with a phone number database. I believe most telemarketing operations use this now, as it's faster, more efficient (there's no way to misdial a number) and discourages personal phone calling.
That said, I am absolutely opposed to prison labor being used in any kind of telemarketing/CS effort.
