I got an automated call just now from the telephone number 888-249-9735. The recording said it was from Sprint. The message stated that our wireless service was reading its "spending limit", and that to avoid "service interruption", which would occur within 48 hours, we needed to make a payment. It asked me to put in my billing zip code, and then to make an automated payment, at which point I hung up.
If this is a scam, it's a pretty clever one. I almost believed it for a second, because Sean does make a lot of long-distance calls. But there are several fishy things about the situation.
The phone number is unlisted on whitepages.com, and I don't see it on Sprint's website. Sean just paid our Sprint bill. Also, my number is not the primary line on our account; you'd think Sprint would deliver such a message to Sean's phone. And how could we reach a "spending limit" when we have unlimited night and weekend minutes and no long distance or roaming charges? :>
The most telling thing is this: there was no way for me to confirm that the caller was actually with Sprint. I had two options when they asked me to make the payment: either make one immediately, or put the line on hold to gather my account information and then make the payment immediately. There were no "We'll call you back later" or "Call us back later" or "Make your payment online" options.
I told Sean about it so he could check our account just in case, but I'm pretty sure this is a scam. I hope people are smart enough not to make payments to people who call them randomly on the phone.
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Yes, I'd be even more cautious if I were you, just because of this blog alone.
What do you mean?
Is 888 like a premium billing area code or something? Like they get you to stay on the line and charge at a premium rate, where they get a substantial cut of the call charge?
The other thing we sometimes get is automated calls telling us we have won a cruise / lottery etc.
No, 888 is like 800 and 877, toll-free. (I think 866 is like that too now, but I'm not sure...)
I've gotten automated telemarketer calls before. This particular call began with a message that went something like, "This is Sprint Customer Service with important information about your account. Please note that this is not a marketing call."
Well, I mean, I guess a con artist could get the idea to go around getting personal info off of people's blogs, then using it to their advantage. I wouldn't change the blog, I'd just stick to being cautious the way you were when you get wierd phone calls.
Oh, sure.
Since I happen to work in the business I thought I'd share my little light on it (I work for the competitor Verizon, in their offline corrispondence department):
1) usually when you get a call from us (us being verizon, a big celluar phone company) its usually from a blocked number. Why do you ask? Well, because we're not all hooked up to the same landbased phone, we, the reps, have to dial a '9' to get an outside line before calling you. Since these numbers are generated rather than permenant, it often isn't registered by caller ID and therefore appears blocked.
2) The offical speal of a token Verizon wireless call is this:
"Hello my name is [isert rep name] and i'm calling with verizon wireless, your cell phone provider. This message is for [customer]. We're calling your today because a) we recieved a bill statement back from the post office due to a possible invalid address (my department) b) we recieved your card declined due to insuffient funds (financial dept) c) to inform you that your past due balance has exceeded 120 days (collections) this is our [1st or last] attempt to contact you regarding this matter. Please call our offices at [plug in 800 number, my dept is 866-867-9973] by [within 48 hours (if 1st) or 9pm tonight(last attempt)] to avoid any possible service interruptions [ie. a "hotlined" phone in my dept., a suspended phone in the other two]. We thank you for choosing [Verizon Wireless] and have a great day."
Now, this is where things get fishy. A lot of scams go off without a hitch because the crook knows the verbage to make it sound legit. In my deptartment, once you're talking to a rep like me, you'll be asked for things like your zip and the last 4 digits of your SSN (freaks people out usually). That's actually legit because thats our security measure to make sure you are YOU. However, there are other ways to make sure, as in asking what was your last balance and due date on your bill. or you requesting a different passcode other than your SSN.
I don't know how sprint does it (I can find out, their reps work within our company AFNI. Although i don't think its an automated message. I'll double check with someone at work, and i"ll make another post about it)
My advice, its good to be skeptical and cauious. When in doubt, ask to speak to a person or (if with a person) to speak with a supervisor. Take down names. always ask for a customer service number (for sprint its *2 on your mobile I think) If you really think its fishy, tell them you'll call back, and call the known cust service number (*2) and ask about your account that way.
888-249-9735 is the billing department at Spint. Call it, it's not rocket science.
Uh oh, someone set the course for Heatonia!
I got the 888 call today! I called back from a landline and they said they were with "Sprint Cellular" and asked for my phone number. I asked the lady (she had a major 'tude) what it was about and she insisted that I give her my number first. I asked where she was and she said Canada. I called Sprint and gave them the details, they are going to let me know what is up. They seem to believe that it is a scam as well because Sprint Reps should call you by name and they aren't located in Canda
Hey everyone,
We received 4 of these calls today from the same 888 number and finally called Sprint's billing department. The looked into the account and noticed there was no activity noted (they enter notes each time you call) and no reason to pursue collections procedures.
After a little bit of research by the Sprint analyst they learned that this is a known issue and they have had multiple reports. They apologized for the inconvenience, but they are working to figure out what's going on. At this time, they do not know where it's coming from or who's behind it. They can only verify that it is NOT Sprint. Of course they stated to not give ANYONE your information and to contact the customer service center by hitting *2 from your PCS phone if you have any questions.
FYI: We are in Houston and have sprint telephone number 281-300-XXXX
Thanks for the info, Anonymous and Lori!
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