One-ring Scam Prompts Caution From Business Bureau, Officials

Posted by: Perry Smith in Sheriff News February 3, 2014 - 4:11 pm 0 127 Views

The “one-ring scam,” a new digital deception that could result in a costly phone charge, is now targeting Santa Clarita Valley residents, according to reports.

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The perpetrators are using auto-dialing computer programs to make phone calls all over the country, according to an NBC report.

“If you feel you’ve been a victim of the phone scam, then you should go to ic3.gov, and contact your cellphone company,” said Deputy Josh

Better Business Bureau officials recently sent out a news release warning people of the scam.

In the most recent scam, the scammers let the phone ring once — just enough to cause a missed call message to pop up on victims’ phones — and then hang up, the news report read.

Victims who call the number back are connected to a paid “adult entertainment service” located overseas.

Those unlucky callers are generally charged a $19.95 international call fee up front, plus $9 or more per minute for the unwanted “service.” (In some cases, the scammers charge only a few bucks to the victim’s bill to avoid suspicion.)

The BBB said the scam calls usually come from outside the United States, including from numbers with area codes 268, 809, 876, 284 and 473.

The BBB recommended that consumers ignore incoming or missed calls from out-of-state phone numbers that they don’t recognize, and carefully check cell phone bills.

If you’re really tempted to call back that number, at least pop the digits into Google first.

Sites like whocalled.us track complaints and questions about calls from specific numbers, while other online directories can tell in which town and state the phone number is registered.

There’s also a National Do Not Call Directory, although this does not guarantee that the phone scammers will not be able to access your number.

Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days, according to the website. If they do, a resident can file a complaint at the link listed above. Registering a home or mobile phone number is free.

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.