The "I am calling you from Windows" telephone scam

#11
My wife fielded one of these calls a few weeks ago while I was at work. First she asked them how it was that they could see anything inside our computer.
"Isn't that illegal?" she asked.
After some mumbo-jumbo about Microsoft Licensing allowing such, he tried again. Since my wife's computer skills are limited to opening the icons on the desktop and using those applications, she told them that they would have to talk to her "IT guy".
"Just give me your phone number and I'll have him call you when he's free," she requested.
"OK, it's 606-555-123..." he responded.
Mrs. Icy counters with, "But that's only nine numbers, I need ten."
<click>

Since we are on the do not call list, almost all calls that are not from charities or politicians get an immediate, impolite, hang up. We have caller ID and don't answer the phone if we don't have the number in our database. If you are on the Do Not Call list and are still bombarded, try this:

Download the SIT (Service Interrupted Tone)
Start recording your answering machine message
Play the SIT (doo-doo-doo, you don't need the words)
Record your standard greeting

Auto-dialing bots hear the SIT after your phone goes off-hook, hang-up, and mark your number as non-working. In a couple of weeks, all of the autodial databases that get passed around and sold will have your number down as not in service.

No more unwanted calls. It works! I do it for a couple of weeks when the calls get too frequent.
 

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Scott Catron

True Artisan
Super Moderator
#12
If you are on the Do Not Call list and are still bombarded, try this:

Download the SIT (Service Interrupted Tone)
Start recording your answering machine message
Play the SIT (doo-doo-doo, you don't need the words)
Record your standard greeting

Auto-dialing bots hear the SIT after your phone goes off-hook, hang-up, and mark your number as non-working. In a couple of weeks, all of the autodial databases that get passed around and sold will have your number down as not in service.

No more unwanted calls. It works! I do it for a couple of weeks when the calls get too frequent.
Will this affect robo-calls from a school district or reverse-911 calls?
 

Wes Bucey

Quite Involved in Discussions
#13
My wife fielded one of these calls a few weeks ago while I was at work. First she asked them how it was that they could see anything inside our computer.
"Isn't that illegal?" she asked.
After some mumbo-jumbo about Microsoft Licensing allowing such, he tried again. Since my wife's computer skills are limited to opening the icons on the desktop and using those applications, she told them that they would have to talk to her "IT guy".
"Just give me your phone number and I'll have him call you when he's free," she requested.
"OK, it's 606-555-123..." he responded.
Mrs. Icy counters with, "But that's only nine numbers, I need ten."
<click>

Since we are on the do not call list, almost all calls that are not from charities or politicians get an immediate, impolite, hang up. We have caller ID and don't answer the phone if we don't have the number in our database. If you are on the Do Not Call list and are still bombarded, try this:

Download the SIT (Service Interrupted Tone)
Start recording your answering machine message
Play the SIT (doo-doo-doo, you don't need the words)
Record your standard greeting

Auto-dialing bots hear the SIT after your phone goes off-hook, hang-up, and mark your number as non-working. In a couple of weeks, all of the autodial databases that get passed around and sold will have your number down as not in service.

No more unwanted calls. It works! I do it for a couple of weeks when the calls get too frequent.
That would be cool EXCEPT my wife and I each get important calls we do not want to miss nor do we want to confuse some elderly relative who hears the warning sound.
 
#14
Will this affect robo-calls from a school district or reverse-911 calls?
Nope. You have subscribed to the school database. They don't take you out unless you ask. Reverse-911's generally wait for the beep then leave a message. 911 deals with power out, lines down, etc. all the time. They don't remove you from their database for an SIT, either.
That would be cool EXCEPT my wife and I each get important calls we do not want to miss nor do we want to confuse some elderly relative who hears the warning sound.
It gives my mother-in-law fits!:lol:
 
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