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- Implemented by the FTC in 2003, a national list of phone numbers registered consumers who do not wish to receive telemarketing calls. The rule requires covered telemarketers to "scrub" their lists of numbers on the registry.
www.ftc.gov/news-events/topics/glossary-scams-legal-termsGlossary of Scams and Legal Terms | Federal Trade Commission
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What if a phone call is a scam?
Are international phone numbers a scam?
Are phone calls from unknown numbers a scam?
Can a phone number be used as a scam?
Apr 18, 2024 · Hang up if you suspect a scam. 2. Verify their identity before providing any information. Ask for their name and extension, hang up, and call the company/agency back using their official number. 3. Silence unknown callers on your smartphone so they go straight to voicemail (check your settings for this option). 4.
- Overview
- Most Common Scammer Area Codes
- Common Types of Phone Scams
- Protecting Yourself from Phone Scams
- Reporting Phone Scams
Constant phone calls from unknown numbers are more than just irritating. Calls from certain area codes inside and outside the US are more likely to be scams than innocent telemarketing, and answering or calling back these numbers can result in a loss of personal information or costly international calling fees. In this article, we’ll show you the most common domestic and international scam area codes to avoid answering calls from, plus the types of scams these callers use and how to protect yourself from fraud.
Ignore calls from 3-digit international area codes that are likely to be scams, including 232, 268, 284, 473, 664, 649, 767, 809, 829, 849, and 876.
Be wary of calls from unknown numbers with your own area code. These may be international caller ID spoof scams that appear local.
Sign up for the FTC’s
National Do Not Call Registry
and ask your phone provider about robocalling blocking options to reduce the number of scam calls you get.
Don’t answer unknown calls from these area codes.
While any unknown phone number can be a potential scam, certain area codes appear more commonly. If you don’t recognize a phone number with these area codes, do not answer. The caller may be trying to get personal information from you or trying to make you call an international (likely Caribbean) number and rack up costly per-minute fees. Instead, check your voicemail afterward to see if it was a legitimate caller, or Google the phone number to see if it’s associated with any known scams.
International area codes to avoid:
Grenada, Carriacou, and Petite Martinique
Domestic area codes to avoid:
If you know someone from these areas, reach out to them directly with their last known phone number, by email, or on social media to confirm if it was them who called you.
Scammers will call your phone number and hang up after the first ring to pique your curiosity and have you call the number back. These numbers are often international and come from countries that have 3-digit area codes that resemble US area codes (for example, area code 232 is from the country of Sierra Leone). If you call back, you’ll be charged fees and/or per-minute charges for calling internationally, in addition to potentially losing money or private information to the scammer.
Don’t answer or return calls from numbers you don’t recognize. Check to see if the unknown area code is international before calling back, and consider asking your phone service carrier to block outgoing international calls from your line (unless you have a legitimate need to call internationally).
Sign up for the FTC’s
National Do Not Call Registry
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) operates a database where consumers can elect not to receive telemarketing calls. This won’t stop all spam calls, but it will make them easier to identify. Most legitimate telemarketers will not contact you if you’re on the registry, meaning any unknown numbers that you see are likely to be scams.
Contact your phone service provider about scam call blocking options.
Some providers have functionalities to help identify, screen, or block scam calls from reaching your line. US carriers are already federally required to block calls with evidence of caller ID spoofing or other tampering, but they may not automatically block domestic robocalls or other scams from unchanged numbers. Contact your provider to learn about the options they offer—just be aware that these services may cost extra.
Inquire about services to stop scam texts as well, since US federal regulations about blocking scam calls do not apply to text messages.
Contact local police and your state’s consumer protection office first.
Gather all of the information related to the scam, including any phone numbers involved, and report the scam to your state’s consumer protection office (often a division of your state Attorney General’s office). If you’re not sure how to submit a complaint, search for your state’s office information using
if you lost any money, possessions, or personal information. Your local police may not be able to track down the scammer themselves, but having a report on file may support your claims to your phone service provider and other organizations like the FCC or FTC.
File a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
- Check the signs of fake online shops. You can search for a company's details on GOV.UK. This will tell you if they're a registered company or not. If you’re buying something on a site you haven't used before, spend a few minutes checking it – start by finding its terms and conditions.
- Don’t click on or download anything you don’t trust. Don’t click on or download anything you don’t trust - for example, if you get an email from a company with a strange email address.
- Be careful about giving personal information away. Some scammers try to get your personal information – for example, the name of your primary school or your National Insurance number.
- Check if your details have been shared online. Sometimes your log-in details can be made publicly available when a website is hacked. This means that someone could use your details in a scam.
Aug 9, 2023 · What is number spoofing? When you get a call to your mobile phone, the caller may be masking the original number. If so, the caller could be located just about anywhere in the world and you would never know it. Most of the spam calls you receive are likely using spoofed numbers to operate scams.
- Yes, they can! Many VoIP services, whether through paid providers or from off-the-shelf open-source tools, allow the call originator to spoof any n...
- There are several techniques available to phone scammers and telemarketers, but digitally-altered numbers using voice over internet protocol (VoIP)...
- More often than not, you can’t tell for certain that a number calling or texting you is spoofed. That said, the vast majority of phone calls coming...
- Having your number spoofed means that someone has illegitimately masked their real number (usually using VoIP services) by replacing it with your n...
- Unfortunately, you cannot. Whether your number can or cannot be spoofed is really dependent upon whether a scammer has your data and has the resour...
- Sadly, you will most likely be unable to find out who was spoofing you. Scammers just spoof one number; they spoof hundreds or thousands of numbers...
List of scams. Scams and confidence tricks are difficult to classify, because they change often and often contain elements of more than one type. Throughout this list, the perpetrator of the confidence trick is called the "con artist" or simply "artist", and the intended victim is the "mark". Particular scams are mainly directed toward elderly ...
There’s a new common scam where you might get a text or WhatsApp from a new number, telling you that they’re a friend or relative that needs money. The messages can be worryingly convincing. If in doubt, call or message the person they’re pretending to be on their old number to double check.
Jan 31, 2020 · Below are some of the most common scams that target consumers. Click here for a list of scams that target businesses. To report a scam, visit BBB.org/ScamTracker.
