In case you haven't heard there's a new scam in town. The phone rings, you answer, and it's the acme Free Prize Draw (or whatever) - it invites you to press 9 to find out if you've won. If you do you are transferred without warning to a premium-rate line chargeing £20 per minute (yes, really) with a minimum billing period of five minutes (yes, really). If you persist to the end the total bill will be £250, and you will be told "sorry, you are not one of the lucky winners."
The scam is operated offshore, opportunities for redress are apparently strictly limited.
This information came from Thames Valley Police at Reading via their Ringmaster system. It is possible it's a hoax, but if so it's a clever one.
In case you haven't heard there's a new scam in town. The phone rings, you answer, and it's the acme Free Prize Draw (or whatever) - it invites you to press 9 to find out if you've won. If you do you are transferred without warning to a premium-rate line chargeing £20 per minute (yes, really) with a minimum billing period of five minutes (yes, really). If you persist to the end the total bill will be £250, and you will be told "sorry, you are not one of the lucky winners."
The scam is operated offshore, opportunities for redress are apparently strictly limited.
This information came from Thames Valley Police at Reading via their Ringmaster system. It is possible it's a hoax, but if so it's a clever one.
The scam is an urban myth. Please don't forward the warning any further.
In case you haven't heard there's a new scam in town. The phone rings, you answer, and it's the acme Free Prize Draw (or whatever) - it invites you to press 9 to find out if you've won. If you do you are transferred without warning to a premium-rate line chargeing £20 per minute (yes, really) with a minimum billing period of five minutes (yes, really). If you persist to the end the total bill will be £250, and you will be told "sorry, you are not one of the lucky winners."
The scam is operated offshore, opportunities for redress are apparently strictly limited.
This information came from Thames Valley Police at Reading via their Ringmaster system. It is possible it's a hoax, but if so it's a clever one.
Guy, Guy! It just goes to show, you don't need Mr Gates' software for a virus to propagate - it justs needs a human co-processor to hit the appropriate buttons and the hoax message is copied to all the addresses in your address book.
Its a hoax, and no more clever than any other. Its been doing the rounds for years. It just needs people to believe without checking to propagate
If it is a hoax its VERY close to what happened to me the other night - about 9ish i had a call - was a recorded message telling me i had won a prize. I didnt stay on long enough to see if there was a "press 9" option but it is VERY similar!
In article <[email hidden]>, one of infinite monkeys
at the keyboard of 'Just zis Guy said:
As I said it might be - it has all the usual hallmarks. It did, however, come from the Thames Valley Police Ringmaster system
AIUI, no it didn't, it just appeared to. At least that's what the person they interviewed on the BBC said - though (as usual) I was only half-listening.
-- Finally, someone takes a stand against Humbug. Three cheers for Austrian shop workers!
"Tony Raven" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
Quoted message said:
This information came from Thames Valley Police at Reading via their Ringmaster system. It is possible it's a hoax, but if so it's a clever
one.
Quoted message said:
Its a hoax, and no more clever than any other. Its been doing the rounds
for
Quoted message said:
years. It just needs people to believe without checking to propagate
As I said it might be - it has all the usual hallmarks. It did, however, come from the Thames Valley Police Ringmaster system (we are on the Neighbourhood Watch list, it was us who got the call not a FOAF) so it's evidently a good enough hoax to fool the local Busies. They didn't fall for the "LSD in the tattoo transfers" one, as the headteacher of our school did, so they are not completely clueless.
"Colin Blackburn" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
The scam is an urban myth. Please don't forward the warning any further.
You can fool some of the people all of the time. Given the source I believed it! I didn't think to check ICSTIS but I did Google without finding anything.
If it is a hoax its VERY close to what happened to me the other night - about 9ish i had a call - was a recorded message telling me i had won a prize. I didnt stay on long enough to see if there was a "press 9" option but it is VERY similar!
There are a wide range of phone scams around winning lotteries, holidays or prizes but they all work by you sending them money. As the ICSTIS press release says that someone else posted the link to, the press 9 one is a hoax
If it is a hoax its VERY close to what happened to me the other night - about 9ish i had a call - was a recorded message telling me i had won a prize. I didnt stay on long enough to see if there was a "press 9" option but it is VERY similar!
Could have been that Canadian one that's getting all the Grannies at the moment...
Cheers,
-- bob [at] bobarnott [dot] com bobarnott.combobarnott.comOpen ↗ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Crash programs fail because they are based on theory that, with nine women pregnant, you can get a baby in a month." -- Wernher von Braun
"Colin Blackburn" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
The scam is an urban myth. Please don't forward the warning any further.
You can fool some of the people all of the time. Given the source I believed it! I didn't think to check ICSTIS but I did Google without finding anything.
I believe it probably originates as a variant on the 90# hoax/scam in the US which had some element of truth behind it. Most of the time it did nothing but on some business exchanges you were effectively dialling 9 for an outside line, 0 for an operator and # to transfer the caller to the line where they could then place a long distance/international call on your account
As I said it might be - it has all the usual hallmarks. It did, however, come from the Thames Valley Police Ringmaster system (we are on the Neighbourhood Watch list, it was us who got the call not a FOAF) so it's evidently a good enough hoax to fool the local Busies.
No surprise there really. Its not the first hoax I've had passed on by the well meaning police. Wiltshire Police got caught worse - theregister.co.uk34389.htmlOpen ↗
On Wed, 10 Dec 2003 18:08:11 +0000, [email hidden] (Nick
Kew) said:
AIUI, no it didn't, it just appeared to. At least that's what the person they interviewed on the BBC said - though (as usual) I was only half-listening.
"This - is - the - Reading - Police - Ringmaster - system. Please - enter - your - PIN"
Either it was genuine or they hired Roni Ancona to do the voice ;-)
In message <[email hidden]>, Tony Raven <[email hidden]> writes
Quoted message said:
Lee said:
If it is a hoax its VERY close to what happened to me the other night - about 9ish i had a call - was a recorded message telling me i had won a prize. I didnt stay on long enough to see if there was a "press 9" option but it is VERY similar!
There are a wide range of phone scams around winning lotteries, holidays or prizes but they all work by you sending them money. As the ICSTIS press release says that someone else posted the link to, the press 9 one is a hoax
Had one yesterday morning. If you stay on the line they do ask you to call a premium rate number to see what you've won, at 1.90 or whatever it is a minute, and the call will last no more than 11 minutes. Didn't take em up on the offer though.
It just appears to be the cold calling version of those scatchcards you get in magazines.
"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
"Tony Raven" <[email hidden]> wrote in message -"]news:[email hidden]- berlin.de...
Quoted message said:
Quoted message said:
This information came from Thames Valley Police at Reading via their Ringmaster system. It is possible it's a hoax, but if so it's a
clever
Quoted message said:
one.
Quoted message said:
Its a hoax, and no more clever than any other. Its been doing the
rounds
Quoted message said:
for
Quoted message said:
years. It just needs people to believe without checking to propagate
As I said it might be - it has all the usual hallmarks. It did, however, come from the Thames Valley Police Ringmaster system (we are on the Neighbourhood Watch list, it was us who got the call not a FOAF) so it's evidently a good enough hoax to fool the local Busies. They didn't fall
for
Quoted message said:
the "LSD in the tattoo transfers" one, as the headteacher of our school
did,
Quoted message said:
so they are not completely clueless.
-- Guy ===
LSD in tattoo transfers?!!?....warra brilliant idea!!...where can you get them then ??? ;-) DaVe ('strippy man)
