Scam Calls Targeting the Bereaved: Charity Pledges and Gift Card Demands

[NY_Dutch]

I hadn't heard of this scam until I experienced it. My wife of 61 years passed away the day after Christmas. Since then, I've received four phone calls from people claiming she had pledged several hundred dollars to some obscure charity, and hadn't sent the money as promised. So my first clue was the obscure charity. My second clue was that I've managed our finances since we married, and while she might drop $25 or so into a collection canister for the local animal shelter without mentioning it to me, several hundred would have certainly involved a discussion. Third clue was the offer to talk me through getting the... wait for it... yep, Walmart gift cards to pay the pledge. Like the earlier calls, he hung up midway through my telling him exactly what I thought of him. There are definitely some sick people out there.

 

[Domo]

Evil has no boundaries regarding methods and preying on victims.

 

[Seilerbird]

There are no new scams. It is the same old one done over and over.

 

[jymbee]

I hadn't heard of this scam until I experienced it. My wife of 61 years passed away the day after Christmas. Since then, I've received four phone calls from people claiming she had pledged several hundred dollars to some obscure charity, and hadn't sent the money as promised. So my first clue was the obscure charity. My second clue was that I've managed our finances since we married, and while she might drop $25 or so into a collection canister for the local animal shelter without mentioning it to me, several hundred would have certainly involved a discussion. Third clue was the offer to talk me through getting the... wait for it... yep, Walmart gift cards to pay the pledge. Like the earlier calls, he hung up midway through my telling him exactly what I thought of him. There are definitely some sick people out there.

Obviously there are people who spend their entire lives coming up with scams to sucker people into handing over $$$. Sometimes totally ruining the lives of people that get sucked in and lose their entire savings.

I just can't get my head around how anyone could be so depraved, but people like this have always been out there. It's just that the tools they have available to them these days pretty much protect them from any kind of prosecution.

Fortunately in your case-- not biting. But fine with them, just go on to the next "victim".

 

[LarsMac]

I hadn't heard of this scam until I experienced it. My wife of 61 years passed away the day after Christmas. Since then, I've received four phone calls from people claiming she had pledged several hundred dollars to some obscure charity, and hadn't sent the money as promised. So my first clue was the obscure charity. My second clue was that I've managed our finances since we married, and while she might drop $25 or so into a collection canister for the local animal shelter without mentioning it to me, several hundred would have certainly involved a discussion. Third clue was the offer to talk me through getting the... wait for it... yep, Walmart gift cards to pay the pledge. Like the earlier calls, he hung up midway through my telling him exactly what I thought of him. There are definitely some sick people out there.

No, it's not new. I got some of that crap after my mother passed, and again, last year when Margo passed. I confess that my responses were less than polite.

 

[NY_Dutch]

No, it's not new. I got some of that crap after my mother passed, and again, last year when Margo passed. I confess that my responses were less than polite.

So were mine...

 

[John From Detroit]

Evil has no boundaries regarding methods and preying on victims.

You can say that again. So I quoted you.

 

[CamperAL]

Wondering if you can go to places that you post the scam no. and put in a comment what they were up to. I am sure they have multiple numbers.

 

[PancakeBill]

Remember the movie where they would go to the bereaved home with the deluxe bible? My folks both passed a couple years back, we didn’t get any of that thankfully.

 

[NY_Dutch]

Wondering if you can go to places that you post the scam no. and put in a comment what they were up to. I am sure they have multiple numbers.

The calls I've received all came from different numbers. It's extremely easy to show a bogus number for calls.

 

[whiteva]

Numbers not in my contacts go directly to voice mail. (phone does not even ring) Most scammers don't bother to leave a message. Real callers leave a message and I can choose to call back or not. I am just too busy doing nothing to be a slave to the phone.

 

[NY_Dutch]

Numbers not in my contacts go directly to voice mail. (phone does not even ring) Most scammers don't bother to leave a message. Real callers leave a message and I can choose to call back or not. I am just too busy doing nothing to be a slave to the phone.

Since my wife's recent death I've been receiving calls from a number of friends and relatives that I'd rather not play phone tag with. I expect things will get a bit more back to normal calls with time.

 

[ButchW1]

Give them a dose of airhorn into the phone, then hang up... Hopefully they have a good set of earphones on...
Butch

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Scammers thing they are ultra-smart. They don't work at some stupid job and they don't pay taxes- they just get other people to send them money. It's easy work, done from home, and they are self-employed. What's not to like about that kind of career? It's immoral, you say? By whose standard??? Look around at the politicians before you answer...

 

[NY_Dutch]

Wondering if you can go to places that you post the scam no. and put in a comment what they were up to. I am sure they have multiple numbers.

They use a different number each time, and calling back either gets an out of service or some poor soul that doesn't have a clue thier number is being used.

 

[Jackiemac]

Scammers thing they are ultra-smart. They don't work at some stupid job and they don't pay taxes- they just get other people to send them money. It's easy work, done from home, and they are self-employed. What's not to like about that kind of career? It's immoral, you say? By whose standard??? Look around at the politicians before you answer...

There are call centres doing this stuff now. There's a TV show in the UK with ethical hackers who hack into the scammers' systems and a team who then try to warn the people they are trying to scam. Interesting.

I think India was one location.

The sad thing is these employees are probably just trying to feed their families.

Many others know exactly what they're doing buy have no morals and just don't care.

BBC One - Scam Interceptors BBC One - Scam Interceptors

 

[TheBar]

Self entitlement is getting to the point where everybody feels like everyone owes them everything. No guilt. As the people's attitude changes the government agencies like the IRS, politicians, universities, and scientists start finding ways to take our money.

 

[Kirk]

. It's extremely easy to show a bogus number for calls.

Nearly all scam calls or texts come from cloned numbers and not where the call/text originated.

Newer iPhones now have call screening where it will answer the number and ask who is calling and way, The phone then displays the response when one is given and you can choose to answer or delete it.

Look around at the politicians before you answer...

By far the majority of scam texts that I get now days come from politicians. In the past week, I have twice been invited to have dinner at Mar-a-Largo for a donation via a text.

 

[NY_Dutch]

Nearly all scam calls or texts come from cloned numbers and not where the call/text originated.

Newer iPhones now have call screening where it will answer the number and ask who is calling and way, The phone then displays the response when one is given and you can choose to answer or delete it.

I wonder how that works with the legitimate cloning used by many customer service departments...

 

[Kirk]

I wonder how that works

It simply answers the phone and asks for information. I have not called a phone with it but a friend who did call mine and got it was quite impressed and asked me to tell him more about it. He is considering a change of phone since his phone doesn't have it. The number shown has nothing at all to do with the screening other than the fact that it isn't in you contacts list.

Now tell me what is legitimate cloning?