The talk-talk scams.

[cee-dee]

I used to be with TT. However, after the TT hacking and when the scamming phone calls took off, I began getting them like "There is a problem with your router...." When one chap phoned and said I had a problem, I told him I knew he was a scammer and I didn't have a problem. He replied "You have now".

A month or so later I got a letter from TT "We're sorry you want to leave us......" In the end, I did leave TT.

I've had no end of calls from the scammers and I keep blocking their numbers. Then the hacked list gets sold on and another bunch start so I block them and so it goes on.

This morning I got another but this one ran like "Hello, I'm calling from your internet service provider, talk-talk".

Just to see what he came up with, I said "I'm not with talk-talk."

"Who is your sevice provider?"

"I'm not telling you."

He asked twice more and again I told him "I'm not telling you".

Then he asked for me by name so I said I was the Police and that we're trying to locate the scammers who're either trying to get financial details or drop a virus on computers.

It didn't put him off, he kept trying to insist I was with TT. I can't remember the next bit but after that he said he would have to disconnect me from the internet. I said "Go on then". He tried again and I told him "Go on then". He said if he disconnected me I wouldn't be able to connect with any other service provider. Again, I told him, "Go on then". He then kept asking me for my name, I told hin to get lost.

It seems that when one bunch of scammers has exhausted the supply of victims, another lot seem to take over. Is there nothing anyone can do to put an end to the nuisance apart from what I do, block the number?

[jasper149.1785]

Getting loads of  these calls, just keep entering them in to your black list, or not answer.

Wish something could be done about them.

[*scyllabub*]

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@jasper149.1785 wrote:

just keep entering them in to your black list...

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Mine (courtesy of TalkTalk) is at maximum number of numbers, apparently.  I think it's about 10.  Woeful.

The friend whom I introduced to TalkTalk years ago has just given his notice and is changing to BT, but that's due to constant outages - and I'm getting them too (since taking up their offer of a cheaper contract "Faster Broadband", which is a lie in itself!) nearly every night from 2300hr onwards my internet goes down   Rebooting the router fixes it eventually.

I just can't face the disruption of changing ISP.

Sorry about your hassle, Cee-Dee 😞

[cee-dee]

Don't be sorry, not your fault.

Change ASAP then you're done with it.There's been outages here for up to a week, folks are going crackers about it. Glad I changed a year ago. My speed is around 60mbits/sec

During the changeover you could use a mobile router so you're not without a connection.

[cee-dee]

Every Saturday morning before 9am the phone rings and there's no number showing on my caller display, just a row of dots. They keep on trying....... different bunch of scammers to those with numbers showing.

The last three numbers trying it on were 441257400500 which I guess is the same as 01257400500 and then 01254698785, all blocked.

[cee-dee]

Another call with no number showing, a female this time. When she said she was calling from Talk-Talk I said "No you're not" and she just sighed and rang off.

The poor saps making the calls must be getting fed up with rejections?

[*scyllabub*]

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@cee-dee wrote:

During the changeover you could use a mobile router so you're not without a connection.

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I shall investigate that, thanks.  It might be a good idea to have one anyway!

I wonder if one could cope with my multi-laptops and stream downloading?  Microsoft said I must be a business when I tried to explain a problem to them and they refused to support me 😮

[cee-dee]

I have a Huawei router "Internet with legs" on Three. I've not had as many tabs open as you've mentioned previously but I've had six open and some online live auctions which it coped with OK.

If people remember, when Openreach messed up my connection last year, I was without net access for a month so that's when I used it.

Just recently, my "proper" router died.... so for a few days (until a new one arrived) I was using the above again with a PAYG SIM card.

[cee-dee]

I've had three of those scam calls so far today, the last one was on about error codes from my router and when I was laughing at what he was saying, he had a laugh in his voice when I asked "what's a router". He said it was a small box with lights on so I said I hadn't got one. He rang off...... I wonder why?

[cee-dee]

After a few days respite, at 20 past 8 this morning another one. This one was a persitent s**. He "told me off" for not listening to him.... I told him I wasn't going to, he rang off.

[cee-dee]

I blocked that number but I've just had another call from a different number, on about problems with my router. I asked what router was that? He said it was "my" Talk-Talk router. When I said I didn't have a TT router he rang off. I blocked that number too.

[cee-dee]

I just checked the last number, it's real number but from a cash and carry in Birmingham? Are the scammers spoofing numbers?

[cee-dee]

They're still at it. A female with an Indian sounding voice said "I'm calling you from the technical department of your internet service provider, Talk-Talk...." and she prattled on before saying "We are about to disconnect your connection for a couple of days are you OK with that?"

I said I wasn't with TT. Then she asked "Am I speaking to *****" (me by name). I said "You're speaking to someone who's not with Talk-Talk." There was an "Oh" followed by silence then the noise of a call centre full of people before she rang off.

I guess that was the latest bunch of scammers to have bought that outdated list of TT customers?

[cee-dee]

During this week I've had a few calls from a number purporting to be an 021 number, (all of which disconnected as I answered) but my hands-free phone showed it to be an International call so I was expecting a call on Saturday.

Sure enough at twenty to nine today I got a call, this time from an 001800 number (here we go I thought)...... It was an auto voice message saying it was the technical department of talk-talk and my internet service was about to be disconnected as they were going to change my IP address so to speak to someone I was to press "1" to continue.

For the heck of it, I pressed "1" and was connected to someone who just said "How may I help you today".

I said "You can't because I'm not a talk-talk customer". They rang off without another word.

[cee-dee]

They don't give up do they? Just had another call. They keep trying new stunts.

On answering I got an automated heavily accented "foreign" voice message "Welcome to Talk-Talk, my name is Shirley from the technical department of talk-talk. We have been trying to contact you. You internet service will be disconnected in 24-48 hours as we need to change your IP address as it has been compromised in several countries, press 1 to be connected to the technical department....." Press 1 and the same message is repeated again and again.......

This time it was an 01971 area code but the voice certainly wasn't Scottish.

[cee-dee]

I forgot to say that the number displayed was a spoof area code and number because my other phone showed it to be "International".

[cee-dee]

They just don't give up!

A few minutes ago I answered the phone to a recorded message. "My name is ***** (inaudible) and I am calling from the technical department of Talk Talk. We have been trying to get in touch with you as your internet connection has been compromised and we will disconnect you within the next 24 hours. Please press "1" to be connected to the technician".

[*scyllabub*]

TalkTalk now have a system where, if the caller is not from a number in your call history, the call is diverted* and they have to introduce themselves by name, then your phone rings and you hear a recording of the caller saying their name and you press 1 if you'll accept the call.  Can't remember how you reject it

*When I started typing this I had the appropriate word in my head but have now lost it  "Inter-something"?  There's no hope for me

[cee-dee]

But I'm not with TT, all those calling and saying they're from TT are scammers.

If you played along with them, to try to convince you that you had a problem they'd eventually get you to open the Windows event log and try to put that over as the "errors" they're claiming your router is "reporting" back to TT.

[*scyllabub*]

Sorry, cee-dee, I just thought I'd mention that TT are trying to do something for their customers about spam/scam phone calls now.  I haven't had to reject any calls, the spam/scammers must be put off by the "say your name" rigmarole 🙂