What scam was this?

[_19disnA]

i've wondered in recent months if amazon is purposely using bad spelling and grammar cut and paste for their customer service chat to discourage customer complaints. there is no other excuse i can come up with.

I think Amazon uses some offshore location to handle customer service. I have tried to do their online 'chat' a few times when I had a product related question. The product I was interested in buying showed on the Amazon website with incomplete or contradictory information. The online chat person seemed to only have a basic grasp of English and told me once I ordered the product he would be able to track the shipment. Told him that's not what I was asking and repeated my question about the missing product details. Finally gave up and never ordered the product from Amazon but found it on some other website.

It seems a lot of companies figure they are saving money using these offshore call centers, but in reality they lose business or people just become frustrated and buy from someone else. Most of these call centers seem to staff them with entry level people, provide them no training and hand them a written script of how to answer the most common (i.e. REALLY basic) questions. Generally a waste of time to even try to contract them. Have purchased a number things from Amazon with no issues, but if a product listing is inaccurate/incomplete I look to buy that product on someone else's website.

 

[disneychick0412]

I saw a video the other day where the woman answered the phone because the caller ID said it was her bank calling. Except it wasn't actually her bank. So I can see people saying "don't answer the phone if you don't recognize the number" but in this case she did recognize the number. Luckily what she was being asked seemed suspicious and she didn't give any info.

I've also seen videos of a man messing with the scammers by telling them about his hemmorhoids. lol

I'm in the group that doesn't generally answer the phone unless it is a familiar number but I can see where some people might need to answer. Sad that people fall for scams, but these scumbags prey on people who are elderly and might not know better or people who are very trusting. All I know to do is warn people about what scams are out there so they will be aware and hopefully wont fall for them.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

When we had our landline we would sometimes get scam callers. I only got one once when I answered that phone-man on the other end, obviously foreign and probably from India, says he's from the bank and asks for my name. I have a habit of getting someone's name when being called by a bank or a business in case something goes wrong, so I politely asked, "Your name, please?" He said Bob Jones. I remember it so well because it was so ludicrous that a guy with a heavy Indian accent would claim to have this name. Then I knew it was a scam. "Bob" asked for my name again. I said that if he was calling from the bank he should know my name. He says something like, "look, we have your account number here and we have information that this account has been laundering money." Really? I said. Well, I'll take care of it. Then he told me they were going to go the police, but if I sent a certain amount (I've forgotten what it was), it would be the end of it. He was calling me out of courtesy. I was tired of the bull and of talking to this scammer, so I said to send the police because I was a police officer, too. *click*

 

[AvidDisReader]

Has anyone received the Publisher Clearing House scam. They tell you that you won and send them $10,000 to cover taxes. As I was being told this, I was googling PCH website and sure enough there was a heading for popular scams that matched what I was being told. PCH Never calls, they either send someone to your house or communicate by mail. So I kept the person on the phone for over a half hour with questions. I finally told him send me the check and I would have my accountant handle the taxes, he must of finally realized he was having his chain pulled because he hung up.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

because the caller ID said it was her bank calling. Except it wasn't actually her bank. So I can see people saying "don't answer the phone if you don't recognize the number" but in this case she did recognize the number.

This is why often banks will tell you they will never call you for xyz.

This is information about my bank "Commerce Bank will never ask for any personal or account information, including Social Security numbers, account numbers, security questions, PINs, email addresses or passwords via email, unsolicited phone calls or text messages."

Spoofing is incredibly common and that's what happened to the person you knew. They mimic a phone number that doesn't really correspond with that. I usually check white pages (or google it TBH) and the phone number just never comes back as a legit one. Pay attention to the phone number because caller ID won't tell you everything. I get a spoofing call from my state's highway sheriff and I def. know it's not actually them..that's what the caller ID says and once that call has ended the phone number no longer corresponds to whatever it says.

My bank gives directions to call back at a specific number (and 800 number) to verify that I was indeed requested something.

Truthfully this is again why I just simply don't answer the phone much at all, if you're in my contacts list yes, otherwise I will be unlikely to do so.

 

[disneyseniors]

I just don't answer the phone truly. I get too many scam, fraud, spam and spoofing calls to do so and it's been that way for a long time. Most voice mails are automated scam/spam calls too.

Funnily enough we were in Puerto Rico these past several days and I actually had great signal the whole time (my husband did not and was on a contracted out network). However there were a few spots where I had low enough signal to not be able to pull up certain things but lo and behold I get a call and it's one that HiYa detected as Scam Likely

We just have an unlisted number, which is great! We still get a few random number spam calls but I don't answer if I don't recognize the number. It works.

 

[sam_gordon]

(Phone rings from unknown caller....)

Me: Hello?
Unknown Caller: We have your grandson and are holding him hostage!
M: Oh no! How much is the ransom??
UC: $25,000!
M: Really? That much? Eh, keep him. I like my granddaughter better anyway.
(Click)

I think this would be better...
Me: Hello?
Unknown Caller: We have your grandson and are holding him hostage!
M: Oh no! How much is the ransom??
UC: $25,000!
M: Oh no, he's worth much more than that. How about $50,000?
UC: um, what?
M: Well, he's good at doing his chores, and he gets good grades, so, $50,000 is too low. Let's say $100,000!
UC: OK!
M: Good, I need your bank account information to set up the invoice.
UC: huh?
M: Well, you agreed to pay me $100,000 so you can have my grandson.
UC: <click>

 

[DLgal]

I think Amazon uses some offshore location to handle customer service. I have tried to do their online 'chat' a few times when I had a product related question. The product I was interested in buying showed on the Amazon website with incomplete or contradictory information. The online chat person seemed to only have a basic grasp of English and told me once I ordered the product he would be able to track the shipment. Told him that's not what I was asking and repeated my question about the missing product details. Finally gave up and never ordered the product from Amazon but found it on some other website.

It seems a lot of companies figure they are saving money using these offshore call centers, but in reality they lose business or people just become frustrated and buy from someone else. Most of these call centers seem to staff them with entry level people, provide them no training and hand them a written script of how to answer the most common (i.e. REALLY basic) questions. Generally a waste of time to even try to contract them. Have purchased a number things from Amazon with no issues, but if a product listing is inaccurate/incomplete I look to buy that product on someone else's website.

The issue you are describing is likely due to the seller being a third party marketplace seller, rather than Amazon itself. Amazon hosts listings for third party sellers. Those often don't have full item descriptions.

 

[_19disnA]

No idea I just use their site to buy stuff. Walmart online has many of the same items and often at a lower price. Amazon seems to make it as difficult as possible to communicate with them. One time they overshipped an item and it took way more effort then I would have thought to arrange for the return. There are so many places to buy common items online, I prefer the sites that are the easiest to use and have the lowest prices.