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Dr_Charles_Forbin

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Original poster
May 11, 2016
472
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310-633-2670 robocall, pretending to be Apple, telling me my iCloud account has been compromised. I called Apple to verify - no calls from them. They've called at least 8 times already. Just FYI.
 
Guess they're expanding from the Microsoft scam calls. I just use OOMA and have all their call blocking features enabled. It really cut down the junk calls. Finally just set it to block any calls not in my phonebook. If they aren't flagged by Nomorobo, community blacklist or my personal blacklist. They get dumped straight to voicemail. If the call is legitimate they'll leave a voicemail and I'll whitelist the number. Any of the blacklisted numbers gets a phone number disconnected message.

Too bad T-Mobile doesn't have a similar option. I'd add call blocking in a heart beat. I've heard of some apps that offer this. But I don't want some small developer getting access to all my call data and who knows what else.
 
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Spoofed number, not really Apple. I get them all the time that appear to be from my NY area code, even though I now live in CA. Legitimate companies and the IRS will not call you, any will only get written notices.
 
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Spoofed number, not really Apple. I get them all the time that appear to be from my NY area code, even though I now live in CA. Legitimate companies and the IRS will not call you, any will only get written notices.
Yeah, I have them blocked now. My problem is that I called Apple, gave them the phone number and they didn’t tell me it was a known spam caller (I think I read it’s actually the phone numbers of an Apple store in CA). They also suggested that I respond to the call and see what happens. It’s just coincidental because (1) I had both of my Macbooks in the repair depot last week and (2) my brother in law is having problems trying to change the password on his Mac and iTunes which, since I set up his Mini, is still somehow linked to me despite a few calls to Apple to straighten it out and actually deleting my account on his machine. I thought the first few times it was them trying to get in touch with him as a callback and called me instead because the accounts are somehow commingled. Under normal circumstances, I would have treated it as spam.
 
Nope, I've never received a call from apple or even someone alleging they're from apple ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
my cell area code is 310 and I get at least 2-3 robo calls per day. For what I pay to have this phone you'd think they'd try to stop it.
 
Or at least tell their customers it’s a known fraud when they call asking about it and not ask them “well, why not try answering it?” Apple’s whole “We wont allow auto call blocking on a device with the same phone number prefix” policy is kind of parochial - it’s my damn phone - let me choose if I want to block it or not.
 
I get the calls from “Microsoft” all the time but I have never got one from Apple. It makes me wonder if they have acess to a database or if they are just playing hit or miss.
 
310-633-2670 robocall, pretending to be Apple, telling me my iCloud account has been compromised. I called Apple to verify - no calls from them. They've called at least 8 times already. Just FYI.

This is a pretty common scam. It's so common that someone even did a short award winning podcast series on it. An online reporter and co-host of the Podcast Reply All, Alex Goldman, got one of those calls and decided to play along and boy did he play along. Goldman strung the guy on the other side along for a good long time and eventually talked him into an in person meeting, which required Goldman to travel to India.

It's a good listen, but it's not short. They explain how an operation like this works and about the people who run them.
https://www.gimletmedia.com/reply-all/long-distance
 
Several of us have been getting calls from ourselves. You look at the phone and it shows your own name as the caller. Very weird. When I answer no one is there. Kind of a twilight zone experience. My son answered one and it was a fake ATT call. Can you block your own number?
 
Yup. Mom keeps getting scam "AppleCare" on her caller id. Yes, she has a Mac, but no AppleCare (that expired some time ago).

"AppleCare" is the name of Apple's support organization, not just their extended warranty program. Many people know you don't have to have an existing AppleCare warranty to call AppleCare.

Whether you've paid for extended warranty coverage is besides the point, though. These are scam calls. They could say they're calling from Apple, Microsoft, IRS... the whole point is to fake the appearance of legitimacy by choosing a name that a high percentage of "prospects" are likely to be doing business with. If you have reason to believe, "Maybe they have a good reason for calling me," then you may pick up the phone. If they're obviously off the mark you'll ignore it as spam.

I get the calls from “Microsoft” all the time but I have never got one from Apple. It makes me wonder if they have acess to a database or if they are just playing hit or miss.

Spammers and scammers are little different than legitimate sales organizations, in that they like to build lists of "qualified sales leads." The more they know, the more legitimate the next call can seem, the more likely you'll fall for it. They start by randomly dialing numbers to find which are active and which are not. Since cell phones nearly always use different area codes than land lines, they'll hone their pitch accordingly. If you accidentally divulge in one scam call that you have a Mac, eg., "Why is Microsoft calling me, I have a Mac" chances are the next call will say "Apple" in one form or another. Scammers sell their lists to other scammers, just like other sales organizations do.

my cell area code is 310 and I get at least 2-3 robo calls per day. For what I pay to have this phone you'd think they'd try to stop it.

Who is the "they" you'd like to stop this? Your telephone service provider should be the one on the top of your list - they're the ones who pass the call along to your phone, including that spoofed Caller ID. Phone manufacturers can offer software features like blocked lists, but the real control is at the telcos. Government regulators should also be high on the list, as they can put more teeth into enforcement than they do.

Still, the bottom line is that as much as we'd like calls of this sort to end, it's part of the price we pay for making ourselves available. Woe unto AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint if they were to accidentally block calls from our family, friends, doctors, etc., or deny phone service to a legitimate business.
 
I just get the "this is the IRS we are sending the police " spam calls

Oh man I play with them every time .
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Several of us have been getting calls from ourselves. You look at the phone and it shows your own name as the caller. Very weird. When I answer no one is there. Kind of a twilight zone experience. My son answered one and it was a fake ATT call. Can you block your own number?

I get some with just a + or a +++. No numbers. Or I’ve got one with all 1s like 1111111111 etc.
 
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