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Pearl Clutcher
Not my circus, not my monkeys ~refugee pea #59
Posts: 3,149
Jun 25, 2014 19:51:11 GMT
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Post by back to *pea*ality on Feb 8, 2015 13:43:12 GMT
Our PD has a facebook page. This scam is ongoing in our area and the police put out an alert about it. Our town has a large retirement community that has been targeted.
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quiltz
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,842
Location: CANADA
Jun 29, 2014 16:13:28 GMT
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Post by quiltz on Feb 8, 2015 13:44:04 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
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Post by stefdesign on Feb 8, 2015 14:24:00 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
There are a lot of reasons a grandparent might not recognize a voice. They might have many grandchildren, and sheer numbers make recognition confusing. Also adolescent male voices change, plus teen or young adult boys might not be in contact with grandparents regularly. Just a quick greeting on the phone isn't often enough to identify a voice. Sometimes voices from the same family sound very similar, I often get my own two grown sons voices confused over the phone. And last, the power of suggestion is powerful. If someone says "this is David" you might not question that if the voice could be David. Especially if you're elderly and a bit confused about this emergency call. My own Mom had 16 grandchildren, including 11 grandsons living all over the country. She almost fell for this scam 10 years ago.
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mallie
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,253
Jul 3, 2014 18:13:13 GMT
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Post by mallie on Feb 8, 2015 14:39:56 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
There are a lot of reasons a grandparent might not recognize a voice. They might have many grandchildren, and sheer numbers make recognition confusing. Also adolescent male voices change, plus teen or young adult boys might not be in contact with grandparents regularly. Just a quick greeting on the phone isn't often enough to identify a voice. Sometimes voices from the same family sound very similar, I often get my own two grown sons voices confused over the phone. And last, the power of suggestion is powerful. If someone says "this is David" you might not question that if the voice could be David. Especially if you're elderly and a bit confused about this emergency call. My own Mom had 16 grandchildren, including 11 grandsons living all over the country. She almost fell for this scam 10 years ago. I can tell you that my FIL could not tell which male in the family is calling him. He has some hearing loss and to him, all male voices on the phone sound alike unless there is something super distinctive about the voice. Hearing loss is obviously common in the elderly, as is the refusal to admit to it or question the voice on the phone to confirm identity (because that would mean admitting you can't hear very well.) In addition, having worked with people in difficult situations, it's very common for people of all ages to take off their thinking cap when they are anxious or panicked. People often don't think to question the caller when they get upsetting news, they just get upset and their critical thinking skills are not in play. In their rush to "fix" the situation, they do as they are told. And these scammers know that tendency is common in humans, especially the elderly, and they exploit it.
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quiltz
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,842
Location: CANADA
Jun 29, 2014 16:13:28 GMT
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Post by quiltz on Feb 8, 2015 16:09:43 GMT
Thanks for the explanation. I come from a small family and all of my siblings also have small families. We all live fairly close (same province), and do keep each other up-to-date on life stuff.
I can see how larger families and/or those who have "splits or ex's", where this could cause confusion.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 8, 2015 16:26:37 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
I agree with all the replies to this you have already received. But I would also add that people, in general, are simply gullible. People of all ages in all types of family situations fall for bogus stuff all the time. The whole prevalence of individuals that roll over higher and higher interest rate loans with payday loan and car title loan companies just goes to prove that gullibility and stupidity exists.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Feb 8, 2015 16:32:11 GMT
Thanks for the explanation. I come from a small family and all of my siblings also have small families. We all live fairly close (same province), and do keep each other up-to-date on life stuff.
I can see how larger families and/or those who have "splits or ex's", where this could cause confusion. You know... none of the replies you received had anything to do with "splits or ex's," yet you seem to insist on blaming this on it. I find that interesting. It's as if you have already answered your own question in your mind and no matter what we say, that's what you're sticking with.
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Post by aleighl55 on Feb 8, 2015 17:05:58 GMT
My great aunt and uncle lost a few hundred dollars this way. My cousin is in college 5 hours from home and her "lawyer" called and needed bail money. The lawyer said that cousin was embarrassed and to please not call her mom. Nothing could be done and they lost the money.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Nov 1, 2024 2:35:21 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2015 17:44:13 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
My inlaws have 27 grandchildren so it's entirely likely they wouldn't recognize a voice on the phone or would jump to a conclusion.
This topic just came up last week with a friend and her mother lost a significant amount of money to this very scam. My friend said that if her mother had given the scammer everything he needed when she gave him the grandson's name.
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Post by Tamhugh on Feb 9, 2015 4:44:10 GMT
My in-laws got this call about two years ago. They are bright, well educated people and they still fell for it and wired the money. The person they spoke with said, "please don't tell my mom and dad". Luckily, as soon as they wired the money, they called us and we were able to stop it. The person they were wiring it to, claiming to be DS's lawyer, called and was yelling at them. They were mortified, but reported it and the police told them it was a common scam. The phone number used by the "attorney" was a burner phone.
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Post by cmpeter on Feb 9, 2015 6:14:30 GMT
This happened to dh's grandparents about 12 years ago. Someone called saying they were Dh's younger brother and needed money for some emergency (I don't remember all the details). Dh's brother lived in Chicago and the grandparents were in California. Luckily they called dh before they did anything.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Nov 1, 2024 2:35:21 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 9, 2015 6:20:21 GMT
That makes me sad especially since it is targeted at the elderly who are a little naive sometimes. I had to tell my grandma repeatedly to not always answer her door without checking to see who it is. I would be heartbroken if she ever fell for something like that. Sadly they must be successful if they keep doing it. I believe there is a special place in hell for those who hurt children or the elderly!
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Post by threegirls on Feb 9, 2015 14:00:21 GMT
How do they always seem to know they are calling someone with grandkids? Because the person answering sounds older? Has anyone heard of the caller changing their scam to a child instead of grandchild? It just seems like the story always goes, "Grandma!" right away. Not every old person has grandkids or is on good terms with them. Are the scammers dialing random numbers and then tailoring their story based on something they are "reading" from the person answering? Or are they getting these numbers from somewhere geared towards older people, like AARP? My nephew lost his phone and had my mom's number listed as "grandma". They called her using his phone before he realized he had lost his phone. The scammer was pretending to cry and my mom is hard of hearing so it was difficult for her to tell if it was his voice or not. Thank goodness she had painters in the house who overheard the conversation and they stepped in and told her to hang up because it was a scam. This happened last spring.
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Post by canadianscrappergirl on Feb 9, 2015 15:38:50 GMT
Same thing happened to hubby's GM she is the type that talks forever on the phone so I am sure the scammers were like WTH when they called her lol. She proceeded to give the gs/scammer hell about how disappointed his parents would be and how disappointed she was lol. She then said she would call the mom/her daughter first to see what she had to say. Needless to say when she called the daughter she realized it was a scam and fortunately didn't give them any money.
I said my hubby the scammer was probably thinking ugh this is too much work to get some money out of this person haha.
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Post by canadianscrappergirl on Feb 9, 2015 15:43:07 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
In the case of my hubby's GM she has close to 50 grand/great/great great grandkids and when the scammer called she said to her supposed GS Cody you don't sound like yourself but the scammer was crying and she figured it was why she didn't quite recognize him. It was quite ironic because her GS was in Ontario at school and when the scammer called for Jail money he said he was arrested in TO. Fortunately she didn't give money because she wanted to talk to his mom first ugh!
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Post by mtscrapper on Feb 9, 2015 15:50:51 GMT
My In-Laws had the same call, except my son was supposedly in Haiti. At the time, he was serving an LDS mission in California, but my FIL fell for it and was headed on his way to wire money when he thought he better call me. Its a dang good thing he did, because as soon as he started talking, I knew it was a scam. He was really concerned and wondered if Haiti was in his mission - um No! Haiti is a long way from California. He was so worried about him and I had to contact my son to make sure he was okay, and he was exactly where he was supposed to be. He said in hindsight, there were a lot of red flags, but the kid on the other end was crying and saying he was being taken advantage of in the jail he was being held in.
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Post by mtscrapper on Feb 9, 2015 15:58:16 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
In my FIL's case, the kid had supposedly been crying and so the voice sounded off anyway. They don't have any code words and apparently the reason he was in jail was because he was handing out water to people in Haiti and got picked up by authorities because he wasn't supposed to be in that spot or something like that. I don't know exactly the details, but he wasn't in jail for criminal activities that FIL would find suspicious. He was supposedly in for doing acts of services, which is what he was in California doing. The people that do this are pros at reading reactions of the people on the other end of the phone. Grandparents are usually not involved in the day-to-day actions of their grandchildren and so in the right circumstances, a grandparent could believe what is actually being said. Apparently, it happens all too often if the scam is still going on. If it didn't work, they would have found a different scam by now.
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Post by jemali on Feb 9, 2015 16:24:51 GMT
My MIL's friend got a call like this a while back. She told the caller "I may be old, but I'm not stupid" and hung up.
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Post by hennybutton on Feb 9, 2015 17:55:46 GMT
My MIL's friend got a call like this a while back. She told the caller "I may be old, but I'm not stupid" and hung up. Best response ever.
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Post by gale w on Feb 9, 2015 20:34:48 GMT
In my MIL's case she said it didn't sound like her grandson and he told her he had a head cold. lol.
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peabrain
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,588
Jun 25, 2014 22:18:04 GMT
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Post by peabrain on Feb 9, 2015 20:54:06 GMT
Just a question, please no flames -- do grandparents not know the voices of their grandchildren on the phone? Do families not have a "question" or "safe word" so this scam doesn't go any further.
My parents had 6 grandchildren. Knew all of their voices on the phone. Would be aware enough to realise that (1) grandchild would not be in jail and (2) would know that a grandchild would not require immediate money after an accident, due to insurance coverage.
Could this scam happen because of dis-connect within a family either by divorces or re-marriages?
I do understand that some elderly people have hearing difficulties and other issues, but what is it about this type of scam that sends people into a flurry of doing the money send?
lostinspace, I've been told the caller sounds like they are crying or very upset which plays on the fears/severity of this issue.......that someone would need to act NOW....giving limited information....making it confusing and sounding serious.....a dire emergency
When in reality, if someone really does get arrested for something stupid........usually 9 times outta 10, first offense its a ticket or a night in jail may do some good, so sit your ass in jail a bit and I'll get back to you. However, if it's me, and I'm calling, bail my ass out right away LOL
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Post by anonrefugee on Feb 9, 2015 23:42:24 GMT
Thanks for the explanation. I come from a small family and all of my siblings also have small families. We all live fairly close (same province), and do keep each other up-to-date on life stuff.
I can see how larger families and/or those who have "splits or ex's", where this could cause confusion. You know... none of the replies you received had anything to do with "splits or ex's," yet you seem to insist on blaming this on it. I find that interesting. It's as if you have already answered your own question in your mind and no matter what we say, that's what you're sticking with. Agree with this, how odd you only envision one scenario. I guess that none of your family went to college far from home? Job promotions never took anyone to another area? My neighbor's mom questioned her scammer. The girl said she's been crying and it made her hoarse.
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Post by anonrefugee on Feb 9, 2015 23:47:07 GMT
And another thing... LOL Did anyone here think they would need family code words past middle school with their children? Maybe I need to revisit this with grandparents and extended family.
This scam must be successful because they keep using it.
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