Tripod Home | New | TriTeca | Work/Money | Politics/Community | Living/Travel | Planet T | Daily Scoop

WORK & MONEY by Randy Williams FORGET 911: 809 IS A (SICK) JOKE Published November 7, 1996 Previous columns by Randy Williams	Welcome to "Work & Money Watchdog," a new Tripod column which looks at hard sells, dubious ads, rip-offs, Internet scams and other causes for consumer alarm. Why? Because each of us is assaulted by hundreds of advertising images and sales pitches for "consumer services" each day; they are unavoidable on TV and radio, in papers and magazines, on park benches and buses, on Web sites and in direct mailings. The sheer volume of advertising makes it easy for our heads to become soft as over-ripe melons. We become numb to the messages we are receiving, and often we stop weeding out the useful from the bizarre and even ... shall we say, "misleading." Or downright slimy. Take the case of the company calling itself "Global Communications," which has cleverly played on fear of bad credit ratings to bilk U.S. citizens out of hundreds of dollars. The company has done this largely by sending e-mail messages to unsuspecting consumers across the country. That technique is hardly news; AOL recently had to go to court to stop commercial e-mail marketing wizards from carpet-bombing the service's users with unsolicited come-ons and sales pitches. "AOL -- it's the Internet and a whole lot of harassing advertising." That annoyingly chipper little voice announcing that "you've got mail" was starting to take on the tinge of hard-sell hucksterism.
Nary a day passes without my receiving a pitch from some hot-shot who just maxed out his credit card buying a server.	Of course, Tripod is way too swanky to use an online service like AOL. Hell, we've got our own T1 line, which we won in a crooked poker game against those willy-nillies at "Enter" magazine. But we're hardly immune from unwanted solicitations. Nary a day passes without my receiving a pitch from some hot-shot who just maxed out his credit card buying a server, wanting to help advertise "my" site and make it known to the great unwashed masses. While I'm flattered that these folks took the time to write me personally, and that they realize that I actually run this huge site with no help from the other two dozen full-time employees, I rarely spend more than five seconds glancing at such obvious computer-generated drivel before deleting it from my Eudora account. But I must admit that even a hard-bitten Web weenie cynic like me would give serious pause if I got an e-mail threatening legal action unless I paid up on an overdue account. It's tough for me, as Work & Money editor, to admit this -- but I actually have, in my time, received similar messages on my telephone answering machine (the post office lost the check, I swear to God!). These phone messages did not give the name of the bank or institution placing the call; there was only an 800 number and a terse suggestion that the call "should not be ignored." Suffering from horrifying visions of debtors prison, thumb-screws, and hired thugs from some credit card company hauling off my prized Elvis Costello bootlegs, I would frantically dial the 800 number and put on my nicest voice in an attempt to buy myself some time.
This is all-too familiar to anyone who has had one of those "oh shit" moments with a creditor.	This sort of over-extension with credit is common enough in this country, and that is precisely what makes the scam "Global Communications" is running so fiendishly effective. The language of the e-mail message will be all-too familiar to anyone who has had one of those "oh shit" moments with a creditor. Here is the text of the message, forwarded to me from a friend in New York City: "I am writing to give you a final 24 hours to settle your outstanding account. If I have not received the settlement in full, I will commence legal proceedings without further delay. If you would like to discuss this matter further to avoid court action, call Mike Murray at Global Communications." "Court action! Great horny toads, that sounds serious," you might say in that colorful way of yours. But scan down a bit further and you'll notice that good ol' Mike isn't asking you to call him at a toll-free 800 number. He's waiting for your call at an 809 area code -- and that's where the real trouble starts. One of my many character flaws is that I haven't memorized all of the U.S. area codes. Goodness knows, I've been meaning to do it -- but I keep being distracted by my pesky job and my addiction to reruns of "The Simpsons." And the phone companies have recently added a bunch of new area codes, making it even harder to keep up. Let's see -- 205 to call my folks at home, 413 here at Tripod World Headquarters, 212 to call the Park Avenue office. That pretty much uses up my exhaustive knowledge of area codes. 809? Never heard of it -- must be in Walla Walla or Cucamonga, right?
We may be leaving ourselves vulnerable to rip-off artists who use our accessability against us.	Wrong. While it may seem like a perfectly legitimate U.S. area code, the 809 prefix actually rings you into the Caribbean -- and calls are billed at the international rate, despite the absence of any tip-off to the consumer (not even the "011" prefix used for most overseas calls). Worse yet, the telecommunications industry in the Caribbean is very loosely regulated. Federal regulations in this country require carriers to clearly state any access charges related to pay-per-call services. There is no such requirement in the Caribbean, so "Global Communications" bills these calls at $25 a minute -- on top of the cost for the international call. And foreign telephone companies are believed to be taking a cut from the new offshore scams, leaving very little chance that there will be a Caribbean Crackdown episode of "Cops" any time soon. What is perhaps most dismaying is that 809 scams are being perpetuated at an alarming rate, often using high-tech methods to lure unwitting dupes into staying on the line long enough to run up phone bills of many hundreds of dollars. "Money" magazine reported that Global Communications uses a clever recording of an irate-sounding man which reacts to the caller's voice -- tricking them into believing that they are talking to a "real" person. Consumer protection units at both AT&T and MCI have released statements warning of similar scams. They cite messages left on voice mail and answering machines promising callers a prize or claiming to have information on a family member who is in trouble. Ads on the Internet, soliciting paid "mystery shoppers," have led respondents to an 809 number with a long-winded message. And the innocent-seeming numbers have even been sent to beepers and digital pagers. By using the Internet to harvest information and electronic devices to remain "reachable," we may be leaving ourselves vulnerable to rip-off artists who use our accessability against us. Finally, on October 17, the FCC released a statement warning consumers not to call 809, 758, or 664 numbers unless they want to place international calls to Caribbean countries to arrange travel, talk to family members there, conduct business in the region, or other legitimate purposes. "Calls may be made in response to scams designed to keep callers on the line for long periods to hear a message that may be either false or of no value," the FCC said.
Keep your eyes open for the binary bunko artists.	There is, however, a real danger that many consumers will not be aware of these statements. The FCC has done much to control fraud in this country, but the agency can't do much but release warnings about fraudulent activity in other countries. That means that avoiding scams is largely up to the consumer. Here are a few tips that could save you from being fleeced: If you receive a message asking you to call an unfamiliar area code, take a few minutes to do a little research (most reputable businesses and credit agencies should have a toll-free 800 number anyway). Consult the information pages at the front of your phone book to get a complete listing of current U.S. area codes. Or call your local Bell and ask where the unfamiliar prefix is located -- the phone company may zap you for a few cents for the directory assistance, but that's a hell of a lot cheaper than dialing the Caribbean. If you do fall victim to one of these long-distance scams, report it to your carrier and ask for a credit. Both AT&T and MCI are currently forgiving customers who inadvertently call overseas -- but this amnesty may not last forever. Both companies stress that consumers must take responsibility for their own calls. Stay informed. This column will report new scams as we learn of them, and I also recommend the Internet Scambusters Web site. Spend a little time finding out where the sleazebags are hiding and how they're trying to siphon the cash from your wallet. It's a sad truth that making new technologies widely available to everyone ensures that they will fall into the hands of unscrupulous bottom-feeders like "Mike" at Global Communications. If you're going to operate in the digital domain, keep your eyes open for the binary bunko artists. Randy Williams is an editor and columnist for Tripod. Despite rumors to the contrary, he is not related to crooner Andy Williams. He does, however, belt out a mean rendition of "Moon River" after downing a few Black & Tans. © 1996 Tripod, Inc. All rights reserved.