Warning / Scam

[gmsmith]

I've had this delivered to myself and work collegues today and asked to pass this info on to friends and family, the e-mail reads:

Can you circulate this around especially as Xmas is fast approaching also be worth passing onto your friends/family and colleagues.

Andy Foden, ACFSInvestigations OfficerCity of Lincoln Council Tel: 01522 873517

andrew.foden@lincoln.gov.uk

It has been confirmed by Royal Mail. The Trading Standards Office are making people aware of the following scam:A card is posted through your door from a company called PDS (ParcelDelivery Service) suggesting that they were unable to deliver a parcel andthat you need to contact them on 0906 6611911 (a premium ratenumber). DO NOT call this number, as this is a mail scam originating fromBelize. If you call the number and you start to hear a recorded message youwill already have been billed £15 for the phone call.If you do receive a card with these details, then please contact Royal MailFraud on 02072396655 or ICSTIS (the premium rate service regulator) atwww.icstis.org.uk

please don't get caught out

Regards

Geoff

[Imaginos]

Saw in the paper the other day about a man who was so fed up with the 'I have inherited money and need to put it in your bank account before the government get it' scams that are coming out of Africa that he decided to play with them a bit.
Not sure how much is true but first he got them to prove their identity by posing with billboards saying 'plonker' or 'I love sailors', then getting them to provide a handwriting sample by writing out Lord of the Rings longhand before arranging meetings in expensive hotels in Glasgow that he never turned up for. He's got a book out-looks quite funny, always nice to see the biter bit

[carlj]

Don't know where they get the £15 from - you'd need to stay on the phone at least 10 minutes for that. The maximum call cost to a premium rate number is £1.50 either per minute or per call from the information I've got in front of me. These scams do sail around regularly, but so also do the urban myths regarding the call costs. Best thing to do is to get premium rate barring on your line (BT offer it free, can't say what others will charge).

I have checked with the Icstis website (oh the joys of working in telecoms!) and it is definitely only £1.50 per minute - so the author of that £15 for hearing a message needs shooting for scaremongering!

[Boddie]

I saw warnings of this scam on a parish notice board in Cornwall this summer, so I guess it has just grown in momentum.

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by carlj

Don't know where they get the £15 from - you'd need to stay on the phone at least 10 minutes for that. The maximum call cost to a premium rate number is £1.50 either per minute or per call from the information I've got in front of me. These scams do sail around regularly, but so also do the urban myths regarding the call costs. Best thing to do is to get premium rate barring on your line (BT offer it free, can't say what others will charge).

I have checked with the Icstis website (oh the joys of working in telecoms!) and it is definitely only £1.50 per minute - so the author of that £15 for hearing a message needs shooting for scaremongering!

doesnt that only apply to premium rate numbers registered in the UK tho ? this scam is supposed to be based in belize - either that or they just keep you on hold for ages thus the £15

[hellsbells]

Hi all

Years ago I had a postcard from a firm asking to phone to arrange delivery of a parcel, as I was waiting for a part for my Dyson I assummed it was that. so rang got an answer machine and left my name and number.

They phoned back saying they had a package for someone (not me) and it was probably a piece of jewellery! and do I know them. I did know who they mentioned and tried to be vague about them as it dawned on me something was wrong with this call.

It turned out they had posted identical postcards to all the neighbours and they were a firm of debt collectors looking for this person.

I was fuming as it meant neighbours were being tricked into giving info out about each other.

I wished the post office looked more a bit more carefully at what they deliver to our houses!!!

[Boddie]

Originally Posted by hellsbells

I wished the post office looked more a bit more carefully at what they deliver to our houses!!!

I am not sure that it would have been the post office that delivered either. In the case of this thread it was probably someone representing ParcelDelivery Service and in your case someone from the debt collection agency.

[carlj]

Originally Posted by eeyore

doesnt that only apply to premium rate numbers registered in the UK tho ? this scam is supposed to be based in belize - either that or they just keep you on hold for ages thus the £15

The 09 range are uk based numbers, sold onto companies anywhere in the world. The pricing is fixed at a maximum of £1.50 per minute. What should happen, is that telecoms companies scrutinize the reason for the company requiring it, to avoid scams. Some however, just want the money.

[Tamworth Weather]

Hello,

I have been doing a lot of research on this email. I can confirm this is now a hoax. ICSTIS closed the number down on 29 Dec 2005 from the original scam. Despite a number of high profile websites who have been taken in by the new email warning, this should now be confined to "spam email" as there is no evidence that the original scam is up and running.

The ICSTIS press office are now actively advising local government and media websites to remove this warning

http://www.icstis.org.uk/pdfs_news/email.pdf and Royal Mail Postal Scam PDS - Midlands Weather Forum - A UK Weather Forum