Anybody else hear about this??

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Posted: Mon Aug 19, 2013 11:47 am

One of my FB friends posted this on his page:

Quote:

Costly NEW AREA CODE: READ AND PASS ALONG
809 Area Code
People have actually received a call from the 809 area
code. The woman said 'Hey, this is Karen. Sorry I missed you- get back to us quickly. I have something ...important to tell you.' Then she repeated a phone number beginning with 809. Then this week, people have received the following e-mail:
Do Not
DIAL AREA CODE 809, 284, AND 876 from the U.S. or Canada
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION PROVIDED TO US BY AT&T. DON'T EVER DIAL AREA CODE 809

This one is being distributed all over the US ... This is pretty scary, especially given the way they try to get you to call. Be sure you read this and pass it on.
They get you to call by telling you that it is information about a family member who has been ill or to tell you someone has been arrested, died, or to let you know you have won a wonderful prize, etc. In each case, you are told to call the 809 number right away. Since there are so many new area codes these days, people unknowingly return these calls. If you call from the U.S. or Canada , you will apparently be charged a minimum of $2425 per-minute. And you'll also get a long recorded message. The point is, they will try to keep you on the phone as long as possible to increase the charges. WHY IT WORKS:

The 809 area code is located in the Dominican Republic. The charges afterward can become a real nightmare.That's because you did actually
make the call.If you complain, both your local phone company and your long distance carrier will not want to get involved and will most likely tell you that they are simply providing the billing for the foreign company.You'll end
up dealing with a foreign company that argues they have done nothing wrong. Please share this entire message to your friends, family and colleagues to help them become
aware of this scam.

I was just thinking that if Big-X could find one of these numbers to send to the Laddies......

$2400.00 a minute would really put a bite in their arse.

Not sure I'd want to help the scammers using such expensive numbers either.

Posted: Mon Aug 19, 2013 12:00 pm

A quick trip to Google shows that the hype is overblown, but the scam does exist and the international calls do cost more (though not anywhere near $2400/min). If I find any, I will be sure to send them along to the lads.

That said, the international charges for the lad may be about the same anyway, because they are calling from outside the US and this scam generally targets Americans and Canadians.

But this is definitely useful information. Thanks for the tip.

Posted: Mon Aug 19, 2013 12:17 pm

Snopes has an entry on this one:

http://www.snopes.com/fraud/telephone/809.asp

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