Text message scammers trying to scam contractors

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kaiser

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los angeles, ca. USA
Hey, everyone. I hope this post helps you to avoid being scammed.
I'm sure this has happened to some of you and I hope you didn't fall for it. To be honest, you'd have to be pretty dumb to fall for it. If you did fall for it, sorry.
This happens to me at least twice a year. I get a text message over my business listed cell phone and it always starts out the same way. The person sending the text asks if I do electrical work (usually spelled wrong like a foreigner, like do you do electricity work) and if I do, do I accept credit cards for payment.
It always starts like that.
Then I say yes I do. Then the person says he just bought a home in the city where I am (never saying the city and I'm in Los Angeles) and the house needs some rewiring of the lights and also an electrical inspection. But they are never in town. Always in the hospital or have to deal with the house they are selling still and in order to get access to the house I need to get the key from the previous owner who needs the final $2k or something before he'll give the key. This person will pay me the $1k or whatever my bill will be plus the amount to get the key and throw in an extra $100 for the trouble.
Now, I listened to their story on two different occasions and about six more times I usually interrupt them and tell them what they are about to ask me and I then say sure. Just send me your personal info, drivers license number billing name and address of the card as well as the card number expiration date security number from the back and I will run the card and when it clears.then we can talk about doing the work.
That's usually the end of the messaging. Give it another6 months and they'll try again.
Don't fall for it.
 
I love those, I get 2 or 3 cards out of them before the realize I'm f-in with them.
Do a BIN search get the bank and call and have the cards cancelled.
 
One of our salespeople almost fell for this. It wasn't text, btw, it was email or maybe even phone. Yeah, they prey on contractor's desire to book sales.
 
While never hooked by the credit-card text scam, those unsolicited text scams have plagued me for about 6 years, sometimes several times a day.

I tried disabling "Quotes by Text" on all business listings, and always reply, "Quotes by phone only, ready to take your call now"

Scammers will usually reply, "I am deaf and can't talk by phone", but recently some started calling with garbled speech, or phantom acts.

Taking the bait to call back, or engage the scammer by text encourages more text barrage, which unfolds the same scheme.

Blocking the # on my smart phone helps, but scammers have persisted with different #'s from remote and local area codes.

The 2nd attempt starts over, using more sophisticated variations on the same scheme.

Ignoring the messages completely is the only way they stop.
 
I played along, with the ultimate goal of conning them into sending me a check. Sure, I knew the checks were counterfeit and never tried depositing one, but I also knew they were paying $12 to send each FedEx overnight letter. (sending them via the U.S.Post Office would have exposed them to federal mail fraud indictments)

They don't call me anymore. Nothing thwarts a money-making scam like losing money.

Tom Made created a great response to telemarketers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIVfrBFc5og
 
Very similar to the "Rent this beautiful home while we're away in Africa doing mission work." They don't need much money, but they hate to have their house empty, so if you would just send them a small amount of rent they'll send you the key and you can live there until they come home.
 
I get both texts & email from these jerks. I sometimes play with them. Like I will ask them what city (because they usually just say "in your city". They will almost always say one of the larger cities. I tell them that's out of my area and the only way I will go is
$500 CASH deposit up front. That usually ends it.

Just in case some don't know. They want you to charge a credit card then send them a Western Union money gram for the key or whatever. Usually they say to charge the card for say $1500, keep $1000 and send them $500. Then when you do that you will find out the card is STOLEN, you get charged back for the $1500, plus you have already sent them $500 which is not recoverable, and they float off the end of the earth.

Last time they texted me I sent them a reply that said "take your stolen credit card and go jump in the lake". They never replied back!:happyno:
 
It's the same thing listing anything on CraigsList

It's always the same: "I'm out of town but my agent will come by to pick it up and give you a Cashier's Check'

My reply is always "No, your agent will count off Dead Presidents into my hand, after which I will leave my son in charge here while I go to the bank to verify that the Dead Presidents are really actual US Currency. When I get back, THEN, and only then, will you take possession."
 
This actually happened to me last year. I got a text from an individual who wrote in perfect English, not one grammatical error. He wanted me to rewire an entire house that he just bought. I actually went to the house and it had a "For Sale" sign outside. There was no one home so I couldn't do a proper survey. We started texting back forth and then he wanted to deposit $10K into my bank account before I did any work. That's when I got suspicious. I finally texted "please call me". He did and could hardly speak English. He sounded like he was from a third world country. I was lucky and only wasted some time and gas to get to the site.
 
Gary Glaenzer said:
It's the same thing listing anything on CraigsList

It's always the same: "I'm out of town but my agent will come by to pick it up and give you a Cashier's Check'

My reply is always "No, your agent will count off Dead Presidents into my hand, after which I will leave my son in charge here while I go to the bank to verify that the Dead Presidents are really actual US Currency. When I get back, THEN, and only then, will you take possession."
Click to expand...

4 years ago, i sold a macbook pro on craigslist. one of the 17" ones they stopped making.

met the buyer at a wells fargo branch near him. was sitting in the bank lobby with the laptop.
he walked in, i booted the laptop, he liked it, we walked over to the teller line, and he deposited
$1,500 in cash into my checking account. i handed him the laptop, shook his hand, and walked out.

this is gonna be harder to do with the motorcycles. wells fargo is gonna get right pissy if we
do a test drive in the bank lobby.... maybe out in the parking lot....
 
A large jewelry chain (that advertises full original price of stone as credit on upgrade) offers a private sale meeting place at the store if you resell their product on your own.


Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
 
GoldDigger said:
A large jewelry chain (that advertises full original price of stone as credit on upgrade) offers a private sale meeting place at the store if you resell their product on your own.


Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

That's fine for doing Craiglist transactions, but that's cash and face-to-face. The scammers want you to use a credit card they've stolen.
 
480sparky said:
That's fine for doing Craiglist transactions, but that's cash and face-to-face. The scammers want you to use a credit card they've stolen.
Click to expand...


and people do. i use my amex card for most everything. a while ago,
i got a text message from amex.

at 5 am, while asleep, i bought $800 worth of theatre tickets in new york.
they expired the card number, and issued a new one. amex is awesome.
i get a text message of a charge within about a minute of swiping the card.

i've had 4 numbers expired and reissued in the last year on different accounts.

it's at the point now, i wouldn't ever consider using an ATM card linked to
my checking account for anything. haven't for several years.

i'm down to two cards, the amex and a crapitol one, and i zero them every week.
paying everything off but the mortgage decreases your FiCO score a bit.
 
Fulthrotl said:
and people do. i use my amex card for most everything. a while ago,
i got a text message from amex.

at 5 am, while asleep, i bought $800 worth of theatre tickets in new york.
they expired the card number, and issued a new one. amex is awesome.
i get a text message of a charge within about a minute of swiping the card.

i've had 4 numbers expired and reissued in the last year on different accounts.

it's at the point now, i wouldn't ever consider using an ATM card linked to
my checking account for anything. haven't for several years.

i'm down to two cards, the amex and a crapitol one, and i zero them every week.
paying everything off but the mortgage decreases your FiCO score a bit.
Click to expand...




I'm not talking about YOUR credit card. I'm referring to the STOLEN CREDIT CARD NUMBERS the scammers have that they want YOU to use at your bank do DRAW OUT CASH and give to them.

Then when the CC company finds out YOU have used a stolen card to withdraw cash, they come after YOU wanting the money back.
 
480sparky said:
I'm not talking about YOUR credit card. I'm referring to the STOLEN CREDIT CARD NUMBERS the scammers have that they want YOU to use at your bank do DRAW OUT CASH and give to them.

Then when the CC company finds out YOU have used a stolen card to withdraw cash, they come after YOU wanting the money back.
Click to expand...

well, they were stolen from somebody, right?
it appears it might have been me.
 
480sparky said:
I'm not talking about YOUR credit card. I'm referring to the STOLEN CREDIT CARD NUMBERS the scammers have that they want YOU to use at your bank do DRAW OUT CASH and give to them.

Then when the CC company finds out YOU have used a stolen card to withdraw cash, they come after YOU wanting the money back.
Click to expand...
Most scams appeal to basic human greed - the desire to get something for nothing. Contrary to the old adage, you can cheat an honest man, but it's a lot harder.
 
Fulthrotl said:
and people do. i use my amex card for most everything. a while ago,
i got a text message from amex.

at 5 am, while asleep, i bought $800 worth of theatre tickets in new york.
they expired the card number, and issued a new one. amex is awesome.
i get a text message of a charge within about a minute of swiping the card.

i've had 4 numbers expired and reissued in the last year on different accounts.

it's at the point now, i wouldn't ever consider using an ATM card linked to
my checking account for anything. haven't for several years.

i'm down to two cards, the amex and a crapitol one, and i zero them every week.
paying everything off but the mortgage decreases your FiCO score a bit.
Click to expand...

The fact that you're slightly off-topic aside...my girlfriend works at the bank where my money is. They're pretty strict. I have to tell them if I'm going to use my debit card outside of this state. But I never use the card linked to my checking account. I write checks on it, and I use it to pay the credit cards I use to buy materials. My gf uses the card that's linked to our joint account, at the grocery store, pharmacy, or whatever.

She also works in the actual department that deals with electronic banking, so I feel pretty secure knowing that she could track down any improper usage of our cards and keep us from losing money.

I have two Capital One credit cards. I know they seem to have a bad reputation, but maybe I never find myself in those situations because I love them. Many years ago when I had bad credit because of my poor choices they gave me a chance. I have paid them interest only once despite charging thousands of dollars every month. I had one slip up with a late payment, but it was due to some confusion and I called them and they forgave me and credited me the late fee.

One time they declined a $600 purchase on one of the cards because it was suspicious. I used the other card and it went through, but I got a text before I even walked away from the cashier asking me if I had made that purchase. The first card I use for personal stuff so I rarely charged more than a hundred dollars at a time. The second card I use for materials, so I am routinely spending $600-$1500 at once on it.

Anyway, figured we were sharing EFT stories now.
 
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