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AREA CODE 809 TELEPHONE SCAM
Please do not respond to email, phone calls or pages that tell you to
call an 809 phone number. Area code 809 is located in the
Caribbean. This scam is spreading extremely quickly, can easily
cost you $100 or more, and is difficult to avoid unless you are aware
of it. Here is how it works:
Scenario 1 - Internet Based Phone Scam Via Email:
You receive an email, typically with a subject line of "*ALERT*" or
"Unpaid Account." The message, which is being deployed across the
internet, says: "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 to avoid court action, call
Mike Murray at Global Communications at 1-809-000-0000."
Scenario 2 - Phone Or Pager Scam:
You receive a message on your answering machine or your pager which
asks you to call a number beginning with area code 809. The
reason you are asked to call varies: it can be to receive information
about a family member who has been ill, 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 US or
Canada, you will be charged $25 per minute or more! Sometimes the
person who answers the phone will speak broken English and pretend not
to understand you. Other times, you'll just get a long recorded
message. The point is to keep you on the phone as long as
possible to increase the connect charges. The 809 area code can
be used as a "pay per call" number, similar to 900 and 976 numbers in
the US and Canada. Since 809 is outside the country, it is not covered
by our regulations of 900 numbers, which require that you be notified
and warned of charges and rates involved when you call a "pay per call"
number. There is also no requirement that the company provide a
time period during which you may terminate the call without being
charged. Further, whereas many phones have 900 number blocking,
this feature will not prevent calls to the 809 area code. It is
recommended that no matter how you get the message, if you are asked to
call a number with an 809 area code that you do not recognize,
investigate further and/or disregard the message. Be very wary of
email or calls asking you to call an 809 area code number, as fighting
the charges afterwards can become a real nightmare. You did,
after all, make the call. If you complain, both our 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 will end up dealing with a
foreign company that insists they have done nothing wrong.
PEELERS MINI-COUPON CARDS
The Neighbourhood Watch is raising funds to support program awareness
by posting signs and distributing this newsletter, other literature and
stickers. We are selling "Peeler Cards" which have several
"buy-one, get-one-free" coupons for area restaurants and may be used by
anyone at anytime. These handy wallet-sized cards are currently
accepted at Arby's, Java Moose, Harvey's, KFC, Taco Bell, Burger King,
Greco, Capt Submarine and Pizza Hut. Please support the program
and ask your Block Captain for a Peeler Card.
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FRAUDULENT TRAVELLERS CHEQUES
The Fredericton Chamber of Commerce wishes to pass along the following
warning issued by the RCMP as published in the Telegraph Journal.
The RCMP J Division commercial crime section is warning people that
fraudulent American Express travellers cheques are being circulated in
the Atlantic provinces. The cheques are in the amounts of $100
and $500 denominations and the serial numbers known to be potential
forgeries are: AX602-301-330 to AX602-301-600. The suspect is
described as a 40-year-old white man with a height of 5-foot-10 inches
to six feet. He weighs about 175 pounds and has short brown hair
with graying on the sides. His demeanor is described as polite
and business like. He was observed leaving the businesses where
he had transacted a counterfeit cheque, in a rented vehicle bearing a
Nova Scotia license plate, but could be using other provincial
plates. He has been active in Saint John and is reported to have
also passed counterfeit bills to acquire travellers cheques, as well,
he has passed counterfeit travellers cheques. He has used a
counterfeit Government of Canada identification card in the name of
Kevin John Gabriel Stinson with a date of birth of June 14, 1964.
The police advise contacting your local financial institution to obtain
verification of potentially fraudulent American Express travellers
cheques.
CALL THE RCMP FOR VERIFICATION
If someone tries to solicit funds from you for a charity or an
organization that you do not recognize, call the RCMP to verify their
legitimacy before you give them any money. The RCMP should be
made aware of all canvassing activities in our area.
IS THE LOCATION OF YOUR HOME STILL A SECRET?
As you know, every home in the province now has a proper street address
since the NB government implemented civic addressing. This
address is automatically relayed to emergency services when a 911 call
is placed from your home. This helps, but it is not enough.
The emergency vehicles still must find your home. You can help by
placing blue reflective street number signs in a visible location close
to your home. If you do not have a number sign, you may order one
at the Westfield Country Store for only $8. When every second
counts, a number sign could help save your life.
WHAT IS TALKMAIL? DO I NEED IT?
It is possible to alert all area residents of an emergency situation or
perhaps a suspicious activity in your neighbourhood within minutes of
it being reported to the RCMP. How? By using
TalkMail. Should the need arise, the RCMP notifies the Zone
Leaders, who, in turn, notify the Block Captains. They will then
notify the residents of their respective blocks. When you hear a
broken dial-tone on your telephone, there is a message waiting.
Press *99 to listen to it. You can sign up for TalkMail service
easily. And it’s free. The instructions can be found in the
current NBTel telephone directory on page 24. Or ask your block
captain, who will be happy to help you set up TalkMail.
REPORTING SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY
Please don't hesitate to alert the RCMP at 757-1020 of any suspicious
activity that you see. It's not an inconvenience; it's necessary.
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