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Increasingly, scammers are targeting cord cutters by putting fake customer service phone numbers online. Cord cutters searching for how to call popular services like Netflix, Fubo, and more are not finding the phone number to the service but a scammer’s number. From there, the scammers try to charge them for customer service or get them to sign up for services they don’t need.
If you want to cancel or make changes to a subscription, make sure you’re getting the information directly from the company’s website. This might seem like a given, but phony websites can look pretty real. Instead of Googling how to cancel the subscription, visit the provider’s website and search for its FAQ. This also goes for finding a company’s customer service number. Scammers can pose as customer service representatives to steal your credit card information.
GO TO COMPANY'S WEBSITE and NEVER GOOGLE SEARCH FOR CONTACT INFO!
There was an email mail-list from the Digital Goddess Kim Komando last week that also talked about other search terms to avoid: ⚠️ Exposed: 3 dangerous search terms to avoid at all costs
I tracked down all the Big Tech tech support phone numbers you might need, as published on their websites: Amazon: 888-280-4331; Microsoft: 800-642-7676; Apple: 800-275-2273; Google: 650-253-0000 and Meta (Facebook, Instagram): 650-543-4800.
3. ‘Free people search’
Use:
Check out publicly available info like government documents, arrest records and property information.
Do a thorough Google Search. There’s an art to this. Try these steps.
Thank you for posting this, and I wish I knew it several years ago. I was a victim of ID theft some time ago, through a fake customer service phone number posted on an extremely well duplicated fake website. It ended up well, because the credit card carrier refunded me the $700 that was fraudulently charged, and I obtained a solid ID monitoring, something that I should have had in the first place. But it was a tremendous hassle, and I have no measurable credit score any more (which is fine because I don't envision taking any loans, but it could really hurt people who depend on borrowing). My credit is now frozen and locked.
That's good advice. I use Google to search because often it is faster. The key is to know how the address line works. For example the address line for this thread shows:
I never click a link in an email and I check the email address and IP said email came from. There are some obvious things that scammers do.
No telemarketer can get through to me, as only people on my contact list can ring through. The rest get sent directly to voicemail, and many of those end up getting blocked altogether.
Useful link. What, however, makes the point specifically applicable to cord cutters?
As for identify theft - we don’t subscribe to any protection service. We do, however, have a permanent credit freeze with 3 main credit rating agencies. [Need to do it a couple more what have sprung up.] Someone does have my wife’s identity details and applies for credit cards in her name all over. But, they all get rejected due to lack of credit reports. I’d highly recommend that strategy.
One key to that type of scam is if they ask you for credit card info. Because the streaming service already has your billing info. NEVER give out credit card or SS# over the phone.
We do, however, have a permanent credit freeze with 3 main credit rating agencies. [Need to do it a couple more what have sprung up.] Someone does have my wife’s identity details and applies for credit cards in her name all over. But, they all get rejected due to lack of credit reports. I’d highly recommend that strategy.
You have to pay a fee to the companies for a permanent freeze but it is small. And, if someone needs your credit report - you'd unfreeze it for an hour or too and refreeze it.
I am not happy with the freezing / unfreezing functionality as it allows anybody, not just the party you wish to have your credit report, to pull the report during the interval the report is unfrozen. But, that's what's on offer.
I locked my credit with the four agencies, and was not charged a fee either in the beginning or when I've had to temporarily unlock/re-lock my credit, which is not a difficult process.
It's free to freeze and/or lock your credit, and it's the only way I feel safe. I've been involved in several PI breeches, so get free credit monitoring as well.
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