Trying to get bank account number AGAIN!!

ComplaintsUnsolicited Phone CallsFirst Consumers?/Fraud Watch

Complaint

0
Ann
Country: United States
My mother just received another unsolicited phone call from a company called "First Consumer"--when I dialed that number last night is what the machine said, I just called now and the message said Fraud Watch?!
I think it may be tied in to her money fraud from InterBen as they have all of her information.  
They acted like they were going to give her back some of the money that they electronically took out of her bank account--they even went so far as to give her a case file number.  This company uses the amount of $279.00 with the calls that they make according to my Mom's experience and what I have found about them on the internet.
The number they gave her to call is 855-649-0679.

Comments

12Next
  • 0
    Binkie
    | 4 replies
    my 88 year old mother just got scammed  for $369.00, with Fraud Watch!! She also got hit with another one with a name like ..Splendor concepts web...another couple hundred dollars gone....to bad these people can't figure out how to make the world a better place instead of one where we can't trust anyone!!! She got  scammed good from Direct T.V. for over $3,000.00, but after 4 months we were able to get that money back. The lady taking the money probably got a hand slap and is helping herself to other checking accounts.
    • 0
      Bank Loss Prevention Specialist replies to Binkie
      | 2 replies
      I called on behalf of an elderly customer, Fraudwatch has a recorded conversation for each of their transactions.  If you ask, they will play it for you.  In my case, it was the customer and the customer provided all of their personal information to First Consumers First/Fraudwatch.  The representative explained the one time charge and the date the order was taken as well as all the other details for the transaction.  This is an unfortunate situation and many elderly are targeted.  I recommeded caller ID to my customer, although they will receive a monthly charge for the service it would have prevented this $369.00 charge and others like it.  The elderly then can answer the phone only when people they know are calling.
      • 0
        | 1 reply
        This company is showing up in complaints of unauthorized and fraudulent charges, with reports they are specifically targeting the elderly.

        That type of telemarketing has often involved deceptive misrepresentations, including faking of recorded calls.
        The Canadian "business directory" scams do it all the time, and the Canadian "discount medical card" scams do also.  

        Reported patterns in this scam match several characteristics of the Canadian medical card scams, suggesting that it's being run by someone who got their experience there, or possibly even from a Canadian call center (probably in the Montreal area).  For example, they also use "remotely created checks" and ACH charges against checking account numbers as their preferred money grabbing path, rather than asking for credit or debit cards.

        Doctoring recordings is real easy to do, and it's real common with fraudulent telemarketers.  It works pretty well for fooling bank investigators who have never see blatant fraud before, because it creates the appearance of a "legitimate" transaction to go along with the appearance of a "product" (the alleged "service"), and it costs them NOTHING if you don't buy it.  The game is get the account number by any means, and if challenged, throw sh*t at you and hope you believe it  If not, oh well, go con the next sucker.  Keep that money flowing.

        You may have heard one recording, and it may even have had the victim providing their account number, but there is no way to know if the sales pitch you heard was the same sales pitch the victim heard.  

        Who's going to agree to some unknown service from some unknown company, costing $400?  No problem!  A common switcheroo is to say "there is no obligation, this is just a free trial, and you can cancel at any time", or "we'll just send you an information packet", then make sure there is no way they can cancel, maybe the cancellation information is in the "information packet", which never arives, or looks as close to junk mail as they can make it.  They could have been told a line of BS like this, and their responses could have been edited into an entirely different sales script "agreeing" to a sale and the charges for it.

        You would never know the difference, and with an elderly customer, maybe even one easily confused, you will just go along and hand over the money.

        You're as much of a sucker as your customer.
        • 0
          tj replies to tj
          By the way, many of the large banks got caught in bed with telemarketers using exactly the above sort of telephone fraud, selling "credit protection".

          Look op AG actions and class action lawsuits against Bank of America, Citi, Chase, Discover, etc.
          They handed over access to customer accounts for setting up monthly charges, then the telemarketers were incentivized to "sell".  Then came all the fraud, including faked recordings, some supposedly to people who were on vacation when they were recorded "agreeing".  They wre caught red handed, but it still goes on.
    • 0
      Sharon replies to Binkie
      This same thing happened to my mom and stepdad.  He is too embarrassed to tell me that he actually fell for it, but he did say that the bank took out $369 from their checking and when he saw it on his statement, he went to the bank and was told that it was an unsigned check made to First Consumers. They put the money back into his account and on another day, he told me that they have been getting phone calls wanting their account number and/or a blank check and they have lottery money for him.  I'm not sure how he got scammed, but he is on the alert now and just hangs up when they call him.
  • 0
    tj
    | 1 reply
    Calling victims with some story about getting stolen money back is a common fraudulent telemarketing "reloading" scam.

    Interesting to see this "Fraud Watch" linked to fraudulent InterBen charges.

    There is a long history of fraudulent telemarketing targeted at seniors originating from the Montreal Canada area, purportedly selling "medical discount plans", most recently reported to show charges under the name InterBen.

    Also interesting to see it linked to the fraudulent SplendorConcepts charges.
    No one has yet reported a connection between the SplendorConcepts charges and an actual telemarketing call, yet the people targeted include a high percentage of the eldeerly, similar to the InterBen fraud.

    Common connection to this phony "Fraud Watch" ties SplendorConcepts fraud to the earlier InterBen fraud.

    All three are probably cross border fraud coming from Montreal Canada.

    Contact FTC, the Illinios AG, and RCMP.
    • 0
      Patricia Russell replies to tj
      I am not one of the 88 year old compliants, but I am one with a very limited  income and as of May 6th of this year I have been first told that my bank contacted them about scammers hitting my bank account and that they just needed to verify my infro . Then I was told that this call had nothing to dowith me having to give them money it was to keep people from taking it. Well you guessed it they took 3966.00 from my account the very day.I did not ask for this service nor did my bank . Everytime I call them they have excuses as to why I haven't received my money. There must be something that the computer patrollers can do to stop this and get people like myself are money . It's not like we asked them to call and lie to us and then take money that not a one of us have. Please if there is any avenues that one can take pleasa list them with numbers that we can call. I thought Canada was a friend not Nigeria scamming from abroad. I have hundreds of family in Canada and I'd hate to think one of them is working for people like these.
  • 0
    tj
    | 1 reply
    There are many mail forwarders operating out of Champlain, used to create the appearance of a US location for Canadian scams.

    BBB report on Discount Medical Benefits, rated "F":
    http://www.bbb.org/upstate-new-york/business- ... in-ny-235963730
    Discount Medical Benefits
    Phone: (866) 304-2401
    1176 A Main St, Champlain , NY 12919

    BBB report on Discount Medical Services, rated "F":
    http://www.bbb.org/upstate-new-york/business- ... in-ny-165454830
    Discount Medical Benefits
    Phone: (866) 304-2401
    1176 A Main St, Champlain , NY 12919


    BBB report on InterBen Med, rated "F":
    Mail reportedly returned undeliverable.
    http://www.bbb.org/upstate-new-york/business- ... in-ny-235967188
    Interben Med
    100 Walnut St Suite 1051, Champlain, NY 12919

    BBB report on Splendor Concepts, rated "F":
    Website pitches some mortgage reduction educational product, yet all consumer complaints report fraudulent charges with no prior contact.
    http://www.bbb.org/chicago/business-reviews/m ... 0259/complaints
    Splendor Concepts
    (866) 775-4392
    161 N Clark St Ste 4700, Chicago, IL 60601-3201
    • 0
      tj replies to tj
      BBB report on First Consumers Fraud Watch, rated "F":
      Failed to respond to complaint.
      http://www.bbb.org/chicago/business-reviews/f ... ago-il-88480146
      First Consumers Fraud Watch
      53 W Jackson Blvd Ste 635, Chicago, IL 60604-3455

      BBB reports a number of businesses with the name "Fraud Watch", including seveal where mail was returned, and one with a Champlain NY mail drop.  Many appear to be (or to have once been) "credit card fraud protection" fraudulent telemarketing scams.
  • 0
    tj
    Predatory telemarketing complaints, Fraud Watch:
    https://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-855-649-0679
  • 0
    Bright
    I have be scam 30,000 Naira on the 10/7/2012 by the below account name and account number and I want FIRST BANK to take the necessary action because this people are spoiling the name of first bank.
    Account name:         Olorunmodimu Tinuola.
    Account number:     3027593883
    Bank name:               First bank of Nigeria

    Here is the mobile number that he as be using to contact me: 8171882938. And this person to me that is a youth coups serving in Benue state
    Best regards
    Bright
  • 0
    d man
    | 1 reply
    My mother received a call from this fraud watch saying they could get some of her money back, he left a message with the name Paul Anderson and to contact him at 855-649-0679. Also called back when my sister was there and when my mom said to talk to her daughter they hung up. The number he gave my mom was 855-649-0681. THIS IS A MAJOR SCAM !!!!! DO NOT GIVE ANY BANK INFO, and TELL ELDERLY PARENTS/GRANDPARENTS, FAMILY and FRIENDS to BEWARE.
    • 0
      tj replies to d man
      This "Fraud Watch" has shown up with thin complaints, but with a pattern visible of being associated with elder fraud.

      In the "fraud industry" this is known as "reloading":  call some sucker who fell for an earlier scam, and scam them again, "to get it back".  This is particularly common with scams targeted at the elderly.

      And how, exactly, did they end up with her name?  ESP?  Not likely.

      Sounds like your mom is either being swindled by the same scammers as earler, or they have sold her name on a "sucker list".

      What fraud did your mom get swindled by earlier?
  • 0
    Wendy B.
    | 3 replies
    This bunch of rag-tag idiot losers called my 87 yr old grandmother this morning and told her that her "identity had been stolen aprox 72 hours ago" and that they got her information off of the computer.  My grandmother doesn't even own a computer!  She told the man on the phone that he would need to speak with her granddaughter.  He hung up on her.  I tried to call the number on the Caller ID 855-649-0679 (shows up as "800 Service") for more info, but there was no answer.

    Thank goodness my grandmother is a smart cookie and didn't give them any information!  

    WHAT A BUNCH OF FREAKIN' LOSERS!
    • 0
      tj replies to Wendy B.
      | 2 replies
      Watch her accounts closely for fraudulent charges, and if you find any, immediately contact her bank to dispute them as fraudulent, and shut down the account.

      Your grandmother was being targeted for some reason, and in some cases that may mean her name is being sold by other fraudulent telemarketers on some "sucker list".  Some of those lists are (illegally) being sold complete with bank account information, allowing deceptive telemarketers to be even more deceptive in their "sales calls", since they don't even have to elicit disclosure of full account information to run through charges, so the victim might not be tipped off.  They are just looking for enough of a recording that they can falsely claim is a charge authorization, even if it doesn't meet FTC TSR rules.

      Con her, con you, con your bank, it's all the same game.
      • 0
        AJ replies to tj
        | 1 reply
        My great aunt was scammed last week.  Luckily I was sitting right here listening ad new what was going on.  We called her bank immediately after she hung up.  An electronic check was put thru her acct 2 days later even with a block on the acct. The check was dated the day of the call in which the caller stated he was from her bank and someone had committed fraud on her acct.  The post on the back of the check indicated it was cashed/deposited into a Susquehanna Bank account.  I want these losers, bad. They are preying on the elderly and it is just WRONG.
        • 0
          AJ replies to AJ
          The check was made out to First Consumers and was for $369.
12Next

Post a new comment