Scam Identity Theft Calls to Cell Phones Tout Expiring Auto Warranty, Coming from 408-587-2116 and 623-238-6228 2/7/2008 - 3,085 views, 17 Comments
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People across the country are reporting telephone calls coming from the numbers 623-238-6228 and 408-587-2116. These calls claim that your car warranty is expiring, but they are really scam artists trying to steal your personal information and identity. Other numbers generating these spam identity theft calls include 202-552-1332, 702-520-1105, 609-948-0971 and 562-289-8136. The calls always say roughly the same thing (often leaving automated voicemail), along the lines of: “Your car warranty is expiring. We have notified you several times by mail.” or “Your car warranty has expired! Protect your loved ones with an extended warranty!” Sometimes, instead of an expired warranty, they will also offer debt consolidation or refinance loans. In any case, they are after your financial information, and your money. These calls are illegal, probably under both the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), and the Federal anti-spam law, CAN-SPAM. You can report these calls to the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) - and file a complaint with the FCC at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/complaints.html.
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» Are You a Grand Theft Auto Widow? Tell Us Your Story!
» Anti-Spam and Identity Theft Laws Come to the Heartland with Passage of Iowa Bills
» Identity Theft Insurance Now Available
For additional similar stories check out our archives on Cell Phones, Identity Theft, Scams, Spam
Correction: These calls are not legal if you are on the Federal Do Not Call list.
Comment by Michael — 2/13/2008 @ 8:16 am
Mike,
the above article says the calls are illegal, not legal- it doesnt matter if you on the DNC list or not the calls afre ILLEGAL
Comment by Kimberly — 2/13/2008 @ 11:02 am
they called me at 978–570-2338. be on the lookout for those creeps
Comment by Patrick — 2/14/2008 @ 4:17 am
(207) 464-8707 another number (Feb 21 2008) with the auto warranty scam. I kept the guy on the phone with false info about my car. I acted kind of stupid and they wanted to sell me a $2530 extended warranty. He transferred me to another guy who was all ready to take my credit card info over the phone. I offered to send him a check. He wanted my bank account info for an electronic funds transfer. When I told him I was reporting him to the FCC, he hung up. (207) 464-8707 mess with them if you get a call. String them along as far as you can. Make them waste time. Don’t give them any information that is real. Tell them that you don’t have a credit card and no checking account because you had a bad experience with the bank, but you can send them a cashiers check or a money order. He’ll stutter and stumble
but chances are you won’t get a mailing address out of him. If you do, file a report with the FCC and with the attorney general’s office of the state they called from.
Comment by Jay — 2/21/2008 @ 10:26 pm
Another phone number is: 919-219-8134
Comment by Greg — 3/13/2008 @ 6:36 am
I’m sorry, it is 916-219-8134, not 919.
Comment by Greg — 3/13/2008 @ 6:39 am
925-429-0244 Is Auto Warranty Services AKA Pacific Guard Warranty. DO NOT buy this warranty service. Trust me. I know what I am talking about! It’s a small company working under Warrantech/Consumer direct. Office located in Concord, California. Owners reside in the state of MO. They do not screen their telemarketers before employment. Those people are taking your checking accounts/creditcards. Currently there are 2 Ex-Cons working in there right now. They call themselves Senior Warranty specialists. They use a hand-made script and engage in aggressive sales. All the calls you receive are from a call center hired by them. So don’t count on those calls ever ending. There are hundreds of numbers they generate.
Sad thing about the whole thing is a majority of the people who have signed on with them don’t realize they have been scammed till months or even years down the road. When you sign up, you either pay in full with a so-called discount or you have up to 1 year to pay it off. Your vehicle has to be in perfect shape in order for them to accept you. Some people don’t have any problems during the warranty which is usually 5 years. And when somebody does have a problem like after a year or 2 after they paid the dues, they realize they got scammed and there is nothing they can do. Some states only qualify for certain services, but they will still sell you the very same warranty even knowing you will not qualify for a certain service. They are dishonest and they live happily being that way. There some pretty interesting posts at ripoffreport.com just keyword pacific guard warranty and you will see what others are saying. I’d love to share more information, but I really don’t know who I am dealing with in here. I just hope you are not one of their victims. good luck and be safe.
Comment by Anomy — 3/16/2008 @ 9:18 pm
Correction, the above phone numbers are 925-429-3418 the other is 866-429-0244
Comment by Anomy — 3/16/2008 @ 9:24 pm
They just called me with a new number on the caller ID. The last digit is 6 instead of 4. I can only assume they bought a whole block of numbers from the phone company and are cycling through the numbers as they get discovered.
As I’ve done a couple of times before, I went ahead and played along. Here is what I’ve found out from my last two calls:
CALL ONE:
Him: I understand you are interested in extending the warranty on your vehicle.
Me: YES, yes!
Comment by Scam Hunter — 3/17/2008 @ 10:14 am
Please be on the look out for the international scam artist.they say. Your car warranty is almost expired please call to renew before deadline. you call and that ask what make & model your car is. you tell them and the scam begins.
Comment by stephanie — 3/18/2008 @ 5:23 pm
Another phone number they are using: 916-219-8141. I repeated the latest call (an illegal prerecorded message to my cell) to the FCC using online form 1080. The message claims that they are giving me a “second and final warning” that the car warranty will expire.
Comment by JJones — 3/31/2008 @ 12:05 pm
I just got a call at my house, but I don’t have caller ID. *69 said the number was “unknown.” Anyway, it started with a recording of a woman warning me that this is the final notice and I should press 2 to speak to a representative or whatever. In an attempt to identify who was violating my DNC list membership, I pressed it. I get a guy who says, “Warranty department, how can I help you?” I ask him what company I’m speaking with. Without a word, he immediately transfers me to another guy: “Warranty department, this is Shawn. Verify the year, make and model of your vehicle please.” Again I ask which company this is. Transfered again.
New guy: “Verify year, make and model of your vehicle please.”
Me: “What company is this?”
Long pause.
“General Motors, verify year make and model of your vehicle please.”
Me: “This is General Motors?”
Transfered again.
Back to the first guy, who says, “Warranty department, how can I help you?”
Me: “Is this General Mo…”
He doesn’t wait for me to finish this time.
“VERIFY THE YEAR, MAKE AND MODEL OF YOUR VEHICLE PLEASE.”
Then comes another one of those annoying questions from me: “Are you getting angry with me?”
I guess they realized at this point that they weren’t going to get my money, and they hung up on me.
Comment by Steve — 4/9/2008 @ 12:33 pm
I get these calls too. What I don’t understand is how can they be in business for so many years.
It means all of us are just whining in forums and blogs like these but take no serious action.
The FCC is a black hole. It is not accountable or these guys would be long gone now or better yet they could have not been in business in the first place.
The Do Not Call List should have a provision that a person listed on it could subpoena the Telco to find all information about spammers.
Oh well. Spam is coming to phone. What’s new?
Comment by Homer — 4/26/2008 @ 6:44 am
I got called today. And I thank god that I hesitated in releasing my information. I got them to send me an email instead. Here is the phone number they called on: 505-753-1990
Comment by An — 4/29/2008 @ 12:53 pm
Give these guys a call or send them an email and let them know the calls should stop.
The Warranty Group
Phone: 312-356-3000
175 W. Jackson Blvd.
Chicago IL 60604
Tom Murray, President & COO, Resource Dealer Group
tom.murray@thewg.com
PH: (312) 356-2351
FX: (312) 395-9410
Mark H. Mishler, President & CFO
mark.mishler@thewg.com
PH: (312) 356-3006
FX: (312) 356-3007
John England, President & COO, Resource Automotive, Inc.
john.england@thewg.com
PH: (312) 356-3012
FX: (312) 356-3013
Patrick Donahue, President and CEO, First Extended Service Corporation
patrick.donahue@thewg.com
PH: (214) 637-7223
FX: (312) 395-9380
David Cole, Chairman & CEO
david.cole@thewg.com
PH: (312) 356-3002
FX: (312) 356-3003
Comment by Ted Nugent — 6/6/2008 @ 10:23 pm
Here are the phone numbers that these joerks have called my kids cell phone number from:
702-520-1449
702-520-1462
702-520-1477
702-520-1409
702-520-1487
Comment by Ericka — 6/27/2008 @ 11:56 am
Herbie Knopenfelter is on the job! I give telemarketers hell over the phone! I am founder of CAT (Citizens Against Telemarketers). You may not know who I am but you all soon will. I am tired of phonecalls like this and Im given them a taste of their own medicine!
Comment by Herbie Knopenfelter — 6/28/2008 @ 4:40 pm