edited by moderator SamT

Check this out before forwarding this warning on
http://www.sophos.com/virusinfo/hoaxes/press9.html
---------------------------------------------------------------

I just came across this on another site and though i'd pass on the info. It doesn't seem possible but ppl replying to this thread had been scammed in this way so there must be something in it.


A new telephone fraud currently in operation applies
to home and work telephones, landlines and mobiles.

If you receive one of these calls, upon answering the telephone you will
hear a recorded message congratulating you on winning an all expenses trip
to an exotic location. You will then be asked to press 9 to hear further
details. If you press 9 you will be connected to a premium rate line that
costs approximately £20 per minute. Even if you disconnect immediately, it
will remain connected for a minimum of 5 minutes costing around £ 100. The
final part of the call involves you being asked to key in your postcode
and
house number, which has other serious consequences. After a further 2
minutes you will receive a message informing you that you are not one of
the
lucky winners. The total bill by then will be £100.

Since the calls are originating from outside the UK, BT and other
telephone
companies are left relatively powerless to act. The only safe solution is
to
HANG UP before the message prompts you to dial 9, even safer HANG UP on
any
unsolicited 'free offer calls'.

There is another scam operating on mobile phones as well. A missed call
comes up. The number is 0709 020 3840, the last four numbers may vary, but
certainly the first four will remain the same. If you call this number
back
you will be charged £50 per minute.

People have complained about their phone bills, once they have realised
the
cost of the call, but apparently this is completely legal.

I would tell you that its a hoax but you won;t beleive me and I'm tired of tring to stop this rumour.

Now who said i wouldn't believe you?...i believed this didn't I. :wink:

best way to stop this rumour is to point people here.

http://www.sophos.com/virusinfo/hoaxes/press9.html

Everyone who reads this - when ever you get a mail like this - check it out on the sophos website before (albeit with the best intentions) passing it on.

Awesome avatar Melanie.

CN.

Glad you like it Niel. It's a self potrait of sorts made from tissue paper and gold leaf and is actually about 16 inches by by 25 inches. It lives at the top of my stairs and reminds me of why I go caving everytime I pass it.

so how does it remind you why you go caving?

Stop being obnoxious Tim. I remeber why I go caving when I go to the shops in Dronfield; it's a personal thing.

Anyway, WRT the original post, I think it's good advice that if any unsolicited recordings call, just hang up. We've had a few like this and it's such an invasion.

Cheeky b'stards...

wasn't being obnoxious.. just thought maybe it was don'e after , or pictures, a particularly memorable caving trip or something.

OK. Umm. Sorry...

Cave_Troll said:

so how does it remind you why you go caving?

Click to expand...

Well, I'd love to be able to say it was because of the fabulously fantastical formations or the vibrant colours that only exist because someone dares to go down there and shine a light, or the feeling of being special and somehow set apart from other people because you go to places they wouldn't even know or perhaps even care, existed. But, truth be told Tim this picture reminds me to stick to my diet. You see,
for me, whilst I do fully appreciate the formations, colours, sights and sounds and I love to revel in the camaraderie that a good trip brings, what I enjoy more than anything else about caving is the actual physical exertion of it. This might not mean a lot to some people but for me, having had weight problems for most of my life, which restricted my enjoyment of more active pursuits, I found caving gave me the goals I needed to finally fight the flab. Indeed, caving has given me a new lease and I find myself at the age of 42, in physically better shape than I was 20 years ago. The happiness and sense of achievement I now feel underground whilst doing something strenuous goes very deep. (Maybe this has something to do with never being picked for the rounders team in school because I was too fat.) In fact one of my greatest caving moments was the day I fitted into a medium sized over suit. Anyway this picture is entitled Easy Squeezy and it reminds me that there was a time, not so long ago, when squeezes like this would have been impossible for me undertake. Now, whenever I feel the urge to pig out, or even after I've gone on a bit of a binge, I look at this picture and I am reminded of all that caving has brought to me. It gets me back on track.

Maybe it's just a ‘girl thing.'

hey - that's a lovely story!

I know what you mean Mel the artwork that i did at the nss 2003 in Californa,Black chasm and Millerton lake cave,remind me of what a great time i had and can't wait to go again.Only problem is i work in a scool and they usually have the conference at the beging of july, perhaps next year?

Forgot to say if you get in contact with B.T. they should give you a number to phone to stop cold calling. One of my old tricks was to say to the person on the other end "excuse me a minuite there,s someone at the door"and leave the phone off the hook for five minuets,they usually hang up as for recorded one's just hang up

Try this like to stop unwanted calls to your land line, it takes about 30 days to become effective but since registering we have stopped getting
any dodgy calls.......period.

We used to get some chinese guy blabbering on about viagra at 2 in morning, if my arm was long enough i would have reached down the line and broken his frigging neck :evil:

http://www.tpsonline.org.uk

Stu.

One of my old tricks was to say to the person on the other end "excuse me a minuite there,s someone at the door"and leave the phone off the hook for five minuets,they usually hang up as for recorded one's just hang up

Click to expand...

I did that once, went back after half an hour, and they were still there!

Stu

TPS is good but only for calls originating in the UK - an increasing proportion originate overseas and are not covered. However it IS a good scheme....