Scam phone numbers are used every day to trick unsuspecting people into giving away their private information and money. With almost 1 million unknown calls screened by Genie, we thought it would be important to share the most common phone numbers to beware of, with the hope of keeping you protected.
We are counting down the top 3 scam callers that Genie has blocked recently.
#3: 507-214-4050 - Car Warranty and Insurance Scammers
This very common scam number is targeting individuals claiming to be from a car insurance agency. According to the data collected in 2021, these kinds of scammers placed a total of nearly 13 billion such car insurance/warranty calls, accounting for 18 percent of all scam calls for the entire year.
Example transcript from one of these calls:
hi my name is Chris, I'm calling from endurance and replying back to you regarding the warranty status of your vehicle. Our protection plans will help you avoid costly repair bills. Please call us back now so we can go over your coverage and you'll also be eligible for additional benefits at no added cost. We look forward to hearing from you
#2: 866-978-6103 - Philippines’ Fraudulent Call Center
These scammers are calling from the Philippines and pretending to offer legal help, financial compensation, and class action lawsuit settlements if you were previously injured or affected by a motor vehicle accident, medical procedure, medication or chemical, food item, defective product, retail or restaurant service, or other causes of personal injury. But these scammers are really trying to steal your credit card number, banking information, Medicare and Social Security numbers, your health history and health insurance data, and personal information for identity theft under the pretense of saying that they will help you obtain compensation because they are a (fake) doctor, law firm, or government office. Best practice is to block this number immediately.
#1: 833-213-4730 - Medicare Rewards Robocall
This robocaller is making a ton of cold calls about medicare rewards. According to AgingCare, fraudulent medicare activity tends to increase around the Medicare Open Enrollment (MOE) period, which is right around the corner, starting October 15 to December 7 each year. This caller does not have consent to call these people, making us suspect it is a scammer. The FCC warns that these calls often start “automated or pre-recorded – you may be instructed to press a certain number or stay on the line, then asked to provide personal information, which potentially can be used to defraud you.”
Again we’d like to stress, if you don't have the Genie app to block these calls for you, make sure you don’t interact with the caller and block the number immediately.
Example transcript from one of these calls:
This is a call on a recorded line calling from Medicare rewards. Can you hear me okay? I'm with Medicare rewards regarding your insurance. Call me back.