According to several police departments across America, telemarketers have adopted a new sales pitch. It goes like this: “Can you hear me?”
“Our natural response is to say, ‘yes,’ or ‘sure,’ or ‘yes I can,'” says Norfolk Police Department Officer Jo Ann Hughes.
But once you do that, she adds, you’ve given the scammer the tools to manipulate you into paying up. All they’ve gotta do is take the recording of you saying “yes” and edit it into just about any conversation they’d like.
The Better Business Bureau has documented one variation of the scam in which telemarketers use recordings of victims saying “yes” to sign them up for unwanted products and services.
When those victims receive bills for those items and disputed them, the scammers played back the “confirmation” recording and threatened to pursue legal action unless the victim paid up.
In another frightening variation – as reported by CBS News – scammers use the recordings to authorize charges on a stolen credit card by tricking automated security systems designed to recognize voices.
So, how do you avoid falling prey?
It’s simple. As Los Angeles Times business columnist David Lazarus puts it, “if it sounds like [a telemarketer] is trying to get you to say ‘yes’ to something, careful, don’t say anything.”
Just hang up. It could save your wallet.
Learn more in the video below.
source and courtesy: David Wolfe