Unusual scam making the rounds
 

I went to ACE Hardware in Lady Lake last week. I like that store and the people in it. The next day I got a very professional looking message on my IPhone from ACE saying my name was selected to win a power drill. It looked really good, even though I would have to pay shipping, So, I clicked on the link in the message (I never do that but, hey, ACE Hardware?). The clicked-on link took me to another professional looking page where I was to claim my prize. I answered some innocuous questions (name, address, phone number), and then they asked me how I wanted to pay shipping (about $4.50). They had my three credit cards and PayPal listed, just as if I was buying from Amazon. But I had shut down one of those cards months ago. For fun, I clicked on that choice and sat back to see what would happen. In a few minutes "they" came back saying that credit card would not work, and would I please send them my social security number and bank account information so they could fix the card for me. Again, it looked very professional, but there was no way I was going to give information like that to strangers on the internet. Now, since then, I get dozens of text messages a day. I can tell they come from foreign countries because they use the +1 USA country code when they dial my number. Some of their messages are funny: The latest of these scam messages said that they could fix me so that I could "last" more than 10 minutes, and that my lady friend would really appreciate it. LOL
Now, there are two reasons for posting this thread. The first is to clue Talk of the Villages denizens into this scam. The second is to ask if anyone knows how to clear my phone so that these text messages stop.

Since messages are essential free, the scammers pick familiar companies. Eventually they will hook somebody. If you get an email you can "hover" over the address. Many times, it will have a "gmail" account. Multibillion million/billion $ companies do not use gmail.

By responding to the message you confirmed that it was a valid number and I am sure it has been sold many times over. You can contact your carrier but I doubt there is anything they can do.

And....they are not that unusual.
I get several each week from alleged Costco, Sam's, Home Depot, Ace.......just like the many phony caller id's we all get on our phones.....these name brand "freebies" are out trolling for suckers.

If they are not in your contact list DO NOT ANSWER!

By email mail, text if they are offering something free....DO NOT RESPOND.

The scammers know seniors favorite word......FREE!!!!!!!!!!

_____________________________________________

:censored:

Thanks for the head's up.

You probably got scammed by malware in ACE hardware Wi-Fi system searching for info on unsuspecting customers. Cell phones continually send out location signals whether your trying to place a call or not.

I started turning on my "do not disturb" setting, with the exception for numbers in my contacts list. So, I only get calls and texts from numbers in my contacts. It works great except when someone you know calls who is not in your contacts.

OP, you should also be able to add the phone numbers to your blocked call list.

That only works when the scammer uses the same number when they call. But, most scammers will spoof a different number every time they call. The blocked call list is worthless against spoofers.

Nothing unusual about it. They are trying to get a bunch of different things from you. It looks like they succeeded with around half of those things, because you a) clicked the initial link b) clicked the next link c) confirmed that it really is you and that c1) you aren't an AI response system, d) that you have credit card numbers stored in your cell phone which could possibly be valid and e) that you will fall for these scams at least enough to get through a, b, c, c1, and d.

And now they can use that information for themselves, sending you cleverer and cleverer texts that look more and more official until you actually get suckered into an expensive scam, or sell that information to listing services that feed it to other scammers who will do it instead.

first rule is never to engage scammers, as they note that you have engaged in the past. Never answer the phone from a number you don't know, they can leave a message. . . Second, with text messages, block number and delete text. Doesn't matter that they change numbers, they realize you block numbers, and don't respond. . . . . .

engaging just makes your life more noisy with more distractions

They can spoof other numbers. I've had phone calls with caller ID saying it came from my own phone.

Some of them also use caller ID block. Unfortunately, so do a couple of my friends. So I have to answer the phone in case it's one of them.

Just a coincidence. I get those also and I never walk into ACE. They also send out crap about packages from UPS, Fedex ... IRS notices, etc. If they send out a million "your UPS package can't be delivered due to a bad address" they will make contact with a LOT of people expecting UPS packages. And some of those will fall for the scam ... as you did ... at least as far as you went..

I fell for the same scam last month in my desktop email
 

First clue should have been the tag line "ace" instead of "Ace". They will bug you 2-3 times per day for about 2 weeks, then back off to once a week to "confirm your purchase". They never got my card # but the contact sure does cause me to kick myself in the a$$ for falling for it. I get one every 10 days or so now. I tried everything to block it, but since it is waning in frequency, I assume it will stop. Annoying? Yes, but it now serves as a reminder that there are idiots our there just looking to suck information out of you. Don't let your guard down.

I started to receive Emails that say no sender. Ace,Kohl’s and so on. You can’t block the sender because it has no sender. When you try to unsubscribe it just takes you to another sales pitch. I just move it to junk that’s about all you can do.