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Posted: Jun 06 2008 12:06 pm

So today I got a voicemail on my cellphone that went like this:

Hi (Syd), this is Barbara with Nassau (sp?) and I'm calling you in regards to a debt that you owe Advantage Funding. It's for the 2007 Mazda, there's an outstanding balance on this account still in the amount of $11,700. Please call me back at 281-444-4429 and reference file #38140 so that we can make some sort of arrangement to take this off the books and also so I don't have to send this to an attorney because that's what Advantage Funding is pressing us to do, because they sent the debt to us to collect. Thank you."

I do not now, nor have I ever, owned a 2007 Mazda. So there are three options here:

1. They are looking for someone else who lives in this area who has the same name as me. I know of at least two other people with the same name as my who have graduated from my alma-matter in the last two years. I graduated in 2005.

2. I'm the victim of identity theft.

3. It's a scam.

I am hoping it is option 1 or option 3. If it is option 2, I am severely fucked. However, I am pretty sure that it is a scam. Here are my reasons:

1. The woman calling me doesn't state her full name, they usually do
2. She doesn't clearly state the full name of her employer
3. No date is given on when the debt is from or when the purchase was made
4. According to Yahoo, the number that she gave is a personal residence in Texas: http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0geu_RmVUlIKwIBzghXNyoA?p=%22281+444+4429%22&fr=yfp-t-130&ei=UTF-8
5. I never list my cellphone number on ANY form that I fill out, just my house line.
6. My cellphone number isn't even registered to me; it's registered to my brother and his name shows up on caller IDs.
7. "An arrangement to take this off the books"? I've seen several pornos that used that line. That sounds completely sketchy.
8. According to FreeCreditReport.com, the only outstanding balances I have are student loans.

So I believe it's a scam. My cellphone was up on my Facebook, and I was pretty sure it was set so that only friends could see it, but it might have been set to Friends and Network and someone could have easily joined the Boston or UML network for the sole purpose of collecting cellphone numbers to scam. I took it down to be safe.

Joined: Jul 16 2006 Location: 22 Acacia Avenue Posts: 324

Even if it is identity theft, I wouldn't think you have too much to worry about.

I say call her back and explain that you don't own the car in question. After talking to you she should realize she's either got the wrong person, or someone has impersonated you.

If it's a scam, it should be pretty obvious once you talk to her.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 12:18 pm

i think its option 1. ask for the last four of the SSN on that account, and they shouldnt match up w/the last four of your SSN.

and regarding the cell #, they have skip tracers that usually look up all known relatives of said person, so they'll call all available listed numbers and hope they either contact someone that knows your or the actual individual itself.

Joined: Jul 16 2006 Location: 22 Acacia Avenue Posts: 324

To add to my previous post, that statement the person left on your voicemail sounded really clunky. I would think a professional debt collector would have a smoother way of getting the point across.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 12:38 pm

I'm going option 3. If credit reports say your good, then you more than likely are. If they are calling and giving complete balances and "arrangement options" and threatening bringing in attorneys, I would assume that the payments are significantly past due, or at least past due long enough for it to show up on credit reports. Debt collectors are more inconspicuous over the phone i thought anyway. I thought it was more like a we're looking for this guy, call us back type deal. I had some medical bills a while back that my insurance flaked on, and they didn't divulge any of my info unless they had me on the phone.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 12:41 pm

Also, I'd like to say that cancelling a FreeCreditReport.com account is annoying. While you're talking, you can hear an echo of what you're saying as you're saying it and it's really disorienting.

Joined: Feb 24 2006 Posts: 2578

Sounds like a scam. I'm trying to figure out if it would hurt to call them back to see what's up, though. On the one hand, if its a scam it tells them your phone number is active, but (1) they probably already know that, and (2) cell phones aren't legally allowed to be called by telemarketers, etc., so I don't think they could do much with it.

Joined: Jul 16 2006 Location: 22 Acacia Avenue Posts: 324

DarkMaze wrote:

Sounds like a scam. I'm trying to figure out if it would hurt to call them back to see what's up, though. On the one hand, if its a scam it tells them your phone number is active, but (1) they probably already know that, and (2) cell phones aren't legally allowed to be called by telemarketers, etc., so I don't think they could do much with it.

If she was able to leave a voicemail, then she probably does know the line is active.

I say call her back, and press her for your personal details. If she can't/won't provide them, it's a scam.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 12:57 pm

Having looked at my credit report, I am satisfied that it's a scam. If she calls back, I'll answer and ask for the last four digits of my social. If she provides the wrong ones, I'll politely tell her that she has the wrong guy. If she does provide my social, or if she won't provide one, I'm going to rip her a new asshole.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 02:04 pm

that echo means the call is being recorded.

and collectors are not allowed to disclose info like that over voicemail unless they know they have the right person. at least 1st party collectors are not allowed to do so. 3rd party collectors dont really follow much privacy laws, which is why they are always getting sued.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 03:44 pm

It might be an attempt at identity theft, you call up and state that they have the wrong person, they ask for some personal info to verify you're right and bam someone has your social.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 04:42 pm

Well, I just called the number just for the hell of it. When she answered the phone, she said, "This is Barbara. Can I help you?" I just told her I had the wrong number. But there is a Barbara. Though she didn't say a business name, it wasn't an informal 'hello' either. So I'm guessing its a direct line to her desk at some business. So unless she has a line set up just for a scam, it sounds at least somewhat legit. Unless she answers her personal phone like that. But it still sounds a little shady, so I wouldn't give her any personal info.

Like you said, I'd just wait for her to call back.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 05:33 pm

A smiliar thing happened to me regarding my student loans. A lady called and said I was consecutively missing payments for the past year. I told her I had already paid them off and she was like, you must have the wrong person. She said my name and told me I lived in Florida, I asked her what number she dialed. She said 814-xxx-xxxx. I said that is a PA area code.

She then proceeded to ask for my personal information, "I will need your SSN to verify that you are not the person we are looking for. I told her no, and to quit harrasing me. She called back and gave me the same speech, so I gave her a fake SSN, she then mysteriously "hung up". She called back some 30 minutes later and said she lost her connection and would need my number repeated. I told her to go to hell and hung up.

Never called back.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 05:52 pm

Douche McCallister wrote:

A smiliar thing happened to me regarding my student loans. A lady called and said I was consecutively missing payments for the past year. I told her I had already paid them off and she was like, you must have the wrong person. She said my name and told me I lived in Florida, I asked her what number she dialed. She said 814-xxx-xxxx. I said that is a PA area code.

She then proceeded to ask for my personal information, "I will need your SSN to verify that you are not the person we are looking for. I told her no, and to quit harrasing me. She called back and gave me the same speech, so I gave her a fake SSN, she then mysteriously "hung up". She called back some 30 minutes later and said she lost her connection and would need my number repeated. I told her to go to hell and hung up.

Never called back.

What you're describing is obviously data collection telemarketers.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 05:54 pm

Blackout Boy wrote:

Douche McCallister wrote:

A smiliar thing happened to me regarding my student loans. A lady called and said I was consecutively missing payments for the past year. I told her I had already paid them off and she was like, you must have the wrong person. She said my name and told me I lived in Florida, I asked her what number she dialed. She said 814-xxx-xxxx. I said that is a PA area code.

She then proceeded to ask for my personal information, "I will need your SSN to verify that you are not the person we are looking for. I told her no, and to quit harrasing me. She called back and gave me the same speech, so I gave her a fake SSN, she then mysteriously "hung up". She called back some 30 minutes later and said she lost her connection and would need my number repeated. I told her to go to hell and hung up.

Never called back.

What you're describing is obviously data collection telemarketers.

Well I hope they die.

Posted: Jun 06 2008 05:56 pm

Douche McCallister wrote:

Blackout Boy wrote:

Douche McCallister wrote:

A smiliar thing happened to me regarding my student loans. A lady called and said I was consecutively missing payments for the past year. I told her I had already paid them off and she was like, you must have the wrong person. She said my name and told me I lived in Florida, I asked her what number she dialed. She said 814-xxx-xxxx. I said that is a PA area code.

She then proceeded to ask for my personal information, "I will need your SSN to verify that you are not the person we are looking for. I told her no, and to quit harrasing me. She called back and gave me the same speech, so I gave her a fake SSN, she then mysteriously "hung up". She called back some 30 minutes later and said she lost her connection and would need my number repeated. I told her to go to hell and hung up.

Never called back.

Well I hope they die.
What you're describing is obviously data collection telemarketers.

Puttin words in my mouth Mad

Posted: Jun 06 2008 06:22 pm

Tell her you are going to counter sue for false statements and accusations made against you, unless she want's to take it off the books by putting your balls in her mouth.