LOL... I like it when people can screw with telemarketers. I had someone from Microsoft call me one time and after they went to great lengths to get me into the Event Viewer to see my errors (they stated my pc had "faults and needed to be fixed") I closed it out. I pretended I did know anything about pc's and kept them going for almost a 1/2 hour before they got pissed and hung up on me.... They never called me back. I figure if I can keep them going for as long as possible they won't be called some poor unfortunate soul that would fall for their scam
I get calls every so often about my Microsoft computer having a virus from somebody with a bad accent and I would ask him which computer and tell him I have 5 computers and he would tell me the one I used last, that's when the abbot and Costello routine starts where I haven't used the last one for a while now , pretty quick they get pissed at me and call me names and hang up, how rude !
"I'm just the middle to give my grandfather's bath" "He doesn't like when I touch him on certain parts" "He just fell" "Grandpa is drowning" priceless
These callers are using random diallers, so obviously some numbers don't connect. If you pick up the phone, your number goes on a 'live' list and these lists of OK numbers are sold on to other scammers - it's one of their income streams. Answer the phone to a scammer - get even more calls. I bought a phone that could block certain calls. At first I set it to block international and no caller ID. This cut down the unsolicited calls by 90%, but some scammers spoof the caller ID, so I still got those calls. I set my blocker to block all except on my quick-dial list (friends etc). I could still see bounced calls on the phone display, but they weren't answered, so I eventually fell off their lists of 'live' numbers. After a few months, the unwanted calls stopped and I switched my phone back to just blocking international. End of problem. The one downside to this method is the fact that (in UK anyway) doctors, hospitals etc that are behind a switchboard are seen as 'no ID' and are missed. If you are expecting such calls, just put the phone to normal for a few days. TLDR - you get unsolicited calls because you answer them.
What some people do is tie the scammers and telemarketers up and waste their time. The more time they waste with scammer-baiters, the less time they have to scam other people. I respect and admire that. Not to mention that it can be hilarious at times. Here's an example of how to drive Nigerian scammers crazy.
I get really annoyed by those telemarketers, that s**t had me rolling in my chair laughing, not kidding. No, no, no. What happened to your grandpa.
the IRS is after me for filing an illegal tax return and the going to send me to jail if I don't reply REALLY you mean I get to watch tv all day or nap and I don't have to mow the lawn! they hung up on me I don't understand I pressed the number 1 and gave them my information and they got mad and cused me out how rude !
I get doing this to known scammers but I understand telemarketers can be annoying, however that is their job, how would you like it if someone came over to your place of work and starting hounding and harassing you all day? Just saying.
Because telemarketers do not provide a valuable service. They call my home and work place and hound and harass me all day while I'm trying to do something productive
@Joe C: I completely agree. Also, more times than not, they're targeting the wrong market or demographic. Case & Point: Robocallers that try to sell you aftermarket service contracts for a car you do not own. I use a succession of DTMF tones to try to hack into the robo-caller machine and "break" it. Unfortunately, unless you have a 16 tone DTMF generator, you can't get to the last 4 tones (A,B,C and D) Look here for more info. http://www.dialabc.com/sound/dtmf.html
they keep trying to get me to sign up for the new social security card so I tell them to hang on while I get grandpa (I'm over 70) they don't wait to long . I sure wish MS would fix my computer and get rid of my virus they have been tracking but I don't understand them they have a bad accent and sound like they are in India, they don't wait on the phone long ether ! and they only seem to call when im in the middle of a movie ! HOW WUDE