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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsPhone Scammers Accidentally Call A Programmer, Regret It Immediately
Last edited Thu Jun 29, 2017, 10:25 AM - Edit history (1)
Phone scams may be getting more and more clever by the day, but one office full of phony IRS agents made a decidedly dumb move when they called a computer programmer who happens to specialize in scam prevention.
The programmer and Redditor, who goes by the username YesItWasDataMined, but operates an anti-scam operation called Project Mayhem, received a voicemail from someone claiming to be an IRS employee. When he called them back and was asked to pay a massive fine for unclear reasons, he knew immediately that he was being had and came up with a genius way to pull the plug on them. He wrote a script that called each of their phones 28 times per second with an automated message, tying up their lines and making it impossible to reach other potential victims.
The actual IRS recently published a report declaring these kinds of schemes a major threat to taxpayers, and estimates that over 10 thousand victims have been affected since 2013, collectively being defrauded of more than 54 million dollars.
Project Mayhems official YouTube channel now proudly features a hilarious 10-minute sample of the havoc wreaked upon the unfortunate scammers, which has already gained over 1 million views. Watch it below, and always remember to protect yourself against any suspicious requests for your private information.
http://www.boredpanda.com/programmer-writes-script-against-scammers/
Beautiful satisfying video at the link. It's worth watching the whole thing. I've reported scammers to the FCC but this programmer takes it up to 11 and beyond.
There are legitimate IRS employees and contractors with foreign accents, but they won't call you about paying fines.
Original Youtube Video:
ExciteBike66
(2,374 posts)a crime with this revenge? I know there are states that have laws concerning dialing a number repeatedly with intent to harass.
Anyway, I hope the IRA scammers complain to the police about this "harassment" and get themselves arrested instead!
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)I'm sure they'll take care of it!
Corvo Bianco
(1,148 posts)of when my cousin robbed his dealer and his dealer called the cops--everybody goes to jail (Mario accent)!
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)where some potheads misplaced their weed and went to the police to borrow a drug dog to sniff it out.
NutmegYankee
(16,201 posts)Contacting the authorities would incriminate them for far worse crimes.
SamKnause
(13,110 posts)I wish we all had the knowledge to do this.
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)plenty of malicious uses for this too
SamKnause
(13,110 posts)My post pertains to scammers.
Happyhippychick
(8,379 posts)IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)There are sites where people report scam numbers after they have reported it to the FCC. That's where he pulls the numbers from.
Here's a good starting point until Trump cuts the budget for this site: https://www.usa.gov/stop-scams-frauds
and post numbers here:
http://whocallsme.com/
Ilsa
(61,698 posts)Wherever the call originates, I think many of their phone systems have a way to copy your area code and display it. I have gotten phone calls from people in the area where I used to live who believe I've called them, and I've gotten scam calls from operations too sophisticated to be from the area where I previously resided.
I'm not sure how it all works, but I've stopped returning calls to those numbers that pop up with no voicemail.
mopinko
(70,239 posts)someone from my contacts.
Ilsa
(61,698 posts)IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)same with spoofed email addresses. It can make it harder to report, but it is doable.
Gore1FL
(21,152 posts)Then it's knowable that the number isn't spoofed.
Pacifist Patriot
(24,654 posts)Our Treasurer was close to being taken in by a scam when they contacted us to inform us of what was happening. Not entirely sure how they knew, so that's a tad creepy. But it did save us about $4,000.
DarleenMB
(408 posts)They send you a nicely worded, frightening letter.
We've been on the receiving end of both. Stupid IRS agent wanted to double tax our Railroad Retirement income.
Stupid scammer got laughed at and hung up on and then promptly blocked. As if that does any good any more. They just generate a new number and call back.
Pacifist Patriot
(24,654 posts)We were almost victim to the "Fake President Fraud."
ETA: Not quite the same thing the country is experiencing at the moment. That is way more frightening!
AllaN01Bear
(18,443 posts)any strange numbers now get hung up on. my mother and i for 27 years kept getting a call for*****.
and if we tried to ask questions, they hung up i took over the line and one day i just swore at one of them and then they starteted to say is this you , OR IS THIS YOU? (meaning me) i challenged one fellow by saying for 27 years you and your predicessors have been calling heere . , the voice on the other end said we just bought the list in the last month, i asked , can you put me on your do not call list . no calls since. interesting tacttics, but am sure there are some legalites that may be in play
ResistantAmerican17
(3,829 posts)Revenge without an iota of violence or threats.
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)their threats sounded so hilarious!
customerserviceguy
(25,183 posts)Or the insults, suggesting that they take honest jobs, like garbage picking. Sometimes I get much more rude than that.
annabanana
(52,791 posts)Fla Dem
(23,765 posts)forgotmylogin
(7,533 posts)They will send a series of letters, and if you don't respond, they will garnish your wages. They don't mess with outbound calls. (My knowledge comes from interviewing and testing to work there, and a neighbor who had her bank account drained because she thought not talking to the IRS was a good course of action...kids, always communicate with the IRS if there is an issue. They will work with you.)
This may be a *tad* out of date as there was news about them possibly selling some old accounts to debt collectors, but I'm suspecting these are issues of small amounts that are old enough for people they can't contact or find a bank account for.
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)They're mostly reasonable people to work with. And if in doubt, a person could always go to the real IRS website, find their real number and call them to talk to a real agent to verify if there is a problem.
Unfortunately scammers have done this to Medicare/Social Security and other folks too. As in, give us your bank account info or we will stop your benefits.
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)From the real IRS
https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/scam-phone-calls-continue-irs-identifies-five-easy-ways-to-spot-suspicious-calls
WASHINGTON The Internal Revenue Service issued a consumer alert today providing taxpayers with additional tips to protect themselves from telephone scam artists calling and pretending to be with the IRS.
These callers may demand money or may say you have a refund due and try to trick you into sharing private information. These con artists can sound convincing when they call. They may know a lot about you, and they usually alter the caller ID to make it look like the IRS is calling. They use fake names and bogus IRS identification badge numbers. If you dont answer, they often leave an urgent callback request.
These telephone scams are being seen in every part of the country, and we urge people not to be deceived by these threatening phone calls, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said. We have formal processes in place for people with tax issues. The IRS respects taxpayer rights, and these angry, shake-down calls are not how we do business.
The IRS reminds people that they can know pretty easily when a supposed IRS caller is a fake. Here are five things the scammers often do but the IRS will not do. Any one of these five things is a tell-tale sign of a scam.
The IRS will never:
Call to demand immediate payment, nor will we call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill..
Demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe.
Require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card.
Ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone.
Threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.
If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS and asking for money, heres what you should do:
If you know you owe taxes or think you might owe, call the IRS at 1.800.829.1040. The IRS workers can help you with a payment issue.
If you know you dont owe taxes or have no reason to believe that you do, report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) at 1.800.366.4484 or at www.tigta.gov.
You can file a complaint using the FTC Complaint Assistant; choose Other and then Impostor Scams. If the complaint involves someone impersonating the IRS, include the words IRS Telephone Scam in the notes. [See update at top of page.]
Remember, too, the IRS does not use unsolicited email, text messages or any social media to discuss your personal tax issue. For more information on reporting tax scams, go to www.irs.gov and type scam in the search box.
Additional information about tax scams are available on IRS social media sites, including YouTube and Tumblr where people can search scam to find all the scam-related posts.
JayhawkSD
(3,163 posts)It played an advertisement and then told me that the video could not be loaded.
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)tells me the problem is located between your keyboard and chair. It worked for me just now.
It took me less than a second to find the original youtube video for it:
Plucketeer
(12,882 posts)how much they were taking in prior to this programmer throwing some serious sticks in their spokes!
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)In a rare bit of cooperation between the two countries' law enforcement.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2017/04/10/police-arrest-millennial-behind-multi-million-dollar-irs-phone-scam/#11b011f26ffc
"The alleged ringleader, Thakkar, known as "Shaggy," was said to be making more than 10 million rupees ($155,000) a day, or over a million dollars per week, at the scam's peak."
Not bad for a 24 year old millennial.
TeapotInATempest
(804 posts)I love to see hacking used against the bad guys.
niyad
(113,585 posts)spelling and grammatical errors in them. "I" before "E" EXCEPT after c, misplaced apostrophes, and on and on.
Initech
(100,105 posts)Good to know there's people fighting back against this nonsense!
harun
(11,348 posts)IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)For a video posted from Bored Panda...to the lounge.
My reason for waking up each morning are DUers like you!
progressoid
(49,999 posts)ProudProgressiveNow
(6,129 posts)IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)it's probably not the IRS.
Lunabell
(6,111 posts)I love this story. Thanks for sharing!
pansypoo53219
(20,997 posts)gotta have a BS detector.
OilemFirchen
(7,143 posts)This is probably the best:
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)mdbl
(4,976 posts)he's far more effective than that worthless site.
Cha
(297,728 posts)of times by an IRS scammer. It scared me at the time.. I called the IRS to make sure.
And, when I called the numbers back they had been disconnected by then.
Those poor suckers who actually fall for this.
ailsagirl
(22,899 posts)All I heard was this official sounding man saying there was a warrant out for my arrest.
Yikes!
Cha
(297,728 posts)It was like wth did I do wrong now .. lol
ailsagirl
ailsagirl
(22,899 posts)malaise
(269,187 posts)There was a great one a few years ago with a telemarketer - too good.
discntnt_irny_srcsm
(18,482 posts)I got such a call 3 years ago. After a few minutes I got kind of suspicious. I continued listening to scammer who had transferred my call a few times to "supervisors". When they reached the payment phase I suggested that they contact my banker in Nigeria who was holding several million dollars awaiting my collection. I offered an email address.
The line went dead.
klook
(12,170 posts)Here's a scammer retaliation I enjoyed. Those were the days... the things you could do with an Atari in 1985!
An Atlanta man angered by a television evangelist took it out on the Rev. Jerry Falwell by having his home computer call Mr. Falwell's toll-free phone line every 30 seconds for eight months.
Edward Johnson, who stopped the calls Friday after Southern Bell threatened to cut off his phone service, said the calls were intended to hurt Mr. Falwell's fund-raising by tying up the phone. Mr. Falwell heads Moral Majority.
From Falwell's page on Wikipedia:
oberliner
(58,724 posts)That page is almost nothing but ads.
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)oberliner
(58,724 posts)After Losing 70lbs Susan Boyle is Unbelievably Gorgeous
10+ Genius T-Shirt Pairs You Will Be Mad You Didn't Think About First
10+ Times Pets Were Caught Red-Handed
All can be found on the link you provided in your OP (and much more!)
IronLionZion
(45,541 posts)And the t-shirts one too
Happiness is a choice, and we can all choose what to click on
oberliner
(58,724 posts)That's what makes click bait sites like Bored Panda so effective.
Doreen
(11,686 posts)and right after my brother did my taxes for me I got a call from the "IRS" telling me I owed money. All I said was "uhmm" then hung up and called my brother. He told me I did the right thing. My brother is a tax lawyer so he knows how this works. It turned out that the year they did that it had been happening at a higher rate than usual.