The latest version of an old con game has risen its ugly head in the form of a phone scam from the 473 and 268 area codes. The 473 area code, according to a recent article in Forbes, was established for the islands of Grenada, Carriacou, and Petite Martinique which, like the United States, has a country code of “1.” However a call to the 473 area code is considered an international call and can cost a considerable amount of money. The 268 area code is coming from the Carribean.
The way the scam works is that the scammer will call once and then hang up. Alternately the con artist will leave a message on voice mail that sounds as if someone is in distress, such as moaning and cries for help. Other approaches include pretending to be a collection agency, a doctor, law enforcement, or some other party who it is important to respond to, If someone receiving this call is incautious enough to return it or to pick it up, he or she will get slapped with a $29 connect fee and a $9 per minute entry into an audio chat room. Add that to international calling rates and one can be out a considerable amount of money.
Under no circumstances should one answer the phone if ones caller ID indicates that it is coming from a 473 or 268 area codes. Nor should one return such a call. In any case, with everyone having voice mail, one should not have to return a call. If a caller has something important to say, he or she can leave a message. But no matter what the message might be, a 473 or 268 area code call is likely a scam.
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