To ask how you respond to phone scammers?

[pixiebaby23]

I've had two in as many days. Calling from abroad (Indian accents) but claiming to be representing UK companies and wanting to help me with a virus on my computer.

I string them along in the hope it's taking up time they could be using to scam vulnerable people.

They get angry with me when they realise what I'm doing - but still they stay on the line.

Aibu to ask what you do, aside from hanging up? (Which I do if I am short of time).

[lalalalyra]

"Oh, it's my mother/sister/wife that has the computer in this house, hold on a moment and I'll go an get her for you..."

Then just leave the phone on the shelf. Funnily enough if you say husband/father they hang up straight away.

[FormerlyFrikadela01]

I sometimes string them along then put them on hold. You'd be surprised how long they will wait for, I once had a ppi one on hold for over half an hour.

[ChicRock]

^same but "oh hang on, let me just go and switch the oven off"...

[WhereYouLeftIt]

Same as you - keep them occupied for as long as possible. Sometimes get them to repeat and repeat what they're saying, 'I'm a bit deaf these days'. Or sometimes I'll be very crisp and abrupt, asking for reference numbers and repeating what they say s-l-o-w-l-y because I'm wring it all down doncha know.

The most fun can be had with the calling-about-your-accident brigade. Did I have any injuries? Yes, I died. Sometimes takes them a few minutes to catch on to that one .

[pixiebaby23]

Good ideas, I'm amazed how long they do hang on. I told one she had contacted a police fraud department and she told me off for lying - but still didn't hang up!

I don't understand the mindset when that happens - isn't it better from their pov to move on to the next intended victim?

The bloke today told me he was recording the conversation after I called him a liar.

[WhereYouLeftIt]

And I have an infinite number of brothers-in-law who work every job imaginable - guttering, window installation etc. - who is doing it for family so your quote couldn't possibly beat his.

I am much nicer to these cold callers than the scammers, I take up less than a minute of their time and decline on account of my BIL.

[MadameCholetsDirtySecret]

I just hang up. I don't interact at all with them.

[Redglitter]

I don't answer their calls. I have True Caller app on my mobile & BT Call Guardian on my landline. Almost none get through

[daisychain01]

If every household in UK invests in a BT call guardian phone ( which screens all unwanted and unknown numbers then gives you the chance to accept or block.) It could wipe out scam calls overnight.

We went from 5-10 calls a day to zero overnight.

Beware of spoof numbers which only have 5 digits after the std code. They are pesky computer generated numbers.

Our phone has a button with a shield in the middle of the handset which enables you to immediately Block. I always imagine the person falling through trap doors whenever I press it

[downwardfacingdog]

I string them along. Loses them a bit of time when they could be scamming someone else.

[loveka]

I always say "oh my God you must fix it. I will pay anything for you to fix it. Let me just get my credit card".

My partner once started asking them if the reason the computer had gone wrong was because he wanks over it a lot!!!!! They replied "Yes sir, that will be why". I had to tell him to hang up, it started to get a little surreal.

[mortificado]

Oh I love these calls! I whisper so they have to listen harder/press phone against their ear. Have them at it for ages, then when they think they are going to get something from me, I blow a whistle down the phone.
Or lead them on for ages and play silly songs from YouTube down the phone. (Dickhead song is great & very funny)

[TheNaze73]

A polite "fuck off" followed by a block, usually does the trick

[RiversrunWoodville]

Before we got rid of landline handset (have the line for broadband just no phone plugged in) I used to either hand it to dd and let her waffle on or just lay phone beside CBeebies and walk off. A friends DH who has a particularly deadpan voice just keeps repeating I am Spartacus until they get pissed off.

[ScarlettFreestone]

I just say "I'm not interested, thank you for your call" and hang up.

It takes less than ten seconds.

[GrapesAreMyJam]

I string them along. Had a conservatory company on the phone for ages and they went through all of the details and were arranging to come out and give me a quote. They asked for my address and I told them I lived on the second floor in a block of flats. They hung up on me.

[LurkingHusband]

We ditched our landline over a year ago - no scam calls since. Mysteriously, life has gone on, just £10 a month cheaper ....

[followTheyellowbrickRoad]

GrapesAreMyJam, cold callers are different to scam calls. What you did was really mean. A polite not interested would have done, then ask them to remove your number.

[LoupGarou]

If I'm bored (such as on bed rest) I try to sell them things from films/TV, like wobbly headed geisha dolls, or dancing cats which sing how much is that doggy in the window. I make sure I'm really pushy "come on Guv, I'm cutting my own throat here..." I also sometimes tell them I'm a princess who needs saving and all they need to do it send me x amount of money.

If not I just hang up.

[miserableandinpain]

If its my mobile i just swipe over the red ignore button. Then block the number. If i do answer i just hang up

[FeliciaJollygoodfellow]

I just hang up. I used to say a polite 'no thanks' but I don't anymore.

I have neither the time nor the inclination to do anything further!

[SaucyJack]

I used to give them a big lecture about howthey were scum of the Earth for trying to defraud people, but I got bored of that eventually so I just put the phone down.

[SaucyJack]

now.

[GrapesAreMyJam]

Yellowbrickroad- the company that called me was a company known locally at the time to scam people and there were a lot of people who fell victim to this company.

[melj1213]

mortificado Whilst I don't condone scammers/cold callers trying to get money out of people, I don't condone causing potentially permanent physical damage either.

Acoustic shock can have some serious and permanent effects, as I learnt when my friend suffered from a misunderstanding (he worked for a bank's fraud dept and was calling a customer when some suspicious activity was flagged on her account ... she thought he was trying to scam her and whilst he was trying to explain how to verify the authenticity of the call she blasted a whistle down the phone at him) that caused tinnitus and constant migranes that he still suffers from today.

Do scammers deserve to have their time wasted, sure leave the phone on the side for as long as it takes for them to hang up, but they dont' deserve to be permanently physically affected either.