Question about phone fraud

Noctosphere

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Hello everyone,

It seems my phone number is on a fraud list.

Disclaimer : all phone numbers listed below are fictionnal

So, my phone number is 514-555-0203. I received a couple of weeks ago a phone call from 514-555-4381. It was a voice generated automatic message about how i was supposed to receive a refund. I hanged up right away.
Few days later, i received another call, this time from 514-555-6716. It was the very same automatic message. Hanged up again.
Few days later, i received a call from 514-555-0456, but this time, i missed the call. When i call them back, a teenage girl answered and she had no idea what i was talking about. Few days ago, i received a call from 514-555-1439, a lady who was wondering why i called her. And today, i received another call from 514-555-9091, the same automatic message.

So, i was wondering if it was possible for so many phone number to be "corrupted", especially considering they ALL begins with the same 6 digits... I called my phone service provider and they said all i had to do was to block these numbers or to change of phone number. I asked how it was possible for them to use my phone number but they told me it was something impossible.
So, am i just being naive? Are all these phone numbers just owned by frauds? Is the lady herself who "called me back" a fraud too?

Does anyone here have an explanation for this?
Thanks
 
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AncientBoi

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Try RoboBlocker for the spam calls. I did it to my new phone, and it cut it down measurably low.

Edit: This is for Android. I don't know if it works on other platforms
 
Last edited by AncientBoi,

FAST6191

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I don't know the current phone system around you but historically at least it is possible to spoof numbers to appear as someone else (police might do it, debt collectors were notorious for it, hackers/phreakers routinely had fun with it and of course scammers). Often they will pick local looking numbers for a given campaign or segment (said numbers might also be on whatever list of names and phone numbers they have) so as to get more people to answer it.

You can try blocking numbers but if they are spoofing things then good luck with that one, you can try lists (not that call centres in India care), some of the mobile phone tools can do well (do things like wait a second and wait for the robot voice to kick in before even connecting it to you, or maintain proper current lists).
 

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