Disability Service Enables Scammers
Now isn’t this the lowest of the low? A service designed to provide communication assistance to persons with hearing or speech disabilities (TRS) is now a tool of communication for scam artists.
What do business owners of a Baltimore County restaurant, an Anne Arundel awning company and a local flooring company all have in common?
They all reported to BBB receiving a phone call from a communications assistant (CA) who was facilitating a call between an alleged disabled person and a business to place an order using the Telecommunications Relay System (TRS).
After the initial TRS conversation, the business transaction moves to email communications.
The buyer wants to purchase a large quantity and high dollar value of items from the business owner with few or no questions ever asked about the actual product (warning!).
The buyer offers to send payment via certified check or pay by credit card, which later we’ll discover is stolen or fraudulent (warning too late for some).
And, the real warning flag? The buyer is going to over pay the order hoping the friendly business owner will forward the balance of the overpayment to another company for transportation costs!
If our unsuspecting business owner thinks it’s their lucky day and they just scored a big order, well, we hope they think twice or in this case, three times before cashing in on their luck!
The credit card or check won’t clear so the seller is out that money
and profit, the goods that have been shipped will go to a third party just waiting to send it on to the scammers, and the money they sent for transportation, well, that’s MORE money in the pockets of the scam artist! Three strikes – well – that business is out!
This scam is so disheartening because it capitalizes on a tool for the hearing/speech impaired, includes credit card/check fraud so banks are victimized as well, and of course, the small business is left high and dry.
And, can you imagine being the Caller Assistant? Regulations designed to ensure the rights of the disabled are honored and protected provide a cloak for scam artists to hide beneath! According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) standards:
- The Caller Assistant is prohibited from intentionally altering or disclosing the content of a relayed conversation – even if they suspect the scam
- They TeleRelay Service provide must ensure confidentiality and the CA may not keep records of the contents of any conversation
To protect yourself, BBB recommends if you are ever accepting a credit card for payment:
· Ask the customer for his/her full name, address and phone number and verify!!!!
· Ask for the three digit card verification on the back of the card.
· Tell the buyer you will check the bank and call back before the order is actually placed.
· Wait until you have received funds to ship the merchandise.
Recourses are few if you fall victim to this scam. If you suspect you are a victim of TeleRelay Scam, contact the Federal Communications Commission at
www.fcc.gov.
Well – hope this gave you something new to think about and hope to talk soon! Angie
