This week, various members of the Task Force have noted news reports or specific instances of people being convinced to call phone numbers with an 809 area code. The call turns out to be an international call that is billed at an extremely high per-minute rate. This is a scam which gained a lot of attention in 1996. It has been lurking ever since. The messages might be found in a classified ad.
Some messages are about receiving a sweepstakes prize or free merchandise or a tax refund.
Others are about a loved one being hurt or about the results of a medical test. In reality, the victim is connected to a number in a Caribbean nation. The per-minute charges imposed by the phone company in that country can be several dollars per minute. The scammers, who probably receive a substantial percentage of the per-minute charge, use all sorts of reasons to keep the victim on the line. Compared to when the customer disputes a domestic long distance telephone charge, long distance carriers can be reluctant to remove these international charges from a phone bill.