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How A Massive India Call Center Swindled 15,000 Americans (nytimes.com)
An FBI agent based in India says the country has now become a major hub for call-center fraud, blaming "a demographic bulge of computer-savvy, young, English-speaking job seekers; a vast call-center culture; super-efficient technology; and what can only be described as ingenuity." The Justice Depatment recently indicted one company for scamming "hundreds of millions of dollars" from over 15,000 victims, placing more than 1.8 million phone calls to Americans, and Slashdot reader retroworks brings an update:
The New York Times has an interesting blow-by-blow story on two India tech center employees who informed on their call center fraud operation, which targeted Americans (especially recent immigrants) with fraudulent IRS calls and other scams. [May be paywalled; free version here.] The building was surrounded by police, phone lines cut. Eventually 630 of the employees were released, and charges were brought against 70 managers and executives of the call center.
The operation filled a seven-story high-rise, and the Times reports that after the raid, "fraudulent IRS calls to Americans dropped 95% percent, according to the Better Business Bureau." But they add that one former employee believes the scams will continue. Within weeks of the raid, he'd been offered a nearly identical job: calling Americans and claiming that their computer was infected with a virus.
The operation filled a seven-story high-rise, and the Times reports that after the raid, "fraudulent IRS calls to Americans dropped 95% percent, according to the Better Business Bureau." But they add that one former employee believes the scams will continue. Within weeks of the raid, he'd been offered a nearly identical job: calling Americans and claiming that their computer was infected with a virus.
Sometimes the tables are turned. This is hilarious and sad. I can't decide how to feel about it, honestly.
I feel bad for people who fall for it, but the two times I was called for similar grifting, it was a hilarious fun conversation.
"Old man yells at systemd"
Bunker busters - lots of them.
Level one of them and I guarantee the rest will find more honest ways of making a living.
The insidious ones now popping up are really clever IVR calls with recorded voices of a perky white woman (sometimes man) with a generic accent. She giggles, pauses, apologizes for the delay claiming phone problems and then asks if I can hear her ok.
"I don't know, therefore Aliens" Wafflebox1
Perhaps I'm mistaken, but isn't the FBI restricted to US jurisdiction? I grew up with the understanding that they were basically a domestic police force on the national level.
I'm assuming I am mistaken, please feel free to give me further understanding on how the FBI can be in India.
IF it is a crime here, happening there, hurting U.S., THEN they have 'jurisdiction'. Under who's law may be debatable.
I hang up immediately on hearing an indian accent, it's as simple as that.
"charges were brought against 70 managers and executives of the call center. " How refreshing that the suits got charged. Maybe the FBI can learn how to do that in the US.
That may be very well, but they don't have any authority to operate outside the US in a foreign country as a law enforcement agency, unless that country ascribes them the authority - the FBI arresting someone in India would be simple kidnapping, and the agents involved would be committing a crime.
So its not debatable at all - the crime here (fraud) is still being committed in India, while simultaneously being committed in the US. That doesn't mean the FBI can fly to India and arrest someone - however, many police forces have attachments with foreign forces, embedding their own agents in other countries forces and legally gaining the same powers of the local police force.
Many of my clients are older people who simply wouldn't know tech savvy if you drowned them in it.
A while back, one of my clients' wives calls us and tells us he's on the phone with this tech support company in India and they're asking for several hundred dollars to remove a virus.
I told her to pull their cablemodem out of the wall and then hang up with the guy. Don't even discuss it with her husband (as it'd give the guy from "wherever" a chance to do something to the machine).
Once he was disconnected I had him hang up and explained the scam to him, while the call center guy tried calling back.
I then pointed out that he already had both Kaspersky Antivirus and Malwarebytes on there.
And on the off chance he was infected, I had him pull down a bootable rescue CD and scan that way.
Saved him several hundred bucks and possibly getting his machine infected.
Chas - The one, the only.
THANK GOD!!!
Uh, you admitted to committing crimes and didn't cut a deal so you're basically screwed if you decide to apply for a visa.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
Why the hell would the FBI need an informant. It's not like these operations work in secret - they call people for god's sake. All the FBI needed to do was to wait for a call from "the Microsoft support center" and trace it.
Nullius in verba
Don't be a moron, if they're committing a crime in the US, then it's the FBIs jurisdiction to work with the Indian government to have them extradited to be prosecuted here. Now, if India chooses not to extradite, that's their own prerogative, but the FBI working with their government for extradition is exactly what they do.
Under who is law? WTF is that supposed to mean?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
My bank outsourced to an indian call center and the next time I called them for something I asked where I was calling. The guy evaded my questions so I dropped my account of 20+ years to a bank that uses local people. I have to wait a tiny bit longer for them to answer but they actually answer my questions. So long CIBC.
They'll clean your bank account for you absolutely free!
When a massive American building fleeces thousands of young Americans it's OK as long as the building is called a university...
Someone works at the the bank call center, say, and then records details to pass on to a scam center. The Scam center now knows all sorts of details to make the scam much more effective. And targetted.
Actually, why not introduce a new type of visa for criminals, and give it to any of these scammers when they ask for a visa. Then, at the port of entry, when they check in at immigration, immediately call law enforcement and hand them over
Not everyone gets that kind of calls. Some don't get called at all anymore, like me.
Steal their time. Keep them talking and keep them busy with you, make sure they waste at least 15-30 minutes. Yes, that takes 15-30 minutes of your time, but only once. Once you're identified as a time waster, you're blacklisted.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
... for any bank with CC outside the US because I am afraid of identity theft.
The insidious ones now popping up are really clever IVR calls with recorded voices of a perky white woman (sometimes man) with a generic accent. She giggles, pauses, apologizes for the delay claiming phone problems and then asks if I can hear her okay.
I write about technoloty and advanced computing in Noavard, I place for pros.
"We own this house."
No you don't. Try not paying your municipal/county taxes and we'll see who actually owns your house.
This happened to the old age father of a friend, who gave them a continuous authority on a debit card for "support". Downloaded and came in using TeamViewer, and messed with his PC. Traced the domain name back (set as a private individual, anonymised); got the registrar to de-anonymise their whois record due to being a commercial company. Traced the resulting contact details back to UK Companies House, where the guy was an Indian national who was one of two directors of 12 companies set up in a small business centre in Coventry, UK. Local Bank account received the funds. End result was that local trading standards got their bank account closed. Directors are on LinkedIn, and claim to have 600 telesales operatives in Kolkata, India.
Actually, why not introduce a new type of visa for criminals, and give it to any of these scammers when they ask for a visa. Then, at the port of entry, when they check in at immigration, immediately call law enforcement and hand them over
Once they go to the US embassy you could arrest them there if you wanted to, no need to wait.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
Even TFS didn't make that claim. They said they were "investigating". Which covers a multitude of events short of barging in with guns drawn and handcuffs at the ready.
Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
That's not too bad a return rate for a scam.
Therefore the scamming will continue.
Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
No they will not. The IRS do not call taxpayers.
http://www.acetonestudio.com
I just have to ask, are you claiming that you think fraud and extortion isn't a crime in India?
APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
The billing system of $US TELEPHONE COMPANY$ ? Of course they know where the calls are originating : at a privately-owned multiple line switchboard in downtown Queens (insert name of low-rent business district of choice ; I'm barely even confident that "Queens" is somewhere near New York ). Upstream from that, the billing system doesn't know.
You could argue that "there should be regulation" about connecting multiple phone lines to one premises. Good luck with that - because you'll be up against the businesses setting up genuine call centres in $BUSINESS ZONE$ , staffed with Americans trained to use a Canadian accent to give a genuine call centre experience.
Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"