Evilsumbichez and Other Evilones

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Got a call @ 2:27pm , today, but elected not to answer the land-line phone at the time as I was indisposed.
When I was no longer indisposed, I hit star69 and got the # of who had called. The # : 1-716-902-1264.
A very thick India-type (IMunHO) accented young un-dude answered, and after I asked him to repeat what he had just rattled-off accented so thickly I barely understood him, he said that he was calling form Microsoft and that my contract with them had expired. (Huh? What contract?) I laughed out loud and hung-up.

And I resisted the temptation to tell him I worked for the "Flush Toilets for India Campaign" and did he want to contribute, which is a way I have answered the phone upon occasion..

Any wisdom about all this from my cleverer MTJ-friends on this?
Help?
Please.

dahalf-MT Murph

[chuck]

I just add them to the ignore/blocked list. Most use spoofed phone numbers (VOIP calls). Hard to track/trace.

[Roy]

Why bother star-69-ing someone who doesn't leave a message?

[MurphOnMillerAve]

I just add them to the ignore/blocked list. Most use spoofed phone numbers (VOIP calls). Hard to track/trace.

How do I do that?
Plus, I've heard on the News that little good or effective result is accomplished by that (?), Chuck, but Thank You for your reply and helpfulness. Thank you, sincerely.

[chuck]

Block /deny feature varies with the phone. If they are rotating numbers nothing can stop them.

A trace requires specialized access and software. You MIGHT get back to a switch location that you MAY be able to get blocked. Usually not. We had sustained attacks from systems in China that were sandwiching themselves between legitimate servers. Only way to block was to take down huge ranges or enable strict IP blocking on the target systems. Only known/blessed addresses were accepted.

BTW, I have had numerous bad experiences with real Microsoft support where agents were in Mumbai, Singapore, Manila.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

I just add them to the ignore/blocked list. Most use spoofed phone numbers (VOIP calls). Hard to track/trace.

How do I do that?
Plus, I've heard on the News that little good or effective result is accomplished by that (?), Chuck, but Thank You for your reply and helpfulness. Thank you, sincerely.

We have that ability with our house land line as that is through Fios - function to block calls is provider based. Easier to just turn off the ringer on the phone and let all the calls go to the answering machine - 95+% disconnect before the machine kicks in and anyone legit leaves a message. Anyone that I know or have given a number to has my cell number. About 20% of the calls there are selling something - has reverted my use of that phone to the same as the land line - leave message unless I recognize the number. A lot of the robo calls are triggered by your voice - just pick of the phone and say nothing.....and they disconnect after a few seconds.

What I don't have yet is a system where I can program the phones to accept only known or allowed numbers - that should be available.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Rufus, I like that idea of answering the ring but saying nothing. All my friends and family know to reach me via the cellphone, yet some still call on the landline. If I don't allow the triggering, as you have so helpfully explained, by responding with my voice , then, being silent would certainly instigate someone who is part of my life, now, to call out to me, not hearing my voice say a greeting as would be normal. I like that idea, even though I do get a twisted kick at times when answering with nonsense; it's better I keep my mouth shut, or even just keep it simple and succinct, so when I don't get a normal person on the other ends, I could just discipline myself and hang up right away.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Chuck, Thank You, again. That second posting educates me and gives me a whiff of a world with which I am totally infaliliar, and somewhat fearful about.

Combining what you have posted with what Rufus has contributed makes me feel a bit better and a lot less left to solve this on my own.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Btw , it appears as though , from your experience and perspectives, that this is not actually Microsoft calling me ?

[MurphOnMillerAve]

I just now got a call on the landline # and picked-up but said nothing. Didn't matter. A male voice, sans any thick accent, started right in announcing, "Your Microsoft account will be debited for renewal in the amount of $360.00

I hung up.
The # that called just now was: 1-312-667-9743 .

I just now googled the number and the first entry on the page has the # identified as bogus with others getting the same approach.

[chuck]

It's a mega phishing operation. Given that most people are running some form of windows that they will snare a fair number of victims.

With Linux, OS X, IOS. And Chrome OS, increasing in use, the potential catch is shrinking.

They were astounded when I informed him we had everything but Windows. Also Win 10 is not covered under this (aka the license and support is "built in"). Win XP, Vista, 7 and I think 8 are all orphans.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Btw , it appears as though , from your experience and perspectives, that this is not actually Microsoft calling me ?

Of course not. No more than any Gov't agency would call you - business is done through the mail.

Do you even have a Microsoft account? If so, why?

Also Win 10 is not covered under this (aka the license and support is "built in"). Win XP, Vista, 7 and I think 8 are all orphans.

Actually MS does track Win 7 licenses so 8 probably is tracked as well.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

Btw , it appears as though , from your experience and perspectives, that this is not actually Microsoft calling me ?

Of course not. No more than any Gov't agency would call you - business is done through the mail.

Do you even have a Microsoft account? If so, why?

Not that I recall. I did have "Word" for composing documents and printing them or sending them as attachments , but I let that expire.

I had received several emails, allegedly from Microsoft, trying to get me to reply but only read them and saved them. They were addressed to me email address, not my name, so I felt alerted by that that the email was bogus.

[MurphOnMillerAve]

It's a mega phishing operation. Given that most people are running some form of windows that they will snare a fair number of victims. ...

To what purpose? What are they after ? Why do they even try? Just to be prix ?

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Btw , it appears as though , from your experience and perspectives, that this is not actually Microsoft calling me ?

Of course not. No more than any Gov't agency would call you - business is done through the mail.

Do you even have a Microsoft account? If so, why?

Not that I recall. I did have "Word" for composing documents and printing them or sending them as attachments , but I let that expire.

I have a full Office suite and never get any calls or e-mails from MS - you must have clicked on something somewhere sometime that got you on a list as a probable victim to be exploited.

I had received several emails, allegedly from Microsoft, trying to get me to reply but only read them and saved them. They were addressed to me email address, not my name, so I felt alerted by that that the email was bogus.

Delete them all.