Scam broadband call

[Lulu+Yoga]

We are bombarded every 20 mins or so, once every 3 months with non-stop scam calls from numbers in the Yorkshire /Lancashire area by people with heavy Indian accents telling us about our router. The voices are unintelligible and rattle at full speed. Loud noises in the background. The 2nd call today was from Bradford.

The last couple of days we must have. 15 attempts to reach us. (It's so frantic, I know who it is).

Today, I have told two of them in separate calls that they have to pass my security. "What is my grandmother's blood group?" I ask.

Click. 

I can't post the phone number today because this forum prevents phone numbers.

Is there anything we can do?

[Highlinder]

If you have Sky talk, you can have Sky talk shield put on your account. You should be able to activate it via the link below.

https://www.sky.com/help/diagnostics/sky-talk-shield/using-sky-talk-shield 

[blue70]

Get a nusiance call blocker phone. The one i have is made by panasonic and if someone calls whose number isn't stored in your phone book it prompts them to press a number of their keypad.

Since we've had these phones haven't had any spam calls on the landline. 

[TimNKirby]

I had the same thing last week and then again today. I was very suspect of an unsolicited call and they were both quote shirty when challenged. Today, I told them I only had a Chromebook connected - I hadn't, and the line went dead.

First number won't let me share....but has been repeatedly reported. Starts 0041

Second, same problem again but started was 0208

Both had strong Asian accents 

[Chrisee]

@TimNKirby no point in reporting the numbers showing on your phone as they are not where the call came from. Virtually all of these calls come from outside the UK and use a technique called spoofing so they look like a UK call. 

[PSearles]

I received a call from someone claiming to be Dave White from Sky Broadband Technical Dept  

He said he could improve my internet speed and had me run a test on Ookla to determine my broadband speed.  At one point he wanted me to give him access to my desktop, which I didn't do and told him he'd need to ring me back.  I've since discovered that others have experienced similar calls in the past and so now believe this to be a scam.  

[cookiemonsteruk]

@PSearles 

100 % scam. Worth your while if you are on skys network to contact them to activate sky talk shield

[Jandaymax]

I have received several telephone calls allegedly from Sky saying suspicious activity had been detected on my broadband and it was going to be disconnected unless I engage with the caller who had a strong Indian accent incidently and answer his questions. Needless to say I politely told him to go forth and hung up. Today I received another call from a mobile number which (when checked on Google is shown as India) I answered was a recorded English female voice stating exactly the same as above and I was to press 1 for customer service. 
Beware of these scam calls. 

[HComer]

Hi,

I am experiencing the issue that the scammers will call my landline. When I refuse to entertain the call, my broadband is cut off and I have to go through trouble shooting and have to reset the router etc. Which takes at least 30 minutes to get back up and running. This is becoming increasingly frequent (now a couple of times per week) and is impacting on my current home working situation. Can Sky confirm what they are doing to close down this scam? It has been over 12 months since I first experienced this issue and the routine is the same.

Thank you

[cookiemonsteruk]

@HComer 

These scams are generally run from overseas and if shut down will pop up again. International law is a pain . Thats why sky provide talk shield for those on their own unbundled network. Call sky on 150 from your landline to activate and mention your broadband going down as well i think they are unrelated

[TimmyBGood]

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@HComer wrote:

Can Sky confirm what they are doing to close down this scam?

---

Very little, I suspect: it's difficult to see how any UK ISP can 'close down' shadow call centres operating in jurisdictions where such things barely register as crimes.

There should be nothing any caller can do to cut off your broadband, though, so I don't understand how that's happening, and it's not been reported elsewhere.

[Bardsley17]

Started again here last week. Did the usual blind them with science bit and quoted data protection act and said wanted to ensure they were Sky and wasn't a scam so asked them for my details ie address, account number and line soon went dead! 

[JayneyJ]

Just had the same call. Got really quite shirty when I said I didn't have time to do what he asked as I was actually working. He was shouting at me that I HAD to go to my laptop now, and he would take me through what to do - I just hung up. Not sure if from the same number but started the same - tried 1471 and number was not available. 

[Chrisee]

@JayneyJ you did the right thing by hanging up. The number your phone displays is always false - its created using a technique called spoofing - the actual calls mainly, but not exclusively, come in over VOIP from India.

If you want to know more look for Jim Browning's  You Tube channel he takes pleasure in scamming the scammers its a pleasure to watch.

[TapeHead]

We get lots of these calls to our Sky landline.  I look at the incoming number, see something along the lines of 00 & know it's a voice-activated call.  I answer the call & don't say ANYTHING.  The call ends up disconnecting in about 30secs.

I answered one this morning.  The caller told me he was from Sky Tech Services & that he could see at his end that my broadband was slow.  I asked him for my account number & he reeled off some numbers (didn't check if this was correct) so continued to humour him.

He asked what devices I had connnected. & then what broadband speeds I was getting.   I told him up/down speeds which I don't think he expected.  He then asked me to enter the URL of a "secure Sky server" starting SKY62.  At that point I thought "That's enough" & hung up.

Not sure what connecting to his server would have done.  I guess he would have downloaded something to my PC & take me to the cleaners.

Next time he'll get the "Don't panic" alarm straight down the receiver.