Cross posted from PolicyInsight.org
Millions of Americans have been receiving calls from "Heather at Account Services" in a blatant phishing scam that has been going on at least since August.
The robocalls, apparently using sequential dialing without filtering for the Do Not Call list, offer recipients a chance to get lower interest on their credit cards. Though the pitch is very smooth – Heather doesn’t sound Nigerian -- most people quickly realize that it is an attempt to get credit card numbers for criminal purposes. But apparently the criminals are having good success – the operation has been running strong at least since August 2007. A Google search for "Heather at Account Services" turns up a wide variety of comments from people across the country, many complaining of receiving multiple calls in a single day.
The Caller ID numbers are faked, and the people in the boiler room refuse to give out any information about their phone number, location or their company. Internet postings indicate consumers are having difficulty finding a focal point for their rage.
According to many of the posts, the telephone company usually tells people who complain to contact their local police, where the universal response seems to be, "Duh?"
The Feds are taking their cue from Bush and playing hooky. The Bush philosophy is that government exists to help the patrician class, or at least his friends, fleece the middle class and less fortunate – so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the Feds have not stopped this intrusion into the lives of millions of Americans.
The Federal Communications Commission makes no mention of "Heather" on its website, but does have a recent press release on complaints received through the 2nd quarter of 2007. The writing is so labored that it is obvious that producing a press release takes nearly the entire available energy of the agency.
There is absolutely no mention of whether any of the tens of thousands of complaints were investigated, let alone resolved. But they were able to get the press release out within seven months of the end of the quarter.
It is about the same story at the Federal Trade Commission, where they make no mention of Heather, or her friend "John," who makes similar robo calls. They do advise consumers:
"Keep information about your bank accounts and credit cards to yourself - unless you know who you're dealing with."
But if you expect fraud, they ask you to contact your state Attorney General. Where the response again will usually be, "Duh?"
The Federal Bureau of Investigation claims success in some mass marketing fraud cases.
From the FBI website:
Report suspicious telemarketing calls, junk mail solicitations, or advertisements to the National Fraud Information Center at 1-800-876-7060.
Unfortunately, when you call the number, you get a recording saying they no longer take complaints by telephone.
Finding a boiler room that daily sequentially dials entire telephone exchanges throughout the United States is not rocket science. The phone companies could pinpoint such an operation with relative ease. Unfortunately, someone would have to give them a subpoena. And the Bush administration doesn’t seem to know how to do that.
It wouldn’t be hard to establish clear lines of responsibility and aggressively pursue frauds like the "Heather" calls, but that would require an administration that believes government should fulfill a purpose.