cell phone scam

SMS from: +639072784883

Congrats!You are a 2nd Prize winner worth P/680.000 (PGMA)Charity Fund Raising draw,Sept,02-Series of 2008.Pls Cll.me now!ATTY. JADE V.AYALA/DTI-NCR Permit#0522

—oOo—oOo—oOo—oOo—oOo—

It reeked of scam from the first line.  Who in their right mind would ever think that this was real.  Winning large sums of money without joining anything?  “If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.”

Anyway, I had nothing better to do … I gave the number a call.  I asked for ATTY. AYALA but “she was in a meeting.”  A certain ATTY. JENIE GARCIA answered the call.  First she asked when I received the message … I said just now.  This was red flag number one since she was using the phone the message emanated from.

BTW, they obtained my number through a “random” draw done by computer – YEAH RIGHT!  More like a random click of their fingers …

After a brief explanation of the “promo,” she asked how I would want to receive the money.  There were 2 ways: 1) either they deposit to a bank account or 2) deliver it to my location.  There were requirements that I needed to submit: a) marriage contract, b) 2 valid id’s, 3) cedula (residence certificate), 4) barangay clearance, 5) voters id, 6) 2 pcs smart buddy cell card worth P300 each.

That’s a weird list … anyway, throughout the conversation, red flag number 2 came up … there were chickens crowing in the background.  There’s just no room for chickens in the work place right?

Also, she was quite arrogant over the phone and kept on asking if I was interested in claiming the prize and not to waste her time otherwise.  She never buckled over the phone and said her piece like a well-oiled machine.

She never asked for any personal information over the phone and I was careful that I never divulged anything myself.  Anyway, after the call, I decided to do a little research.  I went to the DTI-NCR website and checked the promo number:

Permit Number	:	0522
Title	:	TEXTPRESYO
Scheme	:	CONTEST
Promo Duration	:	2008-02-08 to 2008-03-07
Sponsor	:	ENTERTAINMENT GATEWAY GROUP

First, its expired … second, it’s sponsor is different from the “Single Foundation” she mentioned that sponsored their promo.

So there you go … SCAM in action … remember, “if its too good to be true, it probably is.”