and can easily cost you $2400 or more！！！！

Telephone Scam, Moncton, Dieppe, Riverview, N.B.

809 Area Code SCAM
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A major communication company is warning the population about an ongoing long distance phone call scam in Alberta.

The Codiac RCMP have NOT received any complaint to that effect yet however it appear this scam is spreading *VERY* rapidely throughout the country.

The original message was partially modified by the undersigned.

This is a very important issue of Scam Busters because it alerts you to a
scam that is spreading *EXTREMELY* quickly,and can easily cost you $2400 or more, and is difficult to avoid unless you are aware of it.

This scam has also been identified by the National Fraud Information Center and is costing victims a lots of money.

There are lots of different permutations of this scam.

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS:

You will receive a message on your answering machine or your pager, which asks you to call a number beginning with area code 809. The reason you're asked to call varies. It can be to receive information about a family member who has been ill, to tell you someone has-been arrested, died, to let you know you have won a wonderful prize, etc. In each case, you are told to call the 809 number right away. Since there are so many new area codes these days, people unknowingly return these calls.

If you call from the US, you will apparently be charged $2425 per-minute.
Or, you'll get a long recorded message. The point is, they will try to keep
you on the phone as long as possible to increase the charges. Unfortunately, when you get your phone bill, you'll often be charged more than $24,100.00.

WHY IT WORKS:

The 809 area code is located in the British Virgin Islands (The Bahamas).
The 809 area code can be used as a "pay-per-call" number, similar to 900
numbers in the US. Since 809 is not in the US, it is no t covered by U.S.
regulations of 900 numbers, which require that you be notified and warned of charges and rates involved when you call a pay-per-call" number.

There is also no requirement that the company provide a time period during which you may terminate the call without being charged. Further, whereas many U.S. homes that have 900 number blocking to avoid these kinds of charges, do not work in preventing calls to the 809 area code.

We '' RECOMMEND'' that no matter how you get the message, if you are asked to call a number with an 809,284 and 876 area code that you don't recognize, just disregard the message.

Be wary of e-mail, or calls, asking you to call an 809,284 and 876 area code number.
It's important to prevent becoming a victim of this scam, since trying to fight the charges afterwards can become a real nightmare.

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