THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 28, 1996 TAG: 9608280473
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEPHANIE STOUGHTON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 54 lines
Local job seekers who answered help-wanted advertisements for ``mystery shoppers'' or ``mystery movie watchers'' may get a shock when they open their telephone bills next month.
There are no jobs, says Bob Gill, director of Norfolk's consumer affairs office. The ads are part of a scheme to get people to make long-distance calls at ``outrageous'' international rates.
Locally, the scam has worked like this:
When job seekers call the long-distance number listed on help-wanted ads, a recorded voice instructs them to call another number, which in turn can lead to a third call.
The last two calls, which have 809 area codes, might look like regular long-distance numbers within the United States. But they're really phone calls to the Dominican Republic.
The Virginian-Pilot ran several ``mystery shoppers'' and ``mystery movie watcher'' advertisements this month. The newspaper said it has pulled the ads.
So far, Norfolk's consumer affairs office has received several complaints, including one this week from a Newport News resident who complained of a $28 phone charge.
But office director Gill thinks complaints over the ``mystery'' ads will pick up once locals discover they were wronged.
``It's going to be at least 30 days before people get their phone bills,'' Gill said. ``And when they do, they're going to be shocked out of their gizzard.''
Hampton Roads wasn't the only area hit, Gill said. He said residents in several states, including California and Arkansas, also have been stung by the scam.
Companies often use 809 numbers as pay-per-calls to get around U.S. regulations requiring them to warn consumers of charges, according to the National Consumers League in Washington. Under the rules, callers also must be allowed to hang up before the charges kick in.
These businesses make money by generating a lot of calls, the consumer group said. In return, they get rebates from their foreign telephone companies, the league said.
The Federal Trade Commission has brought charges against similar operations, agency spokeswoman Bonnie Jansen said. She would not say whether the FTC is investigating the people behind the ``mystery'' ads. Even if federal authorities are investigating, they often have difficulty tracking down fly-by-night operations in the telecommunications industry.
``That's the big problem with phone scams,'' said Linda Candler, spokeswoman for the local Better Business Bureau. ``They're here today and gone tomorrow. By the time investigators get to where they are, they're long gone.'' MEMO: Local consumers who have responded to advertisements for
"Mystery Shoppers" and "Mystery Movie Watchers" can call the Norfolk
consumer affairs office at 664-4888. by CNB