ROANOKE – The Better Business Bureau (BBB) has a warning for Comcast customers after it says scammers are calling, claiming there are issues with their cable system, and requesting access to their home.
The BBB says multiple people in Western Virginia say they have received calls from someone claiming they are from Comcast, but Comcast has confirmed that it is not experiencing issues in the area, and that its technicians are not contacting customers in this manner.
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It is not known at this time if the callers are truly in the area, and actually want access to the house, or are using the home visit request as a lead-in to demand money at a later time.
“Scammers love to use familiarity in an attempt to gain our trust. By using the name of a local, widely used company, the scammers appear to be within our community and customers may be more likely to believe their story,” says Julie Wheeler, President and CEO of BBB Serving Western VA. “Never blindly trust a cold call from a company you do business with that is requesting information or access to your property. It is vital to contact the company independently to verify the request.”
BBB offers these tips for consumers to consider when receiving phone calls of this nature:
Verify the request. Contact the company using a verified phone number, not by using the number offered by the caller.
Don’t trust your caller ID. Scammers can make any number they like appear on your phone’s caller ID. They often will use local numbers to gain your trust.
Never give away information over the phone. Until you know exactly who you are dealing with, do not give away information over the phone. If it is the actual company they will already have some of your personal and financial information and would not demand it over a phone call.
For more information fraud, please visit www.bbb.org or contact the BBB Serving Western VA at (540) 342-3455 or (800) 533-5501.