(972) 428-5200 -- persistent Texas telemarketer

Every single day I've been getting at least one phone call from the same number: (972) 428-5200. Sometimes it's as early as 8 a.m., other times not till 9 or 10. They never leave a message, but it's obvious from the timing, the constancy, and the number itself that it's an aggressive telemarketer.

I looked up the number, and it seems a lot of people are getting persistent calls from this location. According to the 800notes website, these calls are coming from a company called TransTech Merchant Group (or, alternately Summit Merchant Solutions) in Texas.

Some recipients of the call say that the caller is allegedly selling check imaging services, while other people report that the caller claims to be from their credit card company, and that they're calling to discuss some charges on the bill. Both of these calls are emanating from the same number. I have not picked up the phone to see which one I'm getting-- maybe I'm getting both. The caller does not leave an automated, prerecorded message. From what other people are posting, perhaps the telemarketers have a live human fishing for information at the other end. Some people continue to receive the calls, even if they answer the phone and say "no."

No legitimate business calls people like this every day.

On a happier note, I seem to have stopped getting the expired car warranty calls. Is this new outburst of calls from the same group?

"Warranty Alert" -- (201) 917-7310

I didn't answer the phone call when it came in, but remarkably, the caller ID on my phone actually read "Warranty Alert" and "(201) 917-7310." I do believe it was our friends from the "This is your final warning about your car warranty...." scammers. The ones who everyone in the USA gets phone calls from, but no one pursues.

The phone number, according to reverse phone lookups, corresponds to "Paetec Communications" in Cliffside, New Jersey. However, as we all know, these phone calls come from every state and from different phone numbers registered to different names.

Why no one goes after these people-who are clearly not involved in the warranty of our automobiles, but something far more nefarious-- is beyond me. But then again, guys like Bernie Madoff can steal $50 billion dollars, admit it, and not even go to jail. (If Bernie had only been growing a pot plant in his Manhattan apartment...he'd be put away already!)

And I'm just sitting here and googling that phone number into my computer, just like the rest of you. Are these people really that hard to catch?

Nigerian Car Warranty

You know The Call by now. It comes when you least expect it. You get it on your home phone, your mobile, and at your office. The area code doesn't look familiar, but you pick it up anyway. And then: "This is your last warning. Our records show that your vehicle's warranty is about to expire," says the prerecorded voice.

The first time I got it, I thought it was a wrong number. My car is very, very old. There's no warranty on the planet that could extend this far.

Then I kept getting The Call. It came from different numbers. I filed complaints with the Do Not Call List people, for what it's worth. I did a reverse lookup for the source numbers on the net and found the whocalled.us site. Obviously I was not alone. Many other people received the same annoying call from the same numbers, often thinking that their car's warranty HAD expired.

Most of today's annoying phone solicitors are prerecorded. They're much easier to hang up on, but annoying, all the same. This call, however, supposedly offered two options: the first, to talk to a live operator (press 1), and the second, to be taken off the phone list (press 2). I tried pressing 2, but it disconnected me.

When The Call arrived yet again on my internal office line yesterday, I decided to press 1 instead. Indeed, I got a "live operator." The phone rang and a guy picked up. "This is Jeff," he said. "May I have the make and year of your car?" And I replied, "Hi Jeff...may I have the name of your company?"

Jeff was obviously trained in dumping curious call recipients like me. No way was he going to tell me the name of his enterprise. He immediately put me on hold without saying a word, and after some music played, I heard a pre-recorded announcement about how to get on the Do Not Call list. Of course, I'm already on that list, but that's no deterrent.

This phone spam seems to be the telephone equivalent of the emailed Nigerian bank scam.

Does anyone know who these people are and what they're really after?