# Spam or scam phone call?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [April 9, 2018, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071 "2018-04-09T10:45:13Z")
**Posts on this page:** 6
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@bizerta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizerta)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2018, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071/1 "2018-04-09T10:45:13Z")
Is this a scam or just plain spam?
Three to five times a week I get a"last-chance" recorded phone call offering to lower my credit card interest rate to 6% or less. I always assumed that they would obtain a new card for me and they would get a fee from the new card issuer. So I decided to waste their time one day.
No, they claimed to have a way to “persuade” my current credit card issuer to lower my interest rate. So I made up a Citibank Visa number with the correct check digit. They wanted all sorts of information (address, # on back of card, balance, mother’s maiden name, etc.) so they could go to Citibank and lower my interest rate. I made up that information.
Now “hold” the line while we call Citibank and lower your interest rate. They never returned.
So, did they really contact Citibank and discover that the information was bogus (spam) or did they attempt to use the information to buy something (scam). If they really lower my interest rate, how do they make money?
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### Author:  [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2018, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071/2 "2018-04-09T11:14:22Z")
My guess is that while they had you on the line, they tried to use your card online to buy something to see if it worked. It didn’t so they just dropped the call. I doubt they have any pull with any lender, they just want your card number.
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### Author:  [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2018, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071/3 "2018-04-09T11:50:03Z")
I think some of them are bill consolidation or credit repair places. There’d be nothing in it for them if all they did was call on your behalf.
Yes, I’m sure some of them are outright scams, phishing for your credit card info, but I think most of it is spam. When those calls first started, what, 15-20 years ago, the line they used is “we’re calling to lower your credit card rate” and I could usually turn it into a back and forth “Which card are you calling about, I have a bunch of them”/“Which card do you _think_ I’m calling about?”. As soon as I would mention a card I don’t have and they said “Yup, that’s us.” I’d hang up. Eventually realizing the 2 minutes I spent wasn’t worth my time.
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### Author:  [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071/4 "2018-04-09T19:24:24Z")
More opinion seeking than debate. Moving from GD to IMHO.
[/moderating]
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [April 9, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071/5 "2018-04-09T20:53:37Z")
If they asked for more than just your card details (e.g. mother’s maiden name, your address, etc), there’s a chance they were intending to hijack control of your online banking in order to drain your account (or drive it deep into overdraft by transferring funds elsewhere, obtaining credit, etc)
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### Author:  [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)
#### Post date: [April 10, 2018, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spam-or-scam-phone-call/812071/6 "2018-04-10T00:03:51Z")
The first thing they did with your credit card number was to try to get an authorization to charge their service fee. If that failed, they just moved on to someone else.