Thanks to YouTuber Jim Browning, we can enjoy seeing a scam call center get its comeuppance. Browning gained access to a scam call center based in Kolkata, India, and exposed their unorthodox practices after accessing their webcams.
In the video below, Browning shows the scammers obtaining a list of numbers belonging to people who were scammed previously. These people are likely to be scammed again, this time by offering a refund for "services" provided during the first scam.
The call center is shown. A scammer carries his laptop around a small office. Operators are seen and heard explaining how to install software that will give them access to their victims' computers.
As soon as the scammers gain access, they show their victims a phony bank statement to show that a "refund" for the unwanted services has been initiated.
The catch: The "refund" is a larger amount than intended and the victims are instructed to pay the difference.
In one instance, scammers are seen activating the webcam of a victim, collecting photos of her family, and attempting to delete her files.
In another, a scammer instructs a victim to transfer money to him, convincing the victim that talking to their bank about the transaction would be foolish because the bank is in on a scam. (The nerve of these people.)
Browning reports the scam call center to local authorities after using the scammers' IP address and wireless network to pinpoint an area that is nearly their exact location.
He also manages to intercept the scammers' robocalls, replacing their calls with a message that these calls are, in fact, a scam.
Watch this hero at work:
Inside a scam call center www.youtube.com
Browning's video has taken off and many are responding with praise for his hard work.
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Even better: One of Browning's followers offered to followup with the relevant authorities.
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Take steps to protect yourself from phone call scammers.
Check your caller ID, block incoming numbers on your cell phone or download a call screening app to fight robo spammers and telemarketers.
You'll thank yourself later.