# Rant About Today's Smartphone Idiots



## carouselsilver (Sep 15, 2021)

This morning, I found an email claiming that someone had tried to log on to my Amazon Prime mobile account. Ninety percent of my internet time is spent on my PC, and I rarely use my Smartphone for anything. So I first called my husband to make sure he hadn't forgotten the password and attempted to log in. He had not. Next, I called the customer service number, and reached someone with a hard to understand accent, which is another peeve. I am already upset and worried and now I have to decipher what this guy is saying. So I told him about the email and that there had been three notifications that someone was trying to access my mobile account. He advised me to change my password, so I set out to do that on the Amazon website. After changing it, I got a notification that a validation code had been sent to a mobile phone ending in 04. Not my phone number, not even close. So I called again to find out why they were sending a validation code to a strange mobile number?

In the meantime, I get another email from Amazon telling me that the emails I had received earlier were spoofs, and that I shouldn't respond to them. No kidding? Now, I was really freaking out. Maybe the validation had gone to whomever was trying to hack in. I called back, and got idiot number two. He proceeded to request me to repeat my identifying info three times, and kept mumbling and apologizing, so I finally asked for a supervisor, thinking this might make things go faster. He pulled the classic customer service ploy; put me on hold for awhile.

I hung up and called back, to speak with idiot number three. Well, at first she wasn't an idiot, but it deteriorated fast. After giving my proofs of identity, she asked why I was saying that this mobile number that they were trying to text to, wasn't mine. I asked her where she had gotten it? She said that it was an old number, from back in 2004. I pointed out that I hadn't owned a cell phone then. She insisted that it was a mobile number that had once belonged to me. Again I repeated that it wasn't my phone number, because first of all I had not owned a cell phone that year and if I had, it wouldn't have had the area code she was giving, since I lived out of state during that year. She tried to tell me that I had to give a mobile number, and I refused. Why not email? Finally, I got it resolved. But at vast cost of wasted time and energy; an hour of my life that I won't get back. Even worse, I later checked the headers of those emails and saw that they were genuinely from Amazon in the first place.


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## bowmore (Sep 15, 2021)

WE get them all the time. They are phishing


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## peramangkelder (Sep 15, 2021)

@carouselsilver we get them here in South Australia so often we do not answer our mobiles when they ring any more


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## Bellbird (Sep 15, 2021)

That's made my decision. I won't be dealing with Amazon. Thanks for posting.


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## carouselsilver (Sep 15, 2021)

Thanks for the responses. It's things like that which make me hate dealing with Smartphones. Most businesses and even my doctor's office wants my mobile number for things and looks at me like I am nuts when I say I use a land line. Why should I try to squint at that tiny screen on the mobile when I can see everything better on my PC?


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## MarciKS (Sep 15, 2021)

carouselsilver said:


> This morning, I found an email claiming that someone had tried to log on to my Amazon Prime mobile account. Ninety percent of my internet time is spent on my PC, and I rarely use my Smartphone for anything. So I first called my husband to make sure he hadn't forgotten the password and attempted to log in. He had not. Next, I called the customer service number, and reached someone with a hard to understand accent, which is another peeve. I am already upset and worried and now I have to decipher what this guy is saying. So I told him about the email and that there had been three notifications that someone was trying to access my mobile account. He advised me to change my password, so I set out to do that on the Amazon website. After changing it, I got a notification that a validation code had been sent to a mobile phone ending in 04. Not my phone number, not even close. So I called again to find out why they were sending a validation code to a strange mobile number?
> 
> In the meantime, I get another email from Amazon telling me that the emails I had received earlier were spoofs, and that I shouldn't respond to them. No kidding? Now, I was really freaking out. Maybe the validation had gone to whomever was trying to hack in. I called back, and got idiot number two. He proceeded to request me to repeat my identifying info three times, and kept mumbling and apologizing, so I finally asked for a supervisor, thinking this might make things go faster. He pulled the classic customer service ploy; put me on hold for awhile.
> 
> I hung up and called back, to speak with idiot number three. Well, at first she wasn't an idiot, but it deteriorated fast. After giving my proofs of identity, she asked why I was saying that this mobile number that they were trying to text to, wasn't mine. I asked her where she had gotten it? She said that it was an old number, from back in 2004. I pointed out that I hadn't owned a cell phone then. She insisted that it was a mobile number that had once belonged to me. Again I repeated that it wasn't my phone number, because first of all I had not owned a cell phone that year and if I had, it wouldn't have had the area code she was giving, since I lived out of state during that year. She tried to tell me that I had to give a mobile number, and I refused. Why not email? Finally, I got it resolved. But at vast cost of wasted time and energy; an hour of my life that I won't get back. Even worse, I later checked the headers of those emails and saw that they were genuinely from Amazon in the first place.


Kinda sounds like you might have gotten ahold of a phishing site instead of Amazon. I generally hold my cursor from my mouse over the email sender to see if it will give a popup of the email address. If it looks like this: Afghi!klMeg @ blokag.com (Like gibberish) and not Amazon.com then it's spam. As long as you didn't click any links in the email or give them any personal info over the phone you should be fine. If you have a cell phone with a Sim card you might see about getting a new card.

Here's an example of one I get supposedly from Facebook that says someone tried to log in to my acct.
Face5176833885123 @ yizyvlvn.com I know it's not real so I don't mess with it.


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## carouselsilver (Sep 16, 2021)

MarciKS said:


> Kinda sounds like you might have gotten ahold of a phishing site instead of Amazon. I generally hold my cursor from my mouse over the email sender to see if it will give a popup of the email address. If it looks like this: Afghi!klMeg @ blokag.com (Like gibberish) and not Amazon.com then it's spam. As long as you didn't click any links in the email or give them any personal info over the phone you should be fine. If you have a cell phone with a Sim card you might see about getting a new card.
> 
> Here's an example of one I get supposedly from Facebook that says someone tried to log in to my acct.
> Face5176833885123 @ yizyvlvn.com I know it's not real so I don't mess with it.


Thanks for that info! Fortunately, this email really was from Amazon. Even though they sent out an email saying it wasn't, due to people not doing their job properly. I even think that the rep that I reached simply picked an option that looked likely, for his response. English as a second language often causes these little mistakes that can cost someone big. BTW, I did that little trick with the mouse over the return email address and the address was legit.


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## MarciKS (Sep 16, 2021)

carouselsilver said:


> Thanks for that info! Fortunately, this email really was from Amazon. Even though they sent out an email saying it wasn't, due to people not doing their job properly. I even think that the rep that I reached simply picked an option that looked likely, for his response. English as a second language often causes these little mistakes that can cost someone big. BTW, I did that little trick with the mouse over the return email address and the address was legit.


Yeah you gotta look closely at those because sometimes the do tricky crap with them like the email address may read Waalmart instead Walmart and if you're not looking they can getcha.  One time a scammer emailed me from a friends email address and I answered thinking it was her. Just be super careful!!


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## Judycat (Sep 16, 2021)

I get phone calls to my landline from Amazon and Apple telling that $399 has been charged to my account and to press one to connect with a representative now. I press the phone down and hang up. I've gotten these before, it is a scam. I don't bother with email anymore because it's so spammy. I have 2500 email alerts right now, no way am I going through that junk.


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## MarciKS (Sep 16, 2021)

Judycat said:


> I get phone calls to my landline from Amazon and Apple telling that $399 has been charged to my account and to press one to connect with a representative now. I press the phone down and hang up. I've gotten these before, it is a scam. I don't bother with email anymore because it's so spammy. I have 2500 email alerts right now, no way am I going through that junk.


They just keep coming.


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## Judycat (Sep 16, 2021)

MarciKS said:


> They just keep coming.


They sure do. Don't tell me about spam filters either. Spam filters just cut the 51,000 email alerts down to 2500.


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## carouselsilver (Sep 16, 2021)

These scammers can hijack legitimate phone calls, too. It's getting scary! Once, my husband had called our credit card company about some issue with the card, and I was noticing that the conversation was not making sense. Plus, it was taking a really long time. So I picked up the extension. It turned out that someone was asking for all kinds of personal information and he was giving it. I told him to just hang up. We then called the same number, and this time got connected to the real credit card company. They of course didn't know anything about the other call, nor did they offer any resolution. So hubby just asked for a new credit card.


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## carouselsilver (Sep 16, 2021)

Judycat said:


> They sure do. Don't tell me about spam filters either. Spam filters just cut the 51,000 email alerts down to 2500.


And spam filters sometimes filter out important emails!


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## MarciKS (Sep 16, 2021)

Sometimes that spam gets past the filters and into your inbox too.

Sometimes I'm able to block them.


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## mrstime (Sep 16, 2021)

I think I am glad I never figured out the cell phone I bought. I keep it charged so when we are out and have an emergency I can use it to call 911.


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## Pappy (Sep 16, 2021)

My wife got the Amazon email thing this morning. She ask me what she should do. I told her, how fast can you delete it. She did. I get this junk all the time. Maddening..


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## carouselsilver (Sep 16, 2021)

Due to spam filters, I once missed out on being in my college's alumni year book. The woman putting it all together emailed me with the details, and I responded that I wanted to contribute my information. Since I had gotten married, I asked if she could change my surname in the proposed yearbook. I didn't hear back from her, (I thought) until a week later I checked my spam folder, and saw that she had requested proof of name change, to be submitted by a certain date, which of course I had now missed. Because Google decided that this was a spam message. I now use a private email service which I pay for and it is so much nicer!


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## horseless carriage (Sep 19, 2021)

carouselsilver said:


> Thanks for the responses. It's things like that which make me hate dealing with Smartphones. Most businesses and even my doctor's office wants my mobile number for things and looks at me like I am nuts when I say I use a land line. Why should I try to squint at that tiny screen on the mobile when I can see everything better on my PC?


Squint? I can use mine in the dark, just got to know where your finger goes, that's all.


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## fmdog44 (Sep 19, 2021)

When you attach yourself to the sites like Facebook you are opening your doors to the world. I am on none of the social media and get very few spam calls and the other bogus messages.


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## carouselsilver (Sep 19, 2021)

fmdog44 said:


> When you attach yourself to the sites like Facebook you are opening your doors to the world. I am on none of the social media and get very few spam calls and the other bogus messages.


I am not on FB either. What's the point? Those near and dear to me can pick up the phone or email me. Besides, cell phones give me headaches. Anyone else sensitive to them?


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## Packerjohn (Sep 19, 2021)

I don't have a smartphone and don't want one so I don't have these problems.  I do have a small $50 CND cell phone that I only keep for emergencies and don't give that number to anyone.  Life is too short to waste my time texting and texting over and over and over.


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