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My boyfriend and I somehow got targeted by a shady "skip trace" outfit. We got these odd phone calls looking for an individual with my last name. Concerned, I called the number back - and became even more concerned. Apparently, they are under the impression there has been some judgement against me (untrue) and the person they think is my husband owes thousands of dollars to various people. At first, I thought "OK, they have to use every avenue possible to find this guy..."
But I did a little research by Googling the phone number - as it turns out, they have been on the FTC's radar since 2009. They call people up - then start threatening them with jail, garnished wages, etc...for debts that the targets have not incurred. They will even call and harrass children.
When we tried to engage them to get more info, like "If I owe this money that I don't know about, by all means please send me the offical judgement papework" - we were met with profanity, top of the lungs yelling, and insults like "You are a deadbeat old lady that never pays her bills"! Thats one of the tamer things they said.
What is scary is that they clearly have information on me - these places can buy info on anyone (Eff you T-Mobile for selling my number to them, which is how I am sure they got my info).
I think what happens is they do get lucky once in a while and some hapless person ends up convinced they have bought their debt - and they write them checks.
We have filed a complaint with the FTC, who has authority over this stuff. But I thought I'd ask if anyone else had a run in with this type of thing. If so, you do want to contact the FTC. It is only when a critical mass of people report these guys that they can even begin to take action.
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