844-369-9851

Got a phone call(1-844 number) for someone looking for my husband and said that they were a courier service and they need to deliver papers about a case. Gave me a another 1-844 number to call and a case number. My husband was at work so I called. Said that he was being served and had my husbands SS#, Address, and birthday, and what not. Said we were being sued for a debt from 2006 and did I know anything about it. I didn't. My husband had a little bit of debt/credit problems when we first met, but I helped him get it all sorted out years ago. Cut to calling my husband who says this sounds fishy. So we are thinking its a scam due to:
-You don't get called when you are getting served (which I have never been in court, so I didn't know that)
-I couldn't find a website for the law office that said they were processing the paper work. When I asked why, they said it was because they worked with companies not the public. (which is funny because my company only works we other companies and we have an online presence)
-When I asked for some information to make sure they weren't a scam the guy got super agro with me and hung up.
-When we asked for the address for company it wasn't there
-Called the first company (the courier service) and they also did not have a website and gave me the exact same address as the lay office
-SOL on credit debt is 7 years, so if this debt existed they legally couldn't do anything about since it was 11 years old.
-Finally I'm in Ohio, why would they contact a courier service and law office in California

Criminals masquerading as debt collectors attempt to extort money from people by scaring you into believing that you will be criminally charged (they use the bad check or hot check claim a lot) and go to jail, lose your driver’s license, have wages garnished without actually being sued or going to court, be sued, and a variety of other variations on this, all for an alleged or nonexistent debt.  One of the tricks they use is to call your family, friends, neighbors and/or places of employment (past or present or both) to create panic and embarrassment so that their intended victim calls them and they can scare that person into paying their extortion money.  They will use the words “Mediator”, “Arbitrator”, or “Law Office” to make you believe that they are something other than a debt collector want-a-be and that they don’t have to follow Federal and State collection laws.  They do have to follow those laws, but they won’t.  They mention that they have received a Fax document, to create the sense of urgency.  They also tell you that if you fail to call them back you are "waiving your right to council", which is pretty much nothing but hogwash.  They also use the “process server” ruse who calls and claims he is going to serve you, but then says you could avoid it by calling another number where they will ask for money to “make it go away” (this is actually the same place, they work in teams, one pretending to be the server, and the other usually pretends to be a lawyer).  Process servers do not ever call ahead so that you can dodge them.  Process servers get paid to serve papers, nothing else.  

If you feel you SSN has been compromised, in addition to putting a fraud alert at the 3 credit bureaus, you may want to notify the IRS.  Here is the link, fill out the proper form (probably 14039). Also file a report at the FTC Identity Theft web site as well as learn what else you need to do:
http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/How-Do-You-Rep ... aud-Activity%3F
https://www.ftc.gov/faq/consumer-protection/report-identity-theft


It is incumbent upon them under the law to prove that the debt exists and that you owe it, and that they have the legal right to collect it.  You are not obligated under the law to prove that you don’t owe or that it is paid.  

Federal law (FDCPA) requires them to send you a letter (US MAIL ONLY) postmarked within 5 days of their first contact that contains their name, physical address, the creditor’s name, and the amount of the alleged debt.  It also must contains “mini-Miranda” telling you that it is an attempt to collect a debt and that all information will be used for those purposes.  The one other important thing that this letter must also have in it is that you have a right to dispute the debt within 30 days of receipt of the letter and if you do so, all collection activity must be stopped until the debt is verified.

Read up on your rights here and also make a complaint at this government site:  http://www.consumerfinance.gov/

Also file a complaint with your State Attorney General's office.
List of State AG’s offices:   https://800notes.com/faq/attorney-general

My son got a call from this number as well about papers that needed to be "signed for" with a threat of "this won't go away", I called back, the phone was answered brusquely by a man who said "Who is this?", I told him I got a call and needed to know the company I was speaking with befroe giving any information, he got angry and started almost screaming into the phone by phone number, I guess from caller ID, and saying "who is this?" I told him without that information, I wouldn't answer any questions and that I was sure this was a scam, that my attorney told me not to give any information out and he replied "who is your attorney", I hung up. Debt collectors are requred by law to say in phone calls that they are recording calls and that any information the use can be used to collect a debt, there was nothing like that, he wouldn't even tell me what company he was calling from, and I know that process servers do not call ahead, papers served by the courts don' require signatures, process servers provide affadavits to the court of their delivery, that's what they are paid for. Scam alert.

My son got a call from this number as well about papers that needed to be "signed for" with a threat of "this won't go away", I called back, the phone was answered brusquely by a man who said "Who is this?", I told him I got a call and needed to know the company I was speaking with befroe giving any information, he got angry and started almost screaming into the phone by phone number, I guess from caller ID, and saying "who is this?" I told him without that information, I wouldn't answer any questions and that I was sure this was a scam, that my attorney told me not to give any information out and he replied "who is your attorney", I hung up. Debt collectors are requred by law to say in phone calls that they are recording calls and that any information the use can be used to collect a debt, there was nothing like that, he wouldn't even tell me what company he was calling from, and I know that process servers do not call ahead, papers served by the courts don' require signatures, process servers provide affadavits to the court of their delivery, that's what they are paid for. Scam alert.