Do Not Answer This Phone Call

I consider myself to be somewhat paranoid, like, not in a, I-need-to-be-medicated way, but just in general. One thing I never do, is answer calls from phone numbers I do not recognize. Even coming from the local 413 area code, I do not pick up. Leave a voicemail and I will call you back.

For the last, I would say, at least six months, I frequently get calls from a phone number almost identical to my own. Do I ever receive a voicemail from this unknown caller? Never. My not so surprising suspicion has now been confirmed to be true, it's a scam!

An article written on brobible.com explains the reasoning behind the similar-to-your-phone number trick. If you decide to answer the phone when "these people" call, you will most likely get an IRS, debt collector, or some utility company impersonator trying to steal your money on the other end.

The Pittsfield Police Department recently posted about something even more frightening, fake caller IDs!

As for my, leave a voicemail and I will call you back rule, that applies to only people's number I don't recognize. If I get a missed call from a friend, but no voicemail, I will always call you back. Just sayin'.