I received a phone call on my mobile last night from a company called Amba Sun in Spain regarding buying a property!
I asked them how did they get my number? They said I either went to their website and left my details with them, or left my details at a Spanish Airport or an Exibition!
I've never been to their website as I've never heard of them and I've never been to Spain nor have I been to a Spanish Exibition!
I asked them what other details do they have of me and they had my full address, I was shocked!!!
Is this identity fraud?????? Please help someone!!!!!
They bought your number from somewhere
Some web site you used ot place an order has passed on or sold your details
No this is not ID theft - they were not pretending to be you were they?
It could be one of hundreds of people you gave your details to and missed the "don't pass my details on" box or they could simply be working through the electoral role in your area.
Off course they may sell your details on themselves
It is ludicrously easy for companies to buy customer information from other companies for use in marketing.
For example, your LOCAL DISTRICT COUNCIL can and probably has sold on your information at some point, though at least they are resticted to the amount of money they can gain from it. As Jake-the-Peg mentions, it would be the electoral role. Phone companies, internet companies, broadband services... they all do it
Best bet is to be really careful to tick boxes marked as 'don't use my information...' or similar. And calmly hang up on any calls in future!!
Yes, as Jake-the-peg states, you may register (for a small fee) with the Telephone Preference Service, but in future beware of talking to those people who aim to sell you property abroad over the telephone... they have a nasty habit of reversing the charges for the call made to your number, which, I might add, has obviously been sold on to them by a third party (with your consent) - presumably when you bought something on-line in the "dim and distant past".
or even better you can have anonymous call reject on your line, think its about �5 a quater and unless the caller displays the number they cant get through. ive had it for years its brilliant
Sonak a few years back i got a phone on contract from dixons. this was a spare phone , one that i made offpeak calls on . no one was given the number by me. after a couple of weeks i was contacted by phone and by post.
so the only ones who could give my details out were dixons
Thanks all - I have already registered with TPS for a few years now but know that won't help anything, like jake-the-peg has said.
I've also had funny calls last year and recent text msgs when I come to think of it and I'm usually quite cautious when giving out my mobile number and address, especially on websites! Its quite worrying really......
On any forms and websites I give an old defunct telephone number unless I want that company to contact me by phone.
I do check every so often that that number hasn't been reallocated. The only people that have my telephone number are friends, family, my GP and the hospital.
Police wouldn't be interested. I wouldn't be concerned for all teh reasons given. And it's quite common for 'friends' to fill these forms in with other people's details