Category: Fight Back

Robokiller Makes Automated Calls Fun

Robocalls are the unwanted automated calls that you get, mostly from scammers and spammers but also sometimes from Marketing people and companies that don’t realise how annoying their pointless automated calls can be.

Robokiller is one of many APPS that claims to block automated calls from getting through to you.

It is also fun to use as it has Answer Bots to entertain you and confuse the callers.

Price: $2.99/month or $24.99/year for Android devices; $3.99/month or $29.99/year for iOS

Answer Bots

Answer bots are short, amusing recordings that answer the phone for you. You can create your own answer bot, or you can use the standard answer bots that come with the app.

You can choose from answer bots with titles like “Morgan Freeman impersonator,” “Spoiled Child,” “Nonsense,” and one called “Default Answer Bot,” which lets callers know their call has been answered by an app and it’s been blocked.

There is also Random answer bot.

The answer bots are well setup – they don’t just say something then go quiet – there’s hhm, yes, carry on all the usual signs of someone listening, then an interruption from a co-worker asking something and so on and then – Oh yes, I meant to call you guys last week but I got distracted. Hold on a second. And so on.

Can lead to funny conversations.

See if Robokiller and Answer Bots make your life easier.

If you have had any fun at the expense of cold callers, spammers and the like – do let me know, by email.

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How to Unclog Your Digital Life

In our private lives, most of us live a lot in the Digital World – maybe it’s dealing with emails, streaming TV, catching up on social media, watching a movie or YouTube video, communicating with friends and family and for home admin etc.

There is a lot of good content on the Internet, but there is also a huge amount of digital pollution – consider spam messages, scams, pointless emails, pointless websites, celebrity trivia, fake news, fake reviews, meaningless social media etc.

This all clogs up our email systems, social media feeds and the Internet generally and wastes so much of our precious time.

It will also have an effect on us, it’s becoming harder to tell the fake news from the facts, harder to spot the fake reviews, the phishing emails and more. We have to put in more effort and be more vigilant against the tidal wave of digital pollution clogging up our lives.

But, you don’t have to let it take-over your life. The suggestions below can help you to unclog that digital world.

  • Email
  • Clean your inbox and unsubscribe from polluting newsletters that you don’t read.
  • Only cc and bcc people when really necessary.
  • Send lighter emails – you can use services such as WeTransfer if you need to send large files to someone.
  • Set your email system to only check for new emails every hour or two rather than every 5 minutes as used by many.
  • Social Media
  • Turn off notifications. You don’t need to know the second someone gives you a Facebook like.
  • Restrict your access to social media to specific short periods each day.
  • Only post useful content and only read useful content, not the blathering of the stupid.
  • Don’t chase likes or Friends – it is empty and leads to people posting endless rubbish.
  • The social media companies don’t pay you so don’t keep creating content and viewing content on their behalf. (some people do earn money from YouTube etc. of course).
  • Don’t bother following or reading about celebrities – they know as little as most people and have nothing to offer worthwhile.
  • Mobile Phones
  • Turn off sound notifications – you don’t need to know the second a message arrives.
  • At night, put the phone on charge in a different room to where you sleep and turn it off.
  • Don’t use ring tones that may annoy others, especially if you’re travelling by trains and buses.

Take back control of your digital life – don’t let it control you.

Do let us know by email, how you unclog your digital life.

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Stop Unwanted Robo Calls

Robocalls are the unwanted automated calls that you get, mostly from scammers and spammers but also sometimes from Marketing people and companies that don’t realise how annoying their pointless automated calls can be.

Mass cold calling was made easier by use of voice over IP, meaning the calls can be created on basic computers without the need for standard phone lines which cost money and can be tracked.

To some this is just a minor annoyance but to others it can be a lot more serious as they fall victim to scammers.

Robocalls are the No. 1 source of consumer complaints to the Federal Communications Commission.

There are various APPS that claim to block automated calls.

Robocall Blockers

APP Cost Ratings (out of 5 stars)
Hiya:

Caller ID and Spam Blocker

 $2.99/month or $14.99/year for Hiya Premium

 

 App Store rating: 4.6

Google Play Store rating: 4.4
Nomorobo:

Robocall Blocking

 $1.99/month App Store rating: 4.6

Google Play Store rating: 2.1
RoboKiller:

Spam Call Blocker

 $2.99/month or $24.99/year for Android devices; $3.99/month or $29.99/year for iOS App Store rating: 4.6

Google Play Store rating: 3.6
YouMail:

Voicemail and Spam Block

 Basic service is free; $5.99/month for YouMail Plus and $10.99/month for YouMail Professional App Store rating: 4.6

Google Play Store rating: 4.3
Call Control Home:

Device

 $159.99 for call blocker device; smartphone app is free App Store rating (app): 4.5

Google Play Store rating (app): 4.4

It’s up to you which, if any, of these products meet your needs.

If you have had any fun at the expense of cold callers, spammers and the like – do let me know, by email.

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Victim Entitlements

If you suffer a crime that is reported to the Police, then you will, as a victim, have the following rights (dependant on circumstances).

Code of Practice for Victims of Crime

You are entitled to:

  • A written acknowledgement that you have reported a crime, including the basic details of the offence; •
  • An enhanced service if you are a victim of serious crime, a persistently targeted victim or a vulnerable or intimidated victim;
  • A needs assessment to help work out what support you need;
  • Information on what to expect from the criminal justice system;
  • Be referred to organisations supporting victims of crime;
  • Be informed about the police investigation, such as if a suspect is arrested and charged and any bail conditions imposed;
  • Make a Victim Personal Statement (VPS) to explain how the crime affected you;
  • Read your VPS aloud or have it read aloud on your behalf, subject to the views of the court, if a defendant is found guilty;
  • Be informed if the suspect is to be prosecuted or not or given an out of court disposal;
  • Seek a review of the police or CPS’s decision not to prosecute in accordance with the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) and CPS Victims’ Right to Review schemes;
  • Be informed of the time, date and location and outcome of any court hearings;
  • Be informed if you need to give evidence in court, what to expect and discuss what help and support you might need with the Witness Care Unit;
  • Arrange a court familiarisation visit and enter the court through a different entrance from the suspect and sit in a separate waiting area where possible;
  • Meet the CPS advocate and ask him or her questions about the court process where circumstances permit;
  • Be informed of any appeal against the offender’s conviction or sentence;
  • To opt into the Victim Contact Scheme (VCS) if the offender is sentenced to 12 months or more for a specified violent or sexual offence;
  • If you opt in to the VCS to: – make a VPS for consideration by the Parole Board if the offender is considered for release or transfer and apply to the Parole Board to read it out at the hearing; – make representations about the conditions attached to the offender’s licence on release and be informed about any licence conditions relating to you;
  • Apply for compensation under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme;
  • Receive information about Restorative Justice and how you can take part;
  • Make a complaint if you do not receive the information and services you are entitled to, and to receive a full response from the relevant service provider.

See https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/476900/code-of-practice-for-victims-of-crime.PDF  for further information.

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The Employee Phishing Test

Phishing is where you receive an email that appears to be from a trusted organisation but is designed to get your personal information such as login and password or credit card details.

Q. Would your employees fall for such a phishing email?

Usecure Ltd carry out phishing simulations on behalf of their client companies in order to see what the level of response would be and hence what actions need to be taken.

https://blog.getusecure.com/post/holiday-phishing-simulation

Follow this.

It’s half past four on a Thursday afternoon. You’re getting through your last tasks of the day, when you receive a new email. It has an alluring title:

“Holiday Policy Change – Action Required”

When an email with this title was sent out to the employees of one of Usecure’s clients, 78% of them opened it. The email, however, was a phishing scam: By the end of the day, 39% of the recipients had been duped into giving up their email passwords.

Luckily for the client, the email was only a simulation.

That’s a frighteningly high message open rate and response rate and shows how dangerous phishing emails can be.

Q. What is simulated phishing – and how does it help?

Simulated phishing means sending out ‘fake’ phishing emails. These are often modelled after real-world phishing emails and use similar techniques to catch the target’s attention, but are intended to educate the target on the risks of phishing rather than to trick them into giving up their details.

While training end-users on the risks of phishing and the common telling signs of phishing emails is essential, simulated phishing allows employees to put what they’ve learned into a real-world test. This helps raise awareness about phishing – employees that do fall for simulated phishing are sure to remember how easy it is to fall for a phishing scam – and the results are recorded for you to see how your employees fare in the simulation. This data can then be used to provide additional training and guidance to employees most at risk, helping you secure the organisation.

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How to Answer the Cold Callers

These suggestions are from  users of the Slummy Single Mummy website at https://slummysinglemummy.com/  and are in response to a cold caller telling you that you have been involved in a car accident, but the responses can be applied to most cold callers.

  • ‘Oh my goodness! I thought I was feeling a bit funny today. Am I seriously hurt?’
  • ‘Could you call me back in about ten minutes?’ (grunting) ‘I’m just having a poo and it’s proving stubborn.’
  • ‘Noooo!’ (breaking down in tears), ‘I knew this would catch up with me! I told Frank we shouldn’t have pushed the other car off that bridge, that we should have just owned up and told everyone it was an accident, and NOW SEE WHAT’S HAPPENED??’
  • ‘Well, that’s a funny coincidence as I have just been informed that you have been in an accident? Are you okay?’
  • ‘Well I have been in an accident but it WAS my fault. She had it coming.’
  • ‘Yes I have – it happened just then when I answered the phone to you, so I guess that makes it your fault? Could you give me your insurance details please?’
  • ‘Thanks for calling. I do need to make you aware that this call will be recording for training purposes.’
  • ‘Damn it,’ (in desperate voice), ‘I thought I’d managed to get all the witnesses. Who told you? Was it that snitch Tommo?’
  • ‘I’m so glad you called,’ (whispering), ‘I’ve been trying to tell everyone this for MONTHS but they keep telling me I imagined it. I’ve been in this strange hospital for six weeks now. Can I give you the name of my doctor and then you can call and explain to her that it IS true – you have been informed of it?’

Have fun with cold callers – they called to waste your time, so waste theirs instead.

If you have any better suggestions or answers you have tried, do let me know, by email.

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