We have received 3 calls from this org. 2 from a man who became very rude when I refused to transfer to our CEO advising he would not be the correct party to speak with. He became very angry with me for blocking his attempts to call and said "this shouldn't be so damn hard, I just want to speak with ...." Just received a call from a woman today from the same number asking to speak with our CEO and advising she was with a different org. Again advised he would not be the correct party. She advised she would call back at a later time to speak with him.

These people have claimed to be our customers when clearly they are not.

I have the same issue--someone has called repeatedly from 7042808601 and does not leave a message.  Today I happened to be available and picked up the phone.  They asked if this was the correct number for X (the name of my small business).  I asked who was calling and why.  He stated, "Michael Gifford, from North Carolina State."  I pushed for the reason for his call, he said, "About your work with the University."  He then asked for the name of the business owner so he could verify the number.  I told him I could not release any information or transfer the call unless I knew the reason for his call.  Several rounds of evasive answers, then as I told him to remove the number from his call list he hung up.  

I did not give him information.  Although I do have a contract with NCSU, they have a different phone number on file and they know my name, so this was clearly not NCSU calling.  I am concerned about where/how this call center is obtaining the names and phone numbers for all of us who receive these calls.  Furthermore, my phone number is on the National Do Not Call registry.  As such, I filed a complaint at https://complaints.donotcall.gov/complaint/complaintcheck.aspx.  

Guy called and left a message saying he was calling in regards to the Seahawks (our company is based in Seattle). Why is someone calling from NC about the Seahawks? No other message, sounded duplicitous so I Googled it and thank goodness for this site. I'll know to avoid this number.

Have been receiving numerous calls from this number over a period of days, somtimes multibple times during the night - all recorded on our messaging system with no message.
We called the number and a woman's voice answered "publications".
When we asked what business we had reached, she said that "we probably have the wrong number".
Seems to be some type of telemarketer scam.

Had essentially the same result.  Caller represented himself as working for the school and when I asked if "down here" meant "down here in Charlotte..." he admitted he was Physically in Charlotte.  I'm to the point of not answering any calls fro area code 704.

Same as the above comments - Someone from this number called, asking who the rep is for a school district that we do business with. Turns out that's me, so I gave him my name and title. He then went on to ask who I report to, and then who my manager reports to. I kept asking him what exactly he was looking for, and he kept evasively responding that he was calling in regards to that school district (though he never explicitly said he was *with* them), and that he was just updating records. Around the 3rd or 4th time I pressed him on it, he said that he had to duck into a meeting, but that he would call back later.

Shady.

Same story as many others on here.  We also heavily screen our calls so I knew right away "Chris Wright" was a solicitor.  Claims he's with Portland State University and is calling about the work we do there (we don't do ANY work there).  Have asked him to take us off his call list and stop calling multiple times, but he doesn't.  Calls once a week for the last 6 months!  We are a very small company so perhaps he thinks he'll get someone else on the phone one of these days, but it's always me, ha ha.  He straight up lies and is rude, argumentative and obnoxious.  Hangs up on me when I don't put him through to the owner.  Reported it to PSU since "Chris" and his company are clearly misrepresenting themselves and making PSU look bad!

The same guy calls every day. They have nothing better to do and it's really sad. Same song and dance, how they get into a shady business.  Asks for either Pres or VP, saying he seen our company working on their campus. But that's it.  So sick of these snakes.

The person keeps calling and asking for certain people! They are scammers .

I have picked these calls up on a daily basis in the past, so I have some info that you may not already be aware of. If you received a call from this number, know that it is for marketing purposes. Possibly not even legitimate purposes; this could be a scam altogether... but these guys are very elusive, so I'm not sure. Most of the time these calls come into my business from a blocked number, but every once in a while (like right now) a number will show up, or they'll be dumb enough to leave a call back number and I will run to the internet to share my knowledge. There may be several companies that use this tactic for the same purposes, or it could just be one company that tries different numbers and reps to throw you off, again, I'm not sure.

What I am sure of is that these people are selling ads for various publications. They will lie to you and tell you they are from whatever business they need to in order to get to the decision maker. My company is a subcontractor for the federal government, so in our case they always say they're calling from a military base (and they have name dropped every base around to get through too). They are often times rude and pushy so that they give the appearance of being too important to question (unfortunately for them, that doesn't work on me). I cannot stress enough that these people will not be honest with you. I have tried every question my brain can think of, and I can't make them confess that they're selling something.

Even though they never admit why they're calling I can spot the signs a mile away, and with the info below, you can too:

1. It sounds like they're calling from a crowded call center! Does your client work in a call center? More than likely they don't. Too many voices in the background is your first red flag.
2. They might have information that is just a hair shy of being correct. They may ask for the wrong person, have the wrong company name, wrong office or (and this is the best in my opinion) they don't know the gender of the person they're asking for. If you're two for two at this point you probably have a scummy ad marketer.
3. They say they're "updating contact information" or that "it's about the work that you do with us", and they refuse to tell you ANYTHING MORE no matter what you ask them. It's at this point I am 100% sure I know what this call is about and I begin to have some fun with these guys, because really, it's the only thing you can do. I have found a good deal of info on these calls, but stopping them is still a long way off. They don't give up. Ever.

This particular number may be from a different company, but I found a company name attached to a different call back number a few months ago, and it's the closest I've ever come to finding out who these guys are. I traced the number this person left back to some company called University Sports Publications (AKA Military Publishing, School District Publishing, and Municipal Publishing). Google them and see just how scummy this company really is. As I stated, I'm not sure that the person calling from this number is from that company, but it wouldn't surprise me if they were.

So, now that you're armed with the knowledge of how to spot these calls...If you're talking to one of these guys and you have the time, keep them on the phone and have some fun! Be polite, but question them relentlessly and listen to the anger building in their voice. They'll get frustrated, and they'll catch a nasty tone, but they'll never tell you anything more than "I just need to update contact info." If they're telling you they need contact info, ask who *exactly* needs that info and why? If they say "it's about the work you do for us" ask them what work *specifically* they're referring to (I always say, "it depends on what project you're talking about as to who the right person is. You wanna be more specific so I can get you to the right person?). When you question them like this, they can't answer you... because they're lying. They don't know about the work you do for them. There's not a legitimate client that needs your contact info... if there was they'd already have the info, I'm sure! If you're really feeling froggy, ask them straight up if they're calling from University Sports Publications. The one time I did this the guy lied and told me no, but he stuttered and stammered the whole way and quickly found a way to end the call. He knew I had him. They If they just won't let up, ask for a call back number. Tell them you're not sure you should be giving out info because it may not necessarily be right, and you want to ensure they're getting correct stuff (of course this is a lie, but it will get them off the phone if you've had enough fun). 99 times out of 100 they'll tell you no and get off the phone, but then there's that one special time that they'll admit defeat and leave a number either with you or in someone's voicemail. That's how I tracked down University Sports Publications, and hopefully how you can track down whoever is calling you.

I have been using these tactics for about a year now, and while they still call, it's a lot less frequent. I was getting sometimes two and three calls a day. Now I only get a couple a week. If you wanna have fun, question them... if you don't, just hang up. The long and short of it is that these people are deceitful marketers, and do not deserve your time or business. Good luck in your endeavors to rid yourself of these jerks.

This company calls my switchboard everyday asking for the CFO with no reason for the call.  How can these harassing calls be stopped?

Stupid man called....asked to speak to 'E.R.' then said he talks with him 'ALL THE TIME'....liar, liar, pants on fire. Refused to give any info.

Scam artists!!!!

These folks are beyong scam artists!!  They, somehow, have the names of several of our completed projects (we install specialized raised floor systems), as well as my VP's name.  They call every single day and when I tell them he isn't in, they quickly respond they will call him on his cell/send him an email.  I can honestly say I hate them with a passion!  I plan to dial the number back to see who I actually get.  What ever happened to the DO NOT CALL LIST?????

I answered as usual "XYZ company, how may I direct your call?" He was puzzled because he thought he was calling ABC company.  We used to be ABC -- about two years ago.  I told him that, and he wanted to know the owner of the new XYZ was.  I said XYZ was a very large company headquarted out of state (true).  He then wanted to know who was the top person at our location.  I just hung up.  Anyone who starts out with two year old information is obviously fishing.  

Just like everyone else on this list, someone called and asked for our owner by name.  When I asked what  company she was with, she replied that the call wasn't about any company, rather it was about our work with the Coast Guard.

The scary part is how she knows about this.

Our IT guy is looking into contacting the service provider and filing a formal complaint.

This person calls and asks for my boss by name, but will never leave a message.
I called back and no one answers....they do this every morning. This time I got an answering machine saying, "Publications"!
I left a message that we would report it as harrassment if they called again! I will see tomorrow!!!

I got called from this number almost every day on my cell phone. They never leave a message. If you call back a message finally answers for some company called Publications. I just entered the phone number into the reject incoming call list. Si-a-naira creeps!

This is the first time I received a call from this company.  It's unbelieveable all the unlegit calls  I receive throughout the day at my place of business.  This guy said the same thing that our company does work on their campus and they need the name of our owner.  Stupidly I gave it to them.  He asked if he was in and I said no, so he, in turn, asked for voicemail.  I didn't put him through and he finally hung up.  That is a great idea saying I'm the owner of the company.  Then I have total leverage to see what they really want. Another call to go on my "Do Not Answer List."  Thank God for Caller ID!

I hang pick up the receiver and hang up immediately whenever this phone number appears on my caller ID.
They call everyday; and ask for someone who they had incorrectly pronounced the last name.  Would never leave a message.  Now when I hang up, they immediately call back in which I then immediately hang up again.

Several calls to my cell phone; none that I have answered. Needs to stop!

Called asking for owner. I asked if this was for telemarketing purposes and she lied and said she was working on a project with him (didn't know his name though) for Cornell University. Not a Cornell number. She refused to give a name or number when asked and hung up when I offered to take a message. Big scam to sell advertising that you probably won't get anyway. We don't do business with a company that lies about what they do.

Girl calls at least 5 times a day, said she was from a local metro school, we are in Nashville TN, she is calling from NC. DO NOT ANSWER CALLS FROM THIS NUMBER!!!!!

Just got a call from this number. She said she was calling on behalf of the City and wanted to update their records.Then she asked for our VP's name. Why not go straight for the President's name??? I new something was fishy then saw all these other posts. I have now blocked their number.

Same as all others that have reported before me. A very rude young lady called to speak with the Manager. My staff heavily screens all calls. She would not say the specific reason for the call. She said she was with Lousisiana State University. When we pushed her for the reason she needed to speak to a manager, and after many vague responsed from her,  she ended up saying she had a complaint about our company. We continued to try to narrow down the nature of the complaint and she finally hung up.

Have received several calls claiming to be with a school district that we work with.  They won't answer any questions I ask to find out what the call is regarding.  I know they don't work with the district because the district has our information.  Then they get rude and hang up when I don't give them any information.

Have received several calls from this number and they tell me they are from UMSL - University of Missouri St. Louis, I asked if I could take his number and call him back because the area code he was calling was not our local area code and he abruptly said you don't believe me? I again said I would be happy to take a message and have our VP return the call. He said he would try his cell..good luck buddy, you don't have his cell.

Brad Hoover called from this number today, told me he was from the Army Core of Engineers, (okay)
this number calls our office 10 times a day, if your short with them they won't leave a message, but i act all sincere like i believe their story and they make up lies!! they never give the number they called from, even though its right there on caller id and of course they always say they are local.
do people still fall for this kind of stuff?

Got a call from this number today. After three attempts to reach me they finally left a message to call them about a company that work for. I returned the call and got a person saying they was with the publications department. I told them I wish to speak with the person that called me. They transferred me to a voice mail. I left my company name and told her  to return my call.

Called and said it was fro the denver public schools but the caller id says north carolina.  Total bs call scam of the highest order!