I got a call from a lady saying ive been granted a gov grant (LOL). and im thinking WOW 5 grand!!!! then she used a word that i know is defenately not in English language so iasked her to repeat it (she had said LAKH, a figure) and she said it again. i asked her where are you calling from she goes NSW. i asked for a website but she said the grant info is not on our website. then she wanted me to donate $100 through western union! i bet Aus gov. doesnt use western union

It is a scam.

I didn't think at the time to ask who it was, but I looked it up and confirmed on another website.  They're telling you that you won a government grant for $5200 then are going to ask to charge some money in order to receive it.  The number they say is the callback is 206-201-2624.

Second call I got from these people. Really annoying. They try to lure you by saying you have been awarded a grant. This is the bait. Don't take it. They will reel you in. Both times I hung up on them.

I just got a call from this number and nothing happened, just a machine saying "good bye"

Man with a foreign accent called to tell me I had been approved for a government grant for $5200. Caught me off guard since I work with gov grants but when I got it together and figured out it wasn't realted to work when he read me my home address. I then started asking what branch of the govt it came from and started listing agencies. He hung up.

Got a call from this number...they(a man speaking with an accent and very noisy background) asked for my 17 yr old son by first name only. When I asked who it was and what it was regarding he did not answer, he stayed on the line an additional 5 seconds and hung up.Most definetly a scam of some kind!

Im in Northern California just recieved a phone call from a man who was hard to understand giving me 5200 bucks in grant money. I called the better business bureau they said if someone claims to be part of the red cross and government but talks with an accent they are full of it.  It has been happening more and more, a lot of claims have been coming from Jamaica as well.  Why would the red cross give money to someone that is no where near any natural disasters or any third world countries .

Your cell phone provider can usually put a block on certain numbers. I have recieved the same call in the last two days, first time listened to the spill then told him it sounded like a scam to me. He then transfered me to a "Senior Associate" to try and get me to verify my information, told him the same thing as I told the first guy. He then transfered me back and to the same guy who called me and he said that he would just cancell the application and they would not call me anymore. YEAH RIGHT, got the call again today, I wasnt so nice today, basically told the guy off and he got very rude and said he will just keep calling and then hung up. I dont have a home phone only a cell, so I called my provider and had them put a block on it. Not sure if it will work but we will see.

I do know that the laws and government agencies aren't doing anything about it becuse they don't want to hurt thier international relationships so, filling with them is a complete waste of time. The government has got to big to care about little old me (or you). But, I can tell you if they actually do decide to do something about these SCAMMERS in the world, they should line them up in front of a firing squad and kill them all and let god sort them out because they dont deserve anything better.

ii have it on auto reject..
they call me reguarly.. how can i stop the calls all together

so here we go again.  These muthaf*@!rs have been calling me about 5 or more times a day since Jan 1.  I am not answering my phone, but this is troubling.  

I have again submitted a complaint to the WA State Atty General.  I don't know what to do short of changing my phone number to remedy this.

BEWARE - these guys are serious predators!!

caller is from Africa.....could not understand most of what he said....but I knew it was a scam.....I told him to learn how to speak English before trying to scam someone and to suck my c***.

this # called me and said i was approved for a grant for 5200, they never got to any other level cause i questioned why the govt would use western union to make a transaction....

So these a***oles just called me again.  After reading these posts, I interrogated this guy for about 15 minutes on the specifics of the grant award.  I must  go to Western Union, have a valid account that has been opened for at least 6 months, have a record of monthly transaction to "qualify".  I told him I don't do business w/western union, and have no record of regular transaction over the last six months.  He then told me that a "security deposit" of $500 would need to be applied so I could collect my award.  He then told me that the award was coming from the Salvation Army not the US Govt.  

I told him that this is very unusual.  Chartible Grants are not the same as Govt Grants, and neither require a "security deposit".  He became very aggressive in his tone, told me it was my money, but if I didn't want it, he would cancel the application.  

I then told him that I have read from numerous sites that this is a phishing scam, that what they are propsing is fraud, and that I will be filing a complaint w/the Washington State Atty Generals office (which I have just done online).

WARNING - these guys are frauds!!  This is not legit, and it is simply a tactic to try and get to your personal information.  My only hope is that they will now leave me alone and stop calling.  Caveat Empto!!

I just rec'd the same call yesterday (12/07/10) concerning a grant award.  I did apply for a grant for prescription reibursement, but never heard back from the US Govt.  He called from 777 988 0780, gave a call back number of 206 201 2624 and he claimed his name was Jed Carter.  Just like Charles, he was an indian man.  Same MO.  I was immediately hesitant about this, and suspected a scam.  I didn't give out any of my banking or personal details other than the phone number and email which they had.   I also traced the call's origin and got an "all circuits are busy" which is common on int'l trunk lines or skype calls calling them from a land line.  He was supposed to call me back, but no call.  For grins and giggles, I called the 206 number and left a message.  I'm also intending to report this to the fraud office of the Washington State Atty General for good measure.

I received a call today at 12:35PT from 1-777-988-0780. The gentleman on the other end claimed he was calling from the US Government Grants Department to inform me that I had been randomly chosen to receive a grant in the amount of $5,200. Not to be racist but I was rather suspicious because the call quality wasn't great, and he had an Indian accent.

I asked him to call me back at my work number as I could not understand him (due to the quality). The caller ID came back with 0001234, which is typically a Skype number. I asked him if it was Skype and he confirmed. He went on to state that I had filled out some form on "2009, the 22nd of January" and provided accurate information regarding my contact details. I told him I moved and gave him a new post office mailing address, but also told him this sounded like "spam" and I was suspicious because he was calling from Skype, which also explained the call quality.

After confirming my identity and address, he passed me along to a "Senior" something or other colleague, who tried to address my concerns about my comments that this sounded like "spam". I gave him the same reason that the call was from Skype, not mentioning anything about race/ethnicity/accent. He claimed it was not a Skype call, to which I rebutted by stating that his colleague had confirmed it was a Skype call.

A few seconds of silence ensued and click, he hung up on me.

I got the same call you guys all got , and as usual got the return call from some dude that had broken english just as the first caller. I asked him about having to pay for anything and he insisted I wouldn't have to , but the first thing he told me was I had to go to Western Union to claim m y grant , he said I would recieve the money but told me not to divulge the whereabouts of the money I was getting because I would have to pay a 25 % tax on the $$ , so I said to him that he's telling me that the IS government was asking me to lie to a private company in order to obtain a grant ? he said it was up to me to divulge the info if I wanted , at that point I said to him I didn't understand because the phone was breaking up , I said I had a device that would clear the line in order to hear him better , I then held my phone up agains the horn of my pickup truck and had my friend give him a good blast from the horn , I came back to the phone and asked if he could hear me now ? he heard the horn , I said I still couldn't understand so I gave him another blast of the horn , I then told him I didn't think he was very funny and that he should go to the roof of his building and jump off , I will do all that I can to see that his company is shut down and then I asked if he had a dot on his forehead to which he replied yes , I then said , so you have elctric start and not pull start ? he promptly hung up..  so to anyone else getting this scam call I suggest you use your car horn to make sure he can hear you . if nothing else happens atleast I got a good laugh at blowing my horn in his ear..

My wife recieved a phone call from these guys on her lunch hour.  They were requesting a bunch of personal infromation from her whiich she refused to give them over the phone.  She requested they send her a form via mail for the information.  When they repeatedly refused to do so due to "security issues" she said they would just have to cancel the grant.  As she was hanging up the "gentleman" on the other end of the line yelled F#@& You and then he hung up.

I got this call and not recognizing the number, I just let it go.  No voicemail was left...what a surprise.

I received a call from this number about 15 minutes ago from a foreign man, Didn't give him any information but, when I asked why I was receiving this grant, he replied Because Your (My Name). I just thought that that was so amusing. So I said, not who, but why. and his response was because you applied. We have really unintelligent scammers.

A foreign person from this phone # just called and I asked who was calling and he said, Neil Smith (I think, it was hard to understand him). He said he was calling from US Gov't Grant Dept.  I would not give him any info.  We had three calls yesterday from 586-323-7411 and they were foreign and said they were calling about a loan modification but would not leave a company name or phone # to call.  I tried calling the # as soon as I hung up and it said the # was no longer in service.

Government Grant Scams
Although government grant scams have been around almost as long as the government itself, the majority of the sites being advertised today didn't exist before the November 2008 election.

The "free money" scam has been around almost as long as the human species.

It has more variations than a bulldog has wrinkles but you can count on one thing: the government (any government) does not simply give money away to individuals. Anyone who tells you differently has larceny in his heart.

If you give him your bank account number, he will soon have your funds in his pocket.

It does no good to list all of the names used by these bunko artists because a.) they change all the time and b.) every single free-money government-grant offer is a scam. Period.

In one e-book, The Truth Behind Government Grants Exposed, the author (whoever he or it might be) admits that grants are not easy to get. The e-book goes so far as to say, "Now, I know what you must be thinking, but don't be discouraged because understanding that you do not qualify for the majority of Federal and Private Grants is the first step to actually getting a grant."

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/03/grant_scam_ads.html
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/scam_alerts/grant.html
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/03/ftc_stimulus_scam.html

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION WEBSITE      
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt134.shtm

?Free Government Grants?: Don?t Take Them For Grant-ed
?Because you pay your income taxes on time, you have been awarded a free $12,500 government grant! To get your grant, simply give us your checking account information, and we will direct-deposit the grant into your bank account!?
Sometimes, it?s an ad that claims you will qualify to receive a ?free grant? to pay for education costs, home repairs, home business expenses, or unpaid bills. Other times, it?s a phone call supposedly from a ?government? agency or some other organization with an official sounding name. In either case, the claim is the same: your application for a grant is guaranteed to be accepted, and you?ll never have to pay the money back.
But the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation?s consumer protection agency, says that ?money for nothing? grant offers usually are scams, whether you see them in your local paper or a national magazine, or hear about them on the phone.
Some scam artists advertise ?free grants? in the classifieds, inviting readers to call a toll-free number for more information. Others are more bold: they call you out of the blue. They lie about where they?re calling from, or they claim legitimacy using an official-sounding name like the ?Federal Grants Administration.? They may ask you some basic questions to determine if you ?qualify? to receive a grant. FTC attorneys say calls and come-ons for free money invariably are rip offs.
Grant scammers generally follow a script: they congratulate you on your eligibility, then ask for your checking account information so they can ?deposit your grant directly into your account,? or cover a one-time ?processing fee.? The caller may even reassure you that you can get a refund if you?re not satisfied. In fact, you?ll never see the grant they promise; they will disappear with your money.
The FTC says following a few basic rules can keep consumers from losing money to these ?government grant? scams:
    Don?t give out your bank account information to anyone you don?t know. Scammers pressure people to divulge their bank account information so that they can steal the money in the account. Always keep your bank account information confidential. Don?t share it unless you are familiar with the company and know why the information is necessary.
    Don?t pay any money for a ?free? government grant. If you have to pay money to claim a ?free? government grant, it isn?t really free. A real government agency won?t ask you to pay a processing fee for a grant that you have already been awarded ? or to pay for a list of grant-making institutions. The names of agencies and foundations that award grants are available for free at any public library or on the Internet. The only official access point for all federal grant-making agencies is www.grants.gov.
    Look-alikes aren?t the real thing. Just because the caller says he?s from the ?Federal Grants Administration? doesn?t mean that he is. There is no such government agency. Take a moment to check the blue pages in your telephone directory to bear out your hunch ? or not.
    Phone numbers can deceive. Some con artists use Internet technology to disguise their area code in caller ID systems. Although it may look like they?re calling from Washington, DC, they could be calling from anywhere in the world.
    Take control of the calls you receive. If you want to reduce the number of telemarketing calls you receive, place your telephone number on the National Do Not Call Registry. To register online, visit www.donotcall.gov. To register by phone, call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY: 1-866-290-4236) from the phone number you wish to register.
    File a complaint with the FTC. If you think you may have been a victim of a government grant scam, file a complaint with the FTC online at www.ftc.gov, or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
September 2006


Feds: Scammers Falsely "Guaranteed" Government Grants
Court halts operators' deceptive pitches for grant writing book and services


By James Limbach
ConsumerAffairs.com
July 24, 2009

A federal judge has stopped an operation from falsely claiming that it could help consumers secure a "$25,000 Grant" -- guaranteed -- from the U.S. government.
The case is part of a Federal Trade Commission crackdown on scammers trying to capitalize on the economic downturn by targeting people facing financial hardship.
In the complaint the FTC, jointly with the attorneys general of Kansas, Minnesota, and North Carolina, charged that Grant Writers Institute, LLC and its related entities (together, GWI) falsely told consumers that they were eligible for grants as part of the recently announced economic stimulus package .
According to the complaint, the false and deceptive claims by GWI violate federal law, state consumer protection laws, and the FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rule. The complaint seeks a court order permanently stopping the defendants' illegal conduct and forcing them to return money to consumers injured by the scheme.
"Stamping out grant fraud and other types of schemes that take advantage of consumers in dire financial shape continues to be one of the Federal Trade Commission's highest priorities," said David Vladeck, Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection. "There is no such thing as a guaranteed grant. But to consumers in financial trouble, the chance for extra income -- guaranteed or otherwise -- can unfortunately be a huge draw."
The FTC says since at least 2007, GWI has mass mailed postcards to consumers across the country falsely claiming that the consumers "are Guaranteed a $25,000 Grant from the U.S. Government." Consumers who call the number are pitched a $59 book titled "Professional Grant Writer 'The Definitive Guide to Grant Writing Success.'"
The company's telemarketers falsely claim that the book will explain how to get government grants  -- including the "guaranteed" $25,000 grant. GWI and its North Carolina-based telemarketers, also named as defendants in the complaint, then call consumers who have bought the book, trying to get them to pay hundreds of dollars or more for grant research, writing, or coaching services, falsely claiming a 70 percent success rate in securing grant funding.
In reality, few, if any consumers ever receive any grant money.
The Commission contends that in addition to falsely claiming consumers were "guaranteed" to receive grants, GWI used the current government stimulus package to make its pitch. For example, when consumers called the number on the mass-mailed postcard, they heard a recording that said, "If you've been reading the papers you know that recently our government released $700 billion into the private sector. What you probably don't know is that there is another $300 billion that must be given away this year to people just like you."
The recording continues, "And if you're one of the lucky few who knows how to find and apply for these grants, you will receive a check for $25,000 or more, and we guarantee it . . . If you don't get a check for $25,000 or more, you pay nothing."
The following were named as defendants:
? Affiliate Strategies, Inc.;
? Landmark Publishing Group, LLC (d/b/a G.F. Institute and Grant Funding Institute);
? Grant Writers Institute, LLC;
? Answer Customers, LLC;
? Apex Holdings International, LLC;
? Brett Blackman, individually and as an officer, manager, and/or member of Affiliate Strategies, Inc., Landmark Publishing Group, LLC, Grant Writers Institute, LLC, Answer Customers, LLC, and Apex Holdings International, LLC;
? Jordan Sevy, individually and as a manager of Landmark Publishing Group, LLC;
? James Rulison, individually and as president of Answer Customers, LLC, all located in Kansas.
The complaint also names the following North Carolina entities as defendants:
? Real Estate Buyers Financial Network LLC (d/b/a Grant Writers Research Network);
? Martin Nossov, individually and as a manager and member of Real Estate Buyers Financial Network LLC; and
? Alicia Nossov, individually and as a manager and member of Real Estate Buyers Financial Network LLC.



Read more: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/07 ... l#ixzz0NENGCoRV


    Government Grant Scam Hits Ohio
Tried and true scheme is making the rounds again



    By Mark Huffman
ConsumerAffairs.Com
July 26, 2010

The "government grant scam" is one of the oldest tricks in the
schemer's book. But that doesn't mean it isn't still very effective.
The scam, in which victims are promised "free" money from the government, has shown up recently in Ohio.
"Since early June, my office has received more than a dozen reports of Ohioans who were targeted by scammers posing as grant officers," Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray said. "Many of the calls appear to originate in the 202 area code. This creates an illusion of legitimacy because 202 is a Washington D.C. area code."
The reported scams are reaching consumers through phone calls, e-mails and letters sent through the U.S. Postal Service. All use the term "grant" and most require the recipient to pay a percentage upfront before acquiring the "free" money.
"Scammers are targeting Ohioans who are in a weakened position. It's an approach that preys upon the desperation and hope of struggling individuals, and it is reprehensible," Cordray said.

Cordray offers the following tips to avoid the "grant" scams:
? Be wary of mailings that appear to be from federal, state or other governmental agencies. Don't assume that a letter or postcard is actually from the government just because it uses words such as "federal," "stimulus package" or "grant." Even if the sender's name sounds official or legitimate, the originator might be phony.
? To determine if a letter, e-mail message or service is really from the government, contact the government agency in question from a number you know to be correct. For example, log onto the agency's actual Web site, such as www.irs.gov, and use a phone number or e-mail address suggested on the site.
? NEVER send money to a stranger through a wire transfer service. Don't trust requests for advance fees or upfront payment.
Because of the recent bank bailout activity by the Federal Reserve, many scammers claim that new laws also provide little-publicized funds for individuals. No such laws exist.
Some scam ads feature a picture of President Obama, or say that Obama is providing federal money to individuals for certain uses. That's not true. Much paperwork is required to receive any government grant.

Just got the call and am waiting for the call back. The funny thing is he said he could not understand me but it was him that could not speak english. lol  When I get the call I am going to use my fog horn and give him a blast. He siad I filled out a form online for the Grant which is crap because I did not fill out any form. I was directed to one of those sites from a site I went to but did not fill anything out. They are buying numbers and names sometimes from Steve Davis who sells them.
His number is  615-834-7372  but you can only leave a message as he will not answer.

Got a call from this number...saying I had been approved for a grant of $5200.  I asked him his name, and phone number, and  where he was calling from...He said Mark something...hard to understand him.He had my address and home number....he said he was calling from 206-231-2624. I will look that up too, but I told him that I didn't receive any mail from the US Govt Program, and that was the way I should be contacted so I hung Up on him......

It seems these scammers from mexico are reaching into Canada now.

I got the same details...$5200 grant, $312 Western Union deposit, call before.

They say that they got my personal info from some application info I supposedly filled out with my email address a few months ago....yeah right!!!

Stupid people!

I got a call from this number and he left a message. The message said "I love you, Sandra. Call me." I thought it sounded like my ex-husband which just got out of jail and has a serious drug problem. Does anyone know what happens when you call the number back? My phone is unlisted so they shouldn't have access to it.

I just had this same man call my phone number too... he said another man would call me in 15 minutes.  I wonder what info I can get from him!  He said his name was Rio Smith... or something, I could not understand him very well.

This number called me and said i was approved for a grant worth 5200 they gave me a bunch of info and said someone from the confirmations department would have to call me back then a call came from a guy named David Max saying that because i did not have a membership with western union that i would have to pay a $300 deposit in order to get the check for the grant he told me to go to western union gave me a number to call once i got there and he would give me a confirmation number to get my check once the $300 was deposited I said it sounds to much like a scam and i have to check into it then i googled the number he gave me which was 206-201-2624 and found out that him and another person are running this scam please do not be fooled the government would not ask for a deposit in order to send money