Consumers across the country report that they're getting telephone calls from people trying to collect on loans the consumers never received or on loans they did receive but for amounts they do not owe. Others are receiving calls from people seeking to recover on loans consumers received but where the creditors never authorized the callers to collect for them. So what's the story?

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, is warning consumers to be on the alert for scam artists posing as debt collectors. It may be hard to tell the difference between a legitimate debt collector and a fake one. Sometimes a fake collector may even have some of your personal information, like a bank account number. A caller may be a fake debt collector if he:

is seeking payment on a debt for a loan you do not recognize;
refuses to give you a mailing address or phone number;
asks you for personal financial or sensitive information; or
exerts high pressure to try to scare you into paying, such as threatening to have you arrested or to report you to a law enforcement agency.
If you think that a caller may be a fake debt collector:
Ask the caller for his name, company, street address, and telephone number. Tell the caller that you refuse to discuss any debt until you get a written "validation notice." The notice must include the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor you owe, and your rights under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
If a caller refuses to give you all of this information, do not pay! Paying a fake debt collector will not always make them go away. They may make up another debt to try to get more money from you.

Stop speaking with the caller. If you have the caller's address, send a letter demanding that the caller stop contacting you, and keep a copy for your files. By law, real debt collectors must stop calling you if you ask them to in writing.
Do not give the caller personal financial or other sensitive information. Never give out or confirm personal financial or other sensitive information like your bank account, credit card, or Social Security number unless you know whom you're dealing with. Scam artists, like fake debt collectors, can use your information to commit identity theft ? charging your existing credit cards, opening new credit card, checking, or savings accounts, writing fraudulent checks, or taking out loans in your name.
Contact your creditor. If the debt is legitimate ? but you think the collector may not be ? contact your creditor about the calls. Share the information you have about the suspicious calls and find out who, if anyone, the creditor has authorized to collect the debt.
Report the call. Contact the FTC and your state Attorney General's office with information about suspicious callers. Many states have their own debt collection laws in addition to the federal FDCPA. Your Attorney General's office can help you determine your rights under your state's law.
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0258-fake-debt-collectors

Please do report your caller to the FTC, FBI and your state's Attorney General.  Debt is civil, not criminal, so there will be NO charges filed (to say you will be charged is a violation of the FDCPA).  As a reminder: never pay any caller who refuses to MAIL a debt validation letter showing you owe a debt and that they have the legal right to collect said debt.  Refusal to mail this documentation is another violation of the FDCPA, and in fact, your caller only has five days from the date of the first call to mail this to you.

On 01/10/14, I was left a voice mail from an Allen Kemp he stated that he was contacting me because my file was placed on his desk in late December. He told me that i need to contact him soon @ 864-396-5215 because charges could be filed against me.  I called the number he left for me stating that it was his direct line, i asked to speak to Allen Kemp the lady said we don't have an Allen Kemp working for us, so i asked do you have anyone named Allen again the lady said no.  I checked my caller id and found this number at the time the message was left.  

Beware of #'s 864-396-5215 or 855-483-9979

Received a phone call from this number today They told me I was being sued by my county for check fraud. They had my social security number and an old bank account info I havent had in at least 7 years. They told me they were going to pursue charges. After putting up a fuss with them about it being not true the guy got really rude began cursing me out and told me to deal with a lawyer. Real professional right? Googled the number and what do you know its a scam. People beware!!

I almost forgot,.. Mr. Epstein's office was called
RCS!! ..anyone heard of it??


877-772-9892

Got a new # for Mr. Epstein..  877)  772-9892
Anyone heard about this..Same story case pending etc.
when i called i got a recording asking me to leave my #
(right)! This time i think he is an Asst'. DA for LA County??


Caller: 877)722-9892

Same here..said she was from a law office.  This lady's name was Tina Collins.  She left a message saying that I committed a check fraud and gave me a case number...said I had a legal case against me.  Why didn't I get served with papers?  Also, I don't write checks.

left message that i am going to have a summons served, and this was hi call to let me know.  left the 855-483-9979 #  ext 155.  i called back, they said it was a county courthouse with lawyers who make robo calls,  mine must be a wrong #, he was trying to clear it from the system.  i asked which county courthouse and he hung up on me.

Same here with the call
Said he was from a law office and was calling about a claim that had been filed against me.  When I called them back they did not know what I was talking about.

Same here why would they warn you and never send mail.

I received a similar call from number 855 483 9979. The personal left me a voicemail saying she is calling from STR legal services regarding a pending legal action filed with the County Clerk and District Attorney's office and there are several criminal complains pending against me. Usually I choose to ignore such debt collector's call but this time she got me worried. I called back and the person who answered the call couldn't locate my file with phone number. (what??) Clearly clueless, I called back again with docket number and this time she was able to find my file. She said there is a pending debt against me from payday (whatever that is) for which her firm can do an out of court settlement. I asked her for the document for which she took my email address. Its been more than 3 hrs now, I haven't received anything yet. She booked me appointment with paralegal service tomorrow. I doubt if they are going to call me. What a bunch of a**.

Also, is anyone getting calls from dynamic recovery solution? How authentic are they? I found their website on google. Could this be a case of identity theft? How to put an end to all this? Any suggestions?

Gotta love this one! I called and they said my number wasn't in their system....wow, what a surprise....they hung up on me when I asked them repeatedly to remove my number from their system....I then decided to harrass them back.....haha....what fun....I was told that I was being recorded and was a federal crime to speak to them the way I did....boo hooo
Only took a few minutes for them to call me a f@#5ing bi***, that I recorded by the way, and now just got a call from Brittney x157 doing a "blow down the mike" thing. Number was 872-216-9944.....Obviously not a professional organisation! Laughing so much right now!

"Ditto" to the above, Samuel Epstein can kiss my a**! Intimidation technique with no backup!

They called my job and left a mssg on my voice mail with the same info that there was a case filed against me in the county clerks office. When I called back the lady really did not want to tell me what the initials of the company STR stood for. I hung the phone up on her. Sounds like they are scam artist.

Exactly like the entry above me. Called saying legal action would be done but no name of business or county city or state jurisdiction.

Had a message left on my phone on Apr 12, 2013 from this number. The guy said his name was Samuel Epstein but didn't say who he was with. He said it was regarding a pending legal action filed with the County Clerk and District Attorney's office. He didn't say the county or jurisdiction name or what the legal action was. Tomorrow I'm going to call my attorney and then, maybe, call the number back. Possibly vice versa.