I too received a call from company identifying themselves as tps  and that it is urgent that myself or legal counsel return their call.  They leave some bogus case number and said they would be serving me papers on Friday between 1-2pm. They also wished me good luck.  I called them back pretending to be my "legal counsel" and asked them questions that they did not want to answer and also demanded that a certified letter be sent verifying the said debt.  They hung up on me and needless to say they haven't tried calling me back.  SCAM!!!!!

Please do file reports with the FBI, your state attorney general and Department Of Justice,FTC & FCC..

http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx
http://www.fbi.gov/
https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#&panel1-1
https://esupport.fcc.gov/ccmsforms/form1088.action
http://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/

Also read up on the laws and your rights:

http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpajump.shtm
http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/search ...
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf

And see:

http://800notes.com/forum/ta-86217073a9c8dad/ ... 077595690349410
************
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0258-fake-debt-collectors
************
http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubs/pressreleases/extortion_scam.htm
******************
http://800notes.com/arts/Jb8EW-eDhQA/harassin ... ou-need-to-know
*******************************
Section 809 of the FDCPA http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre27.pdf requires 3rd-party debt collectors to give debtors written notice of debt (the key word is *shall*) :
"§ 809. Validation of debts
(a) Within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall, unless the following information is contained in the initial communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send the consumer a written notice containing?
(1) the amount of the debt;
(2) the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed;
(3) a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector;
(4) a statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the consumer and a copy of such verification or judgment will be mailed to the consumer by the debt collector; and
(5) a statement that, upon the consumer?s written request within the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer with the name and address of the original creditor, if different from the current creditor."
****************************************
A Collection Agent May Not?

Here are the top 11 actions prohibited by the The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act:

Misrepresent Him or Herself

  A debt collector may not misrepresent himself as an attorney or law enforcement officer.

Use the Telephone to Annoy or Harass

  A collection agent may not cause a telephone to ring or engage any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with an intent to annoy, abuse, or harass anyone at the called number.

Threaten Arrest or Lawsuit

  A collection agent may not threaten a consumer with arrest. It may not threaten legal action that is either not permitted or not actually contemplated. In other words, a the threat of a lawsuit may be an empty one.

Use Abusive or Threatening Language

  A debt collector may no use abusive or profane language in the course of communication related to the debt.

Publish a Bad Debt List

  Publishing the consumer?s name or address on a "bad debt" list is prohibited.

Contact By Embarrassing Media

  A debt collector may not communicate with a consumer by post card. It may not use any language or symbol, other than the debt collector?s address, on any envelope when communicating with a consumer by use of the mails or by telegram. A debt collector may use its business name if such name does not indicate it is in the debt collection business.

Contact a Consumer at Work

  A collection agent may not communicate with consumers at their place of employment after being told this is unacceptable or prohibited by the employer.

Seek Unjustifiable Amounts

  A debt collector may not demand any amounts not permitted under an applicable contract or as provided under law.

Contact a Consumer Represented by an Attorney

  A collection agent may not contact a consumer after it learns the consumer is represented by a lawyer.

Communicate With a Consumer After Receiving a Validation Request

  If a consumer sends a written §1692g response within 30 days, the collection agent may not communicate with the consumer until it mails the consumer the requested verification of original creditor's name and address.

Communicate With Third Parties

  A debt collector may not reveal or discuss the nature of a consumer?s debts with third parties other than the consumer?s spouse or attorney. A collection agent may contact neighbors or co-workers only to obtain location information. It may contact a third party again if it has reason to believe the information the party provided previously is false.

Bills.com FDCPA FAQ

Below are questions Bills.com readers ask frequently:

Can a Collection Agent Call My Cell Phone?

  Yes. However, if you tell the debt collector it may not use that number because it is a cell phone, it may not contact you again at that number.

I Keep Receiving Dozens of Calls From Collection Agents. Is That Legal?

  No. Unscrupulous collection agents will use "block parties" or "office parties" where they contact a consumer, multiple neighbors, or co-workers telling them they need to reach the consumer on an urgent matter. This is not permitted under the FDCPA.

A Collector Says I Will Be Arrested if I Do Not Pay

  This was a true statement before the US Civil War, but has not been true since. People may be arrested if an aggressive judge files a bench warrant for a person who does not appear at a hearing relating to a lawsuit regarding a debt. However, in that case, the offense is the failure to respond to a court order, and not the existence of the debt. As stated above, it is illegal under the FDCPA to threaten a consumer with arrest if the consumer does not pay the debt.

I have been receiving calls from this company for the since August 12, 2013 but they first started leaving messages within the past 2 weeks.  "Jonathon Harris" left messages using my last name from my divorce in 200 stating that I have until (hesitation) a certain time or he will be filing my claim. Apparently a "claim" has not been filed because I continue to receive calls on a weekly basis. I received a call on 10/24/13 from Jonathon Harris stating that he left me a message regarding a case# WI##### stating that I called back asking for a returned call.  I DID NOT call back requesting this. He stated that he would be placing my claim on an emergency 24 hour hold. I was told that if I did not call back by 6 pm EST that evening, he would have to sign off on this and I would be served at my home or place of employment. He then said "GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR FUTURE PROCEEDINGS."
On October 31, 2013 at 12:32 pm, I received another message from this number stating his name was Matthew Gates and he works out of the State of WI (you could hear many voices in the background at the start of the call...like in a call center setting). He stated that I was on his schedule for him to serve documentation regarding case WI######. He stated that this case was faxed to his office this morning matching my name along with my social. He is scheduled to come out between 4 and 6 pm and will require 2 forms of identification as well as my signature on the paperwork as proof of delivery. If I would like the opportunity to review these documents and reschedule, I am at liberty. At that time is when the message stopped.
On October 31, 2013 at 12:34 pm, I received another message from Jonathon Harris stating that he has the settlement payment of $442.02 to come out this morning but the card declined. He needs an immediate call back if I would like to stay set up on this voluntary restitution agreement and to keep my settlement from being voided. Gave me the phone number again. I NEVER contacted them agreeing to any restitution settlement.
On November 1, 2013 at 8.34 am, I received another message from Terry Hooper representing TPS and Associates in the payment processing division. He stated that it looks like they had a $442.02 payment meant to be drafted on the 31st but unfortunately the payment is still pending. Said that he wanted to give me a notification that I have until 2pm to make sure that the payment is to them prior to them putting me into a default status and placing me into secondary breach of contract and forwarding my claim back to their client. I do have the ability to contact him today and he's not sure if there was a misunderstanding but he wants to make sure that we get everything taken care of because it did seem like this was something that I wanted to do.  This is "funny" because I NEVER contacted them to draft any funds from my account, nor would I.
I have never received any mailings from this company either.  I will be contacting the BBB and my local PD if I receive another call...that one I hope to answer to let anyone from TPS know that this is the steps that I will be taking.

Don't pay these people. These people buy bad debt that no one can collect. You can actually sue them. Check
The laws in your state on how you must notify them to quit calling you first.
If you record the conversation, most of them can be sued just from that. These people
Aren't qualified as para legals or anything like that. Most of them are hired out of A.A. meetings
And drug rehab programs to be placed in a call center. Don't worry about them. They can get nasty
All they want and tell you how you should have done better in life. These people are a prime example
Of what happens when you get nothing right in life. They also like to hop on these chats and harass people
Posting stuff or pretend they are someone else and there company is ligit. If you mail they're office a big
Baggy of herion they will shut down for days. Some of them will probably O.D. send them the laced stuff that's
Been in the news for killing adicts. Hoffman, wienberg and o'brien are the same fake scam.
Sad to say there are many many more. DON'T PAY THEM A PENNY OR GIVE THEM ANY INFO.

These people have called me repeatedly for the last few years.  Always with the same type of message - you only have so long to respond or we'll serve you at home and work; oops, we didn't find you at home, that means a deliberate refusal to respond, now we're going to serve you at work; then, you have so long to respond before we proceed; your failure to call will be considered your official refusal to respond, a bunch of bull.  Brianna Banks is the one who keeps calling, with the same do or die messages.  Funny, I haven't returned the calls and no one has ever appeared at my house or my work or filed any legal action, because there isn't any!  This is a scam.  Maybe they buy junk debt from decades ago, but if so, that is not my problem.  If it wasn't included in a bankruptcy filing years ago, the statute of limitations ran out just as many years ago.  I feel for the people who are scared by what they say and try to pay a debt they don't owe, but this is a scam, it is not a legitimate collection agency attempting to collect a legitimate debt.  Don't be one of those suckers they are hoping to find!

they keep calling using phone # 213-261-0233- Harassing

i began receiving repeated calls from this spence person as well as a brianna saying they were from a company called TPS & Associates...each call came in from a different number. sometimes it was a local number, sometimes it came up as out of area or unknown.  they always left a message referencing a "legal matter" from an old pay day loan that was over 4 years old.  they always gave out the 877 number as the number to call them back.  i tried 3 times to call them back and always got some voicemail of a brianna.  never got a live person.  today i finally got fed up and told them that since they were calling and asking for me (by my old maiden name) that it was regarding something that was over 4-5 years old, since i have now been married for that long and that anything that old had been included in a bankruptcy filing and that if they had any documentation or any kind of "legal matter" regarding me that they could contact my attorney and give them the information.  gave my attorney's name, number, the name of his associates and his secretary and told them any information they needed regarding my legal matters could be brought to their attention and then they could inform me of.  also told them that a PHONE MESSAGE does not serve at any type of legal notice, that ALL legal notices are received in writing via mail or by service from a person in uniform and that since i had received neither, i was taking this to be a bogus claim and told them to contact my attorney.  after leaving this message on their voice mail i received a call AT MY WORK, less than 5 minutes later with an appology for calling me regarding this matter that they show had been included in a bankruptcy and told me that i was good and would not be bothered again!!!  sad that it took giving them MY attorney information for them to admit that they had nothing on me.

well they keep calling me the other number is 262-437-0685 a company out of Wisconsin so if they wont send you a letter of debt you have turn their butts in to your state dept of justice and your local police help put these pieces of crap behind bars

Ask them for a statement mailed and if they refuse then its a scam simply put. by law they MUST provide evidence of debt owed

I have been getting the same calls they are stating they are from a loan. They are very rude and i think it could be a scam since they did not want to provide any details. One lady called and said her name was kelly martin.

No they can't

I too have been receiving calls from this number 877-889-0384 at work. I have a son active duty marines and every time the phone rings from a number i don't know my heart leaps out of my chest. they seem to only call after i have left the office or before I come in. i'm at work from 7am-4pm.  it's really annoying

I receive several calls like this within the year and they only ever seem to call my work because I've been here for a while and the only other number I have is a cell phone. I was married in 2008 and call saying I took out a payday loan in 2004 under my married name which is complete bs considering it's impossible since I didn't meet my husband until 2006. They call my mother-in-laws house (because we have the same first initial) and harrass her saying she is me and all of this stuff. It's very annoying. I was once told that they would show up to my work and 'serve me papers' and that they wanted to save me the embarrassment at work so they called and I had to pay it that day or charges would be filed. I told them that they had the address and that I'm here mon-fri from 730a-5pm. They never showed up. I never received letters in the mail or anything. One person actually suggested that I block their emails or throw away their mail and i ended up hanging up on him. This is a complete scam DO NOT pay anything over the phone, that's what they want. I've been bothered for the last 3 years now off and on and nothing has happened. They refuse to send me a certified letter with the information claiming they've sent it to my email and that I've just been deleting it! Good luck!

Received a phone call from them yesterday. The number that showed up on my cells caller ID was a local number but the message left told me to call the 1-877-889-0384 number. The message sounded slightly like a threat saying about being named a "person of interest" blah blah blah. I'm not sure if they are a legitimate company and from what I've read here they don't seem to be. Pretty sure I will not be calling them back anytime soon.

Been getting calls from them for months, looking for someone named "Polly." Never picked up, they just leave messages over and over again, and I was even out of the country for a couple months with a message that explained how to get in touch with me during that time. If a real person was actually on the other line, maybe they'd have gotten the picture. They cycle through a list of different messages, some of which sound increasingly threatening.

Recorded message stated I was a "person of interest" in an important matter and must contact them immediately.  Gave no company name or name of person to contact.

Chicago area
Got a message from them looking for "bernita jesus" i believe but the jesus was cut off. anyways they said press 1 to connect to someone immediately or call back to the 877 number. well ive had this number for 12 yrs and why or how they got it now IDK!

Have gotten several calls from this number, well, actually, the number that comes up on my caller ID is 702-576-0636. They leave a message similar to the others here. They keep asking for a Samuel Maldonado. Don't have any idea who this is or why they would think this is the right number to call. I never answer the calls, but this is always the message. It sounds like a threat and you'd think you really need to call back but I'm not giving them any leeway to keep calling me for any made up bullsh*t.  Don't answer the calls!!

I do not answer calls from toll-free numbers because I do not know any individual who has a toll-free number.  I have been getting messages for "Kelly Paxton" for well over a year on my cellphone.  The calls for "Kelly" state that she is a "person of interest" in some legal case and she must respond immediately.  I delete the calls.  Is there a way to get this Debt Collector (or whatever) to cease calling?  I believe that by now this Debt Collector should realize that reaching "Kelly Paxton" at my cellphone number is not going to happen.

They called me from the number 877-889-0384 left me a message asking me to reach them at 888-656-5768.

I received a call from this number. I answered and a gentleman by the name of "Mark Spence" was on the other end. I told him I could not talk because I was very busy. He then went on how this is a "LEGAL" matter and that I should return the call at 877-645-7986 Ext. 242

I received a call from this number. I answered and a gentleman by the name of "Mark Spence" was on the other end. I told him I could not talk because I was very busy. He then went on how this is a "LEGAL" matter and that his extension is 242

I've received the same recorded messages on my voicemail from this phone number for months.  If they were legit, they would have identified themselves on the message and would have taken me to court by now.  I paid back my pdls so not sure what they want but not giving them the satisfaction of returning the call.  If they want my money so bad, then they should send me a certified letter that I have to sign for with the details of the debt they are attempting to collect. It must be convenient to have a machine do all the phone call work daily.  It's collectors such as this that give legit collectors a bad rap.

These people actually called my ex inlaws house stating that I listed them as a contact on a payday loan.  Also they said that my ex husband was listed as my brother.  I got an email from from ex on this and when I call 877-889-0384 they sated
I owed money for a payday loan.  I told them I donot have a payday loan.  They insisted I did and I asked when this was and they said it was in 2005.  I told them that I have no outstanding debts and that if they were legit company then they can mail me the information on this supposed debt.  This was a month ago and to this date I still havent seen anything from them.  
When I told the guy that the only payday loan I ever had was paid back in 2004.  He then said "You people do this all the time get a payday loan and think you dont have to pay it back".  Needless to say I proceeded to tell him he was SO wrong and not to call me again.  He said he would continue to call me until I paid them.  I also told him that he doesnt even know me to say such a thing about me.  "He said well I know that you didnt pay this loan".
I just hung up and of course they still call but dont leave a message.

Over the last two years, I have been receiving hostile messages from phone number 877.889.0384.  A friend of mine, somewhere along the way, listed me as an alt contact on a bunch of financial stuff.  She was a TPS & Associates person of interest.

I called the number, asking to be removed from their contact list because this had absolutely nothing to do with me.  The rep asked me if I had her latest number.  I said yes.  He asked for it, I said no.  That's when the conversation got interesting.  He told me that he could not remove my name until I gave them her number.  I asked him to repeat that.  He wouldn't.  I followed by repeating what I had heard, that he refused to take me off their list until I provided my friend's number.  His response?  Sounds like you're going to have to take it up with her.

And that's when he needed to understand he wasn't dealing with neophyte. I told him it was, in fact, his problem and that if he phoned again, I would press harassment charges.  He told me it was still my problem at which point I told him to do his diligence and use her social to find her last address and send a certified letter.  He shared they had already done that and I proceeded to tell him he was s*** out of luck.  We argued and I concluded by saying another call would result in harassment charges.  He hung up on me mid-sentence.  Guess he didn't like that.

So, we'll see.  I'm 1000% happy to follow-through, on behalf of all of you guys, but particularly the people who gave these parasites money and the woman I read about who was a victim of identity theft and is still trying to square things with these people.  Predators be damned.

I just received a call on my cell phone from this number stating the same thing everyone has listed here. A bit ridiculous indeed. I hope they get caught and get charged accordingly because it is ridiculous to harass someone over something that never exsisted in the first place.

First, on January 9, 2012 at 11:00 a.m., I received a reordered message from phone number--(877) 889-0384--at my work. Next, on January 17, 2012 at 11:35 a.m., I received a recorded message from phone number--(888) 907-6719--at my work. Lastly, on January 23, 2012 at 11:30 a.m., I received a recorded message from phone number--(888) 907-7619--at my work. It is always a computer recorded message saying that they've been trying to contact someone and legal actions will be taken if that someone doesn't call them back. The person they are calling for has never worked at my job. The recording says to press 1 to be connected to a representative. All three of those numbers are part of a scam where these crooks are trying to get people to send them money for debts they don't owe, especially online payday loans from First Bank of Delaware.

Keep calling my job, someone named John Walters and gave me a case # and said they try to delivery some documents to me at some address and now they will be delivering at my job.  I getting tired of this will they please stop calling me.  It is very aggravating.  LEAVE ME ALONE!!!

No.

THEY CALLED ME THIS MORNING.I TOLD THEM THAT I WOULDNT HAVE ANY MONEY UNNTIL THE 25 AND THEY TOLD ME THAT THEY WAS GOING TO TAKE IT OUT OF MY INCOME TAXES IF I DIDNT GIVE THEM 500 DOLLARS TODAY..CAN THEY DO THAT?