I have received numerous calls from this number, both on my cell phone and at work.  Today a voice message was left on my cell phone stating something about my social security number.  I recognized the voice because we had talked before.  I could barely understand what Henry Scott was saying due to his strong accent.  I was called a second time at my job and I know he recorded me stating I was not in because you could hear the echo in the background and he kept saying hello.

Yeah that the same Company name he gave me the first time he called and like you said they are very vague to answer your question.  In any event, we passed words back and forth for a good minute.  In the end he said I was going to Jail.  I told him not to call me because obviously he had me confused with someone else and told him if I'm refusing to pay a debt take me to court.

I got a call from him mulitple times today he said his name was officer Peter Brown. He acussed me of not paying a loan back and I argued with him for about 15 minutes then he told me he had a warrant out for my arrest and i had 2 options the first to pay the debt right then and the second was to go to court then my phone died.

Same thing is happeneing to me.  He calls himself Officer Damian Stewart, and demands $300 for a loan.  Same situation as everybody else that's said something here: Calls my work, threatens to get the local law enforcement involved, mumbles something about my social security number, etc.

I will be contacting my local law enforcement about this, as it is illegal for him to do this.  I suggest everybody else does the same thing.  Don't answer his call, make him leave a voice mail, and call the cops.  We can take this person down.

I received a call from Office Peter Brown, he left a message on my cell phone. When I call back and threatened to report them to the FBI he preteneded that he did know what I was talking about. He also refused to send me prove of this debt.

I appolagize for any spelling mistakes, btw. Im a little hyped up over this and would love to meet one of these $&*% face-to-face

These foriegn &^%& have been calling my place of work all day I told them right from the get go, that it is against federal law to contact people at thier place of work. Right from the get go the guy named "sam"  started stutering when i ripped a new a***ole into him. I admit I did use every four letter word out there, but i refuse to be annouyed at work. He then put me on with his supervisor "Frank" and when i cursed him out, he claimed he was an officer

Instead of gong along for the ride, I decided to call them over 50 times an hour.  Thier call back number was 1-646-389-8054. (If you have the time, call them and let them know they are the scum of the earth) They than asked why I was doing this to them, and offered me a job haha.  I am still continuously calling, only to get hung up on from the first ring. I also told them that I anted to meet them face-to face and they said they were located in Europe, then California???? and there was no name for the busniess, just a legal firm they were called.  

The number on my caller id was  448-198   A six digit number was a red flag right there and when I listend to the voicemail I brushed it off.  When I got to work and notcied them calling, thats when s*** hit the fan.  These people are the true scum of the earth and should go to hell.  I dont want to see honets people liek yourselves being scammed, so if you have the time, Haras them back just as they did to you. I promise you the phone calls will stop and youll feel a whole lot better (as long as you gave them nothing).

Thanks for reading guys and be sure to take action. Dont let these scums take you for one penny that isnt thiers.

Indicated that there was a Warrant for my arrest due to a debt that had not been paid, need to contact him immediately.

These people are scam artist. PLEASE DO NOT PAY THESE PEOPLE

Its over 300.000 plus the disability im suppose to recieve 800 a month since canal st. Besides taxes i should recieced.add randall williams wilcox 48.000 they took right off the top of his settlement i never recieved.besides interest.the same amount they charge parents.then steven ray pope. Then charles joseph tomlinson.add it up.not including the car accident.black Oak casino.i would like tom to move with me he is the only person who made me feel safe.

226,200.00 that would be a good start

Then the dea hudson on review.If they arrest me at 8 am with out a warren t.megan have gave false info to a police officer and they never did anything.hudson pulls over after falsely arresting me and takes my phone so i cant call attorney.then on informant info.jenifer walters king james erikson remoldie mike read my reports.the court date was the 7th and i was there on a fri.erika said it was the 5th i took the papers and showed them to jenifer she did nothing said i was dumb and i deserved it.how is that fair representation.i fired her and did 30 days because of it.them klien gregory was to get an investagator and lied.besides i was at his office 4 times for him to help me and he wouldnt.i ask him to lower my bail he wouldnt they both added more charges on me while in jail.then he made a deal before court and changed up.tried to give me 3yrs probation and thousand dollar fine after being illegaly arrested at emelines chris say three names go free.then i was drug by officers three .

Go on vacation leave with Probation come back on a violation is the nevade countys moto
.you tell me if innocent people get charged to get revenge or even or because they like someone else.123 smith street.

too long

The law states that no drug activity to be within 1000 feet of anywhere kids school daycares or parks.bright beginnings.then you are to be 18 years old to posses a legal script.we have 12year old having scripts.then the law states with the 1000 feet of any of these dwellings it becomes federal.next the way the optain these scripts are by being approved by social security disibilitys.then ssi ask if you make so much money.then they dont qualify.then law states 6 mature plants.it suppose to be for personal use.not for sale witch is another big issue.no one i seen grow there had under 50 plants.then the coop.next is conterfiet scripts.they are bring in 1000 * and all the laws and regulations need to be changed or inforced the law is the law.if you expect others to abid by the laws set forth then inforce them.also the fact is the dont pay taxes or report Revenue.

i have been called with the whole officer threat, they told me they were going to come arrest me in three hours... So you know what I did i called them back for an hour straight every 5 seconds, they just kept giving the phone to each other... I talked really crazy to them, a few choice words a few insults and %*^&)^(^(^%(&)&... lol and i told them I had nothing to do all day, I would show them how it felt to be harrassed...and thats exactly what I did, so they transferred my number to a busy number so that I couldnt get through... well i just waited called from another cell phone and started calling them back to back to back to back...until finally they said ok, and tried to offer me a job.. asked me if I wanted to make some money...lmao.. I told them to get off there a**es and get a real 9-5, obviously your too stupid to work, mabybe if you could speak fluent english, you wouldnt have to sit around looking peoples names up on the internet and get a real job... #$#^$^((&)*)*)*)* then I hung up and continued to call back unitl they asked me to stop calling.. lmao.. I said oooohh no, i want you to see how it feels to be called over and over again.... you picked the right one today is what I told them, if you want me to stop calling then I suggest you remove my number from the list and do the same, a**holes.. havent gotten another call.. It was actually funny,,, well at least I thought it was....

i just recieved one of those calls about hte guy being an officer and there was a reprot filled on my SSN. they were calling me from some law firm in california about a loan i supposedly got from them. i never asked for or recieved any loans from any online companies.now there is some officer calling me from somewhere in texas stating that it is urgent i call him back or he will send an investigator to my house and cause a public scene if i dont call him back and stating that a report was filled on me. what do i do, how do i get these people to stop calling me?

If you are reading this, please take heed. The person that contacted me first called my job then called my cell phone. As stated on this website, the man had an Indian/Pakistanian accent that was very hard to decipher. Also with having that accent, he stated his name was John Matthews (really?) ... He went on to say that he had a case # and that there was a lawsuit against my name and SSN. He said that it was from an online payday loan that "maybe I forgot I had received a loan for and forgot to pay them back." After going round and round with him, I stated that it was impossible for them to try to collect a debt from me since I never allowed/agreed/accepted any funds from that agency. He continued to say that maybe I forgot to pay them and that there would be legal actions taken against me. I told him to put it in writing. He said that he couldn't. Long story short, he wouldn't send anything in writing, he wouldn't verify the "debt" owed and kept asking me how did he get my information. He wanted to speak to my supervisor and wanted to fax a "warrant" to me. When i said that I was convinced this was a scam, he hung up on me. He called me back saying that he wanted to help me by settling out of court by paying restitution. Mind you, i have never accepted any money from the payday loan which is what I told him. He said that I took out a $300 loan and I owed $987 back! I told him I was looking at my statements and that I had NEVER received $300 from no loan ... Anyway after saying that they couldn't prove I owed the money, he got very irritated and directed to go a courthouse in Austin -- 509 W 11th St!

Yes Frank they are a scam, which is why I am asking for the name of the company that deducted the funds from your account. If you do not wish to contact me, just leave a note here on this website with the name of the company good luck.


Maxwell Gold
President
Maxwell Gold Investigations
523 W Colonial Dr
Orlando FL 32804
www.maxwellgold.org
Direct   407-494-6291
Fax -    407-641-9391

My apologies but if I remember correctly you called me at 9:30p from a blocked number and refused to identify yourself what you said was you didnt want to speak with someone, you just wanted to leave a message. I believe I asked you to send me an email or to contact me during business hours. For the record my accent is from NY...not the Middle East!
"Not to judge" but I dont understand how you can give someone pretending to be a Federal Officer $1500 over the phone yet refuse to give the person trying to assist you your name??
Again I am not asking for YOUR personal information or bank account..what I asked for was the name of the company that stole your money. If you do not want to assist please do not add to the problem by preventing honest people from getting help.

Contact your bank! Revoke payment or dispute it!! Report to loca law enforcement!! I knew it.  People be ware get credentials!!!

I hate to judge, but how do we know Yur legit? I called the # and someone with an accent answered. Proof please and I can help.

I know these calls are scary. Do not for any reason give them info!!! These messages have been a lifesaver. Thank you all! Get your credit report. Give them nothing and please report them so we can all try to get satisfaction. Block your call, then call back and ask who they are without giving them info, when they stutter and sigh, u will know it's fake. Any legit creditor will tell u who they are and who they represent, and when asked to prove it in writing will comply. Always remember that!

Contact my office 407-494-6291

Maxwell Gold  company is a scame company............  they stolen my money.........plzzzzz help me.....

DO NOT PAY THIS COMPANY!!! THIS IS A SCAM!!! There is no Federal Crimes Division and we all know that if you are going to get arrested the only way you will know is when they knock on (or kick in) your door! Writing a postdated check to a payday loan company is not covered under the criminal statute of writing a bad check. This only applies if you knowingly write a check for goods or services, POSTDATED CHECKS ARE NOT COVERED BY LAW.  If anyone has already paid this scam company, it is imperative that you contact my office. I will need the name of the company that has deducted the funds from your account. I do not need your account information or any personal information at all. This company is breaking several American laws by pretending to be Federal Officers or Officers of the court. In order to avoid others from being taken advantage of, I am in the process filing a federal class action lawsuit. In order to this, I will need to find the name of the company. Your statement should show who processed this payment. Please contact my office at 407-494-6291 or email max@maxwellgold.org

I have received a call tonight, stating that I had a outstanding loan and had not paid it back. They had my personal information but I did not confirm it.

Kudos to "Sam" for giving the most intelligent and informative posts on this scam. READ, Bookmark and use as needed:

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-631-456-4041/2

I have been receiving phone calls from this group since late April / early May of 2010.  There is a good chance that they also attempted to contact me roughly two years ago before I entered into Chapter 7 Bankruptcy protection, as I faintly remember hearing the same script more or less.

As others have stated, the callers are difficult to understand.  Generally speaking their command of the English language is quite poor and their accents are hard to follow. At times they will get certain words or phrases mixed up.  It would be funny if it wasn't for the fact that they had:

a) Your SSN
b) Your home address
c) Your work address
d) Your banking info
e) Names, numbers and potentially the addresses of "references"
f) A complete and total lack of ethics and a basic understanding of the FDCPA.  

I have personally filed reports with the following agencies, often with limited (if any) success:

Local Police
my state's Attorney General's office
FTC
FBI
Secret Service

Generally the local police won't be able to help much.  The callers are using a combination of prepaid cell phones and VoIP, making them difficult to trace.  Also at their disposal are various spoofing tactics being implemented to catch people off guard - meaning the number that appears on your Caller ID isn't the number that is calling you for starters.  Without gaining a subpoena for the billing information for the numbers in question, the local police won't be able to get very far.  

My state's Attorney General's office couldn't offer much assistance either.  I received a form letter in the mail that my complaint was received and I would be contacted if they needed additional info.  It was more or less the same information I obtained from the FTC.  They each advised me not to give the individuals over the phone any account information or to authorize payment.  That's just common sense, though.

I never got anything from the FBI, either.  There is a good chance that since I haven't suffered a monetary loss that my concerns are low on the totem pole.  I hate to say this, but that is truly the case. Unless you were in the hole for a $1,000 (or more) you aren't going to get much more than "sorry to hear about your situation, change your phone number and move on".  I seemed to get some activity from the Secret Service.  I spoke with agent Doug Zloto. (Google him, referencing threads like these plus his name and you'll find his number also)  He seemed to care a bit more than the average person, but after giving him access to my Google Voice account, there has been no further activity from him that I'm aware of.

In the meantime I changed the wireless number the fraudsters had access to, they have no direct way to get a hold of me.  (Calls at work have ceased for some reason)  That in turn resulted in my "references" getting phone calls from the crooks.  Here is a word of caution for women that have been getting these calls - don't say anything and just hang up.  The callers are quite abusive towards women callers.  Why?  Possibly the culture.  If they are Indian / Pakistani, women are second class citizens there.  You will be treated like garbage.  This happened to a family member when she was trying her best to be extremely nice over the phone.  

The callers currently attempt to reach me through the female family member and an unused Google Voice number that they managed to find of mine.  I keep the Google Voice number open because, well, I can't delete it yet.  So, about every day, 4-5 times a day for the last week, I get voice messages from them.  It's usually just two full messages though - the other calls are broken up with static or they are attempts to read the script until the callers then screw up.  Really, they are that adamant on getting the script 100% that they will hang up mid-sentence and call back 30 seconds later.  

At this point it's a stalemate with these people.  

1) While they have the lion's share of information on us, they can't really do anything with this information.  

Why?  Think about it.

If they were to ever take funds out of your account without authorization, it's fraud and worse (for them) it is traceable.  That's why they won't do anything with your information, contrary to threats they make.  The money from your account has to go somewhere, and either your bank or a law enforcement agency can determine where the money was routed.  As a bank customer you are protected - you'd get the stolen money back in your account after 7-10 business days and the bank would be temporarily out the funds deducted from your account while they conducted their investigation.  The bank, along with law enforcement, would track down the fraudsters and apprehend them.  The fraudsters do not want to incur the wrath of a bank, just extort money out of you.  Remember that.    

Your authorization would absolve the bank from any and all liability, leaving you holding the bag.  Never give them authorization for anything - for all you know the call is recorded.  

2) We have no information on them.

Seriously, this has been going on at least since 2008, possibly longer than that based on some accounts. (6 years??? Holy crap!)  You would think someone would have slipped up by now.  Sadly, they haven't.  We can continue to grow our own intel on them and compile lists of aliases and phone numbers used, along with paraphrases of scripts used in order to educate other victims.  I'm actually putting together a site now in the meantime where I'll host audio files and lists of previous numbers used.  800notes.com is great, but no two calls are exactly the same.  It would be nice to have a site dedicated to the scam and how it works.

So that's where I am with these calls.  I have suffered no monetary loss, though I have been harassed both at home and at work.  They threaten me with arrest and other "fun" things in order to get me convinced I have to pay them.  My friends and family have been targeted and local and federal law enforcement agencies haven't been able to put a stop to things.  So, it is what it is.  I am out a wireless phone number I had for roughly six years, which is terrible since I was using that line when looking for a new job.  

Whenever I'm bored I spoof my number using Google Voice and return the calls.  I've called them the poster children for birth control, etc.  Basically a lot of nasty things that I'm sure the moderators here wouldn't appreciate me repeating - bottom line nothing nice.  I always like to close saying their parents must be real proud knowing their sons weren't man enough to get real jobs.  That usually gets a decent response.  

Way I see it - they can't do anything to me. (Despite a threat yesterday that my life would be f'ed up)  They can threaten all they want but my credit is frozen and my bank information has changed.  I've changed the only number they could really access me directly on and I've instructed my employer and family to not answer the calls.  I just call and harass them now when I find a few extra seconds.  What's the worst they can do to me?  Charge me with harassment?  

Nope, then they would have to identify themselves.

Oh, and don't bother contacting Cashnet USA about the calls.  Their "fraud" department could honestly care less.  Their "investigation" is merely a means of buerocratic CYA.  I would even be surprised at this point if actual law enforcement is involved in any shape, way or form at this time.  

There is a good chance that the information these crooks have on us was obtained from Cashnet USA - either from a database leak or from a collector that was once authorized by Cashnet to call on delinquent customers.  The other chance is they have access to Teletrack, and pulled all of our information off of there.

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-646-274-1143/3

For at least the last four years, possibly longer, a group has been calling former payday loan applicants advising them that they have defrauded a bank and are now being sued for non-payment of a loan.  The callers will claim to be calling on behalf of an attorney's office (name varies), the Dept. of Law and Investigation, ACS, or other similar combinations below:

United Legal Processing Division
Midline Marketing
Crime Monitoring Services
Monetary Crime Division
U.S. National Bank
Attorney General?s Office (usually in California)
American Legal Services
Affidavit Consolidation Services (ACS)

You will be threatened with arrest, a costly trial and possibly worse.  In no shape, way or form can you be arrested for non-payment on a consumer debt.  Do not believe these threats, as they are without merit and cannot be carried out in the manner they allege.  

Who are they?

In the past when pressed by law enforcement for an address, the callers have provided the following information:

David Morgan and Associates
Morgan & Associates
Morgan Associates
954-727-8481
1155 Northwest 85th Street
Wintergarden, Florida  33150
(Address is likely invalid)

The collector's MO matches a once legit collections agency called Ellis Crosby & Associates.  Here are some links on them:

http://www.budhibbs.com/collectorpages/ellis_crosby_and_associates.htm
http://www.budhibbs.com/collectorpages/EllisCrosbyJudgment.pdf

They have been previously fined over $1.3 million for various violations.  They have been known to use phone banks in India to make their calls, which more or less coincides with the difficult to understand accent many of us detect when we are contacted.  

The last time this group went by any "official" name was back in 2008:

Ellis Crosby & Associates / Douglas & Morgan Associates
4494 Southside Boulevard Suite #200
Jacksonville Florida 32216
Phone:  800-928-3536 / (904) 928-3536
(Address is likely invalid)

There are NUMEROUS consumer alerts out against this group of individuals:

Florida:
http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/061107/met_176207561.shtml

Kansas:  
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/01/ks_debt_collection.html

Colorado:  
http://www.coloradoattorneygeneral.gov/press/ ... lls_likely_orig

Rhode Island:  
http://www.collectionscreditrisk.com/news/rho ... -3002135-1.html

West Virginia:
http://www.wvago.gov/internetloanscam.cfm

Missouri:
On July 15th, 2010 a Public Awareness Bulletin was sent out by Missouri Information Analysis Center.  

"..received reports from individuals in Ohio and Illinois reference suspicious telephone calls they received. In both instances, the callers are reporting that a voicemail is received from a man, with a Middle Eastern accent, identifying himself as an officer working with the Financial Crimes Unit.  The message indicates that the reason for the call concerns a loan made by the receiver or someone in the receiver's family. The voicemail requests that a return call be made and a telephone number is provided. When a return call is made, the caller is asked to provide personal identifying information such as their date of birth and social security number.

Reports indicate that the calls are frequent and persistent and that they even threaten arrest or legal action if information or money is not provided. It appears that the individuals making these calls may have access to some records connecting individuals and their relatives.  Missouri does not have a Financial Crimes Unit and all indications are that this is a fictitious agency. If you receive a similar phone call, please be advised that it is a scam and please contact your local law enforcement agency or the Missouri Information Analysis Center at 866-362-6422."

Bottom line:

Do not supply the callers with any additional information.  Inform them you have reported them to law enforcement and hang up.  If you haven't already, go ahead and report the calls to local law enforcement, your state's Attorney General and beyond.  Look up the local Secret Service branch's information in your area and get in contact with an agent there.  

If you ever applied for a cash advance online, your information is out there.  
Possible sources for the breach of your privacy are:

* The scammers obtained your information from Teletrack - a reporting agency used by many cash advance lenders to determine their risk lending to you.  The service is able to tell cash advance lenders if you have existing loans with other companies, for example.  Many state laws prohibit borrowers from having more than two cash advances out at the same time.

* The scammers created their own fake payday loan application site.  People looking for a cash advance went to the site and applied, thus freely providing the scammers with their information for malicious use at a later time.  

* The scammers were able to get into the database(s) of cash advance lenders - probable targets being Sonic Payday and Cashnet USA.  


How to protect yourself:

* Inform your employer.  You are likely getting calls at home and/or at work, so make sure your employer is aware the calls are part of a scam and to not take them seriously.  Advise the callers that they are no longer allowed to call you at work.  If they continue to call, document the date and time of the calls you received.  Save voice mails left if at all possible.  

* Change your number(s).  For some this may not be an option, for others a one-time number change can be done free of charge.

Be advised - any references you listed on your payday loan application will be contacted.  Let those people know that this is a scam, and they can disregard.

* Use Google Voice.  Google Voice is a great replacement voice mail system for just about any phone number you use.  Messages can be transcribed and voice mail recordings can be saved as mp3 files.  

Pro Tip - call the scammers with a Google Voice number before turning off your old phone numbers.  Make sure when you call you identify yourself so they can start up their script.  At any point after they have your information pulled up just hang up.  They will then start religiously calling your Google Voice number.  At this point, you are free to change your regular phone number(s) and enjoy not having these people ever call you again.  (And laugh at the fact these people are basically talking to a brick wall several times a day)

The scammers change their numbers frequently.  Law enforcement used to think it was because the callers ran out of minutes on their prepaid wireless accounts or they were shuttered due to fraud, but now they understand it's simply to evade detection by savvy consumers online.  With the proliferation of VoIP, it's even easier for the crooks to stay a couple of steps ahead of law enforcement.  Below is just a sampling of the 30+ numbers that have been used in recent memory.

1-201-244-7722
1-209-349-7382
1-209-797-2212
1-212-500-0839
1-213-256-0408
1-213-995-3039
1-281-763-0433
1-347-289-3902
1-347-844-6817
1-347-844-6831
1-424-354-4270
1-516-232-8905
1-516-232-8935
1-518-212-0219
1-561-300-8018
1-561-210-4185
1-626-200-4646
1-631-456-4041
1-646-274-1143
1-646-810-8635
1-650-241-4604
1-707-401-4056
1-707-633-2789
1-708-401-0535
1-716-442-2824
1-717-862-4080
1-718-705-8669
1-760-514-0132
1-760-563-5384
1-772-318-4938
1-850-201-1111
1-858-777-1977
1-859-908-2281
1-866-860-4509
1-877-226-7488
1-888-706-7463
1-888-771-9249
1-888-785-4479
1-909-327-4870

So can they really do anything to you?

It's not a simple yes or no answer.  Logic dictates that, if they really wanted to take you for a ride and drain your bank accounts, they already would have.  

So, why haven't they?  

Authorization.  

Why do you think you are being called so much?  Perhaps it is because they like the sound of your voice?  No, they have to have your authorization to take any form of payment from you, period.  The callers know their audience, and that audience is typically a bunch of people that have applied for payday loans in the past.  Most of those people they call couldn't afford an attorney if they wanted one, and are so used to receiving collections calls that so long as they sound like a real collector, they will likely be perceived as one.

Furthermore, they don't even really want to talk to your attorney - that just sounds official and scary enough.  A real attorney would take the callers to task and write them off as two-bit con artists.  The callers need you, in writing, to authorize payment against the fictitious debt they claim you owe.  Go ahead, ask them for proof you owe the debt - more commonly known as verification of debt.  See what they say.  A phone authorization carries very little weight, so if they have something signed by you on file, you are done for - and the callers know that.  That authorization is the only thing these callers are doing by the book, and for good reason.  If they just went all willy nilly and made an ACH debit from your checking account, without your written approval, you could in turn report the transaction as fraudulent to your financial institution.  In about 7-10 business days, you would get the funds returned to your account.  Then the scammers would be up against a bank and their team of lawyers and investigators.  

Bottom line:

If you haven't paid the callers a dime, don't.  If you planned on paying them to shut them up, just don't.  Remember - you are not being contacted by a legally licensed, ethically owned and operated collector.  Read up on the FDCPA - http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre27.pdf - and know your rights.

PS--The FBI sent out a Press Release on this scam just last week:

Extortion Scam Related to Delinquent Payday Loans

Washington, D.C.
December 07, 2010  FBI National Press Office
(202) 324-3691

? filed under: Press Release

The Internet Crime Complaint Center has received many complaints from victims of payday loan telephone collection scams. Callers claim the victim is delinquent in a payday loan and must repay the loan to avoid legal consequences. The callers purport to be representatives of the FBI, Federal Legislative Department, various law firms, or other legitimate-sounding agencies. They claim to be collecting debts for companies such as United Cash Advance, U.S. Cash Advance, U.S. Cash Net, and other Internet check-cashing services.

According to complaints received from the public, the callers have accurate data about victims, including Social Security numbers, dates of birth, addresses, employer information, bank account numbers, and the names and telephone numbers of relatives and friends. How the fraudsters obtained the personal information varies, but in some cases victims have reported they completed online applications for other loans or credit cards before the calls started.

The fraudsters relentlessly call the victim?s home, cell phone, and place of employment. They refuse to provide any details about the alleged payday loans and become abusive when questioned. The callers have threatened victims with legal actions, arrests, and, in some cases, physical violence if they do not pay. In many cases, the callers harass victims? relatives, friends, and employers.

Some fraudsters have instructed victims to fax a statement agreeing to pay a certain amount, on a specific date, via a pre-paid Visa card. The statement further declares the victim will never dispute the debt.

If you receive these calls, do not follow the caller?s instructions. Rather, you should:

Notify your banking institutions.
Contact the three major credit bureaus and request an alert be put on your file.
Contact your local law enforcement agencies if you feel you are in immediate danger.
File a complaint at www.IC3.gov.
Tips to avoid becoming a victim of this scam:

Never give your Social Security number?or personal information of any kind?over the telephone or online unless you initiate the contact.
Be suspicious of any e-mail with urgent requests for personal financial information. The e-mail may include upsetting or exciting but false statements to get you to react immediately.
Avoid filling out forms in e-mail messages that request personal information.
Ensure that your browser is up-to-date and security patches have been applied.
Check your bank, credit, and debit card statements regularly to make sure that there are no unauthorized transactions. If anything looks suspicious, contact your bank and all card issuers.
When you contact companies, use numbers provided on the back of cards or statements

http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/paydayloanscam_120710

This guy called me this morning on my cell asking for me, but horribly butchering my name. I confirmed that he was talking to me and he started up, "This is Officer".... I said wait, "I know who you are, I know this is a scam, I never took out a loan and i demand under the fair debt collection act to send me proof of this debt." He hung up on me, I guess he did not plan on my reply.  Do these Scammers think people are not informed of their evil deeds?

scam debt collectors, or more appropriately, they claim that you have taken out a payday loan and demand repayment on the loan immediately and threaten arrest. seeing as i have never used a payday loan service, i knew this was scam. they have all of your phone numbers, including work, know which bank you use and also your ssn. watch out for these guys.