'800-531-5000' Scam

The '800-531-5000' scam appears to have affected a lot of users in the United States. The con artists behind this cam rely on social engineering tricks and fake identities to get their targets to pay for a fake subscription fee. Often, the callers from '800-531-5000' may tell their potential victims that they have won a one-time promotion for a DirecTV subscription, a legitimate service. However, the fraudsters are not part of the DirecTV company, and they may often demand to receive the payment in an alternative way – Amazon Gift Cards, iTunes Gift Cards, etc. This is a common trick that these people use to get money without leaving any traces behind.

DirecTV Impersonators Ask to be Paid in Gift Cards

It is not clear whether the '800-531-5000' phone number belongs to DirecTV or not – it is possible that the con artists might be spoofing one of the company's real numbers to make their offer seem more legitimate. Reputable companies rarely use aggressive marketing techniques such as cold calling, so we advise you to be very vigilant if you find yourself in a conversation of this sort.

Do not forget that the operators of the '800-531-5000' scam may adopt different strategies and social engineering tricks to get you to pay – they may offer promotions, special raffles, 'free trials' or other attractive opportunities. Some of the online reports published from targets of the '800-531-5000' scam list the offers of the scammers:

• DirecTV bill to be reduced to $37.50/month in exchange for a one-time payment of $900 via an Amazon Gift Card.
• Lower bill and special offers on Internet and TV subscriptions in exchange for $360 paid via an Amazon Gift Card.
• The con artists asked to verify the target's credit card number by requesting all information – number, expiration date and CVV.

Remember that these are just some of the tricks that the fraudsters use, so stay vigilant for offers that sound too good to be true. In some cases, these people ask to be called back by using the numbers 800-880-9064 and 888-302-5632 – those also are likely to be used for hoax calls.