I got the strangest telemarketing call today. Some chick (with a heavy Bombay accent) tells me that as a US taxpayer, I am one of 1000 people selected to receive a $7,500 grant from the federal government. Hmm. This was too good to brush off :P
Being as bored as I was, I let her finish her script, while being careful not to divulge information. I learnt that to receive this wonderful freebie from Uncle Sam - just for being a good taxpayer - I'd have to pay a small processing fee of $249.99. She gave me an address in St. Petersberg, FL (which I just verified as non-existent). Finally - out comes the important question: "Who do you bank with?" I learnt that I would have to give her my bank account number and routing code. When she learnt she's not getting anything out of me, she got defensive and aggressive. I pushed her and she pushed back. Finally I hung up.
Ten seconds later it's our desperate salesgal on the phone again. This time she only wanted the last 4 digits of my social security number :) This was more entertaining than anything else at work so I let her talk her lungs out. A few minutes later when she realized she's not getting anywhere, she promptly hung up.
Is this the new era of scams? Was this a homegrown scam from India? Or was this an American scam artist getting stuff done on the cheap?
Oh - and the caller ID was 1-559-0802. Deliberately hacked.
A trip to the US Embassy in Ottawa cast a new light on America's isolation in the world. If there's such a thing as a modern day fortress, there a prime example at 460 Sussex Dr, Ottawa. I won't get into details - but the overall effect is that of intimidation. I feel sorry for the men & women who work in this building. There are signs posted all around, describing the different audible alarms - one for a fire, one for an imminent terrorist attack.
On one hand, it's important to protect the lives of innocent Americans serving their country abroad. On the other hand, don't policy makers realize how much they've pushed themselves into a corner? Something's really wrong if all your overseas missions - even peaceful ones - have to be places under so much security. It sends out the wrong message. That there's something evil and dirty going on inside. Is there?
