ORLANDO, Fla. – Orlando’s 407 area code was blitzed by 20 million robocalls in November, an average of 13.9 calls per person, according to YouMail Inc, a “virtual-phone receptionist” company designed to block unwanted robocalls free of charge.
YouMail CEO Alex Quilici told News 6 that the bogus calls are trending toward debt and credit card interest rates.
“This is a national thing,” Quilici said. ”Our estimate is there were 65 million of these calls from what we call the interest rate scam.”
The messages are by a professional female announcer. One robocall recording said, “The reason for the call is to let you know that you are now eligible for interest rates as low as 6 percent.”
Quilici told News 6 the endgame is always your money, personal information or both.
“The idea is they're going to get you to give them your credit card number in order to verify your eligibility,” Quilici said.
According to YouMail’s latest data, Central Florida areas hit most by the unwanted calls included:
Altamonte Springs, Apopka, Casselberry, Christmas, Davenport, Geneva, Kenansville, Kissimmee, Lake Mary, Longwood, Maitland, Montverde, Orange, Orlando, Oviedo, Saint Cloud, Sanford, Windermere, Winter Garden, Winter Park and Winter Springs.
Orange County Public Schools ranked 10th in frequent robocalls delivering a message that said, in part, "Good evening. To help you navigate through another successful school year, we want to remind you of two very important resources: the OCPS parents’ guide and the student code of conduct. “
Quilici told News 6 his company’s system allows wanted or “important” calls through.
Quilici predicted that December will see an increase in robocalls and he advised businesses and homeowners to get a system that will block the unwanted calls.
“If you want to have a good holiday, don’t answer the phone from unknown numbers and get some sort of tool to prevent the robocallers from getting through,” he said.
For more information about the YouMail Robocall Index or to view the latest report, visit robocallindex.com. To join the YouMail Robocall Index mailing list, email RobocallIndex@YouMail.com.