Is this scam for real?!?

Question

I received a telephone call last evening from an individual identifying himself as an AT&T Service technician (could also be Telus) who was conducting a test on the telephone lines. He stated that to complete the test I should touch nine( 9 ), zero( 0 ), the pound sign ( # ), and then hang up.

Luckily, I was suspicious and refused. Upon contacting the telephone company, I was informed that by pushing 90#, you give the requesting individual full access to your telephone line, which enables them to place long distance calls billed to your home phone number. I was further informed that this scam has been originating from many local jails/prisons

Above is the text of an e-mail i just received

Answer 1

It is a real scam but basically only works on phone systems where you have to dial 9 to get an outside line. It won't work on a standard residential line.

Answer 2

If you do not check a company before entering into a transaction, you could lose your money, time and credibility. Some widely used resources are the Better Business Bureau (www.bbb.org) and the national fraud center ( www.fraud.org) These days, you can easily find out more about a company using the internet in a few minutes. From a company's website, you can details about its ownership, how old the company really is and feedback from the company's customers.
You can find more detailed information about a company at http://tinyurl.com/gtb89

Answer 3

Yes. This is considered a smaller type of identity theft which could lead to larger and bigger problems. You were intelligent of what you did and I comend you on that. It just goes to show, that common sense is supreme.

Answer 4

I've heard it before somewhere, but I still don't know if it's real and I really don't care. Happy answers!

Answer 5

check snopes

Answer 6

No, it is not real.

Answer 7

no

Answer 8

thanks for the info...