Call center fun. (not)

[ThePhoneGoddess]

The background:

I do security verifications for pre-paid cell phones. We have a lot of problems with stolen cc's, so we have to do security checks. These checks take 2-3 minutes. You get selected for a check if you type something in wrong while placing an order over our automated system or on the web. You type in the zip code or name wrong, you get sent to us. We have this patented software called VERID, that pulls up info from public record and generates 2 or 3 questions to ask you, to make sure it's really you. VERID uses the last 4 digits of your SSN to find you in public record. We never ask for your full social, just the last 4. People regularly have cows about this.

SC#1:
me: i'm going to pull some information up off of public record, and ask you a couple of questions that only you would know the answer to. To do that I'll need...
SC: What?!!! Public record?!!! What's that?!!!
me: Public records are based off of birth and death records, DMV records---
SC: This sounds very suspicious! What's your name?! What's your employee number?!!
me: My name is The Phone Goddess and my number is...
SC: I'm calling T-Mobile right now to report you! And I'm calling my bank! This is EXTREMELY suspicious! You have no right to pull up my public records! (Mm. Yeah. That's why they're called public records, lady. Because the public doesn't have the right to view them. )
me: okay, well, your order will not go through until---
*click*


20 minutes later, she calls back and gets the guy next to me. First thing she says to him: Why haven't I gotten my minutes yet?!!!

coworker: *looks up her order* well it looks like you did not go through our verification process---
SC:I had some girl on the line who was asking me too much personal information. Does anyone named The Phone Goddess work there?
cw: Yes, she works here.
SC:Well, why didn't she put my order through?!!!
cw: she couldn't finish your order because you did not complete the verification process.
SC: Well I don't want to go through any verification! I want my minutes NOW!!!
cw: we cannot finish your order until you go through the verification process.
SC: THIS IS ^%$(*^%$ UNACCEPTABLE!!!
cw: Well, ma'am you certainly don't have to go through the process if you don't want to. I would be more than happy to cancel your order for you---
SC:FINE! FINE! Here's my info. does it f$%^& match!!!
cw: well now I need to ask you a couple of quick questions---
SC:HOW F$^&(*#@ LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE?!!!

So she finally goes through the process, and then she begins to tell him what a lousy person I am. She demands to speak to a supervisor to complain about me. Coworker laughs, and then tells QA person sitting with me(who can act as a supervisor) to take call. So coworker transfers call to us, I put myself on mute. Woman claims all sorts of things---I was rude and nasty, I cussed at her, I demanded her driver's license # and her full social, etc etc. Finally QA says 'Ma'am, I have been monitoring her for the last hour because she's still in training, and I heard your entire first call. She did nothing of the sort. And the fact that you would sink so low as to lie about one of our employees to try and get her in trouble is dispicable. We don't want your business anymore. Thank you for calling, and have a nice day.'

SC#2:
Guy places order over the web. I call him back to do verification, and he throws a monstrous fit. Demands I cancel order and says he'll place it again. I tell him 'Sir, once your account has been selected for a security verification, no orders will go through until we can complete that process.' He yells 'I'M GOING TO PLACE ANOTHER ORDER, AND I BETTER NOT GET 'SELECTED' FOR YOUR DAMN SECURITY CHECK AGAIN!!!' *click*

So he places another order. It comes up. Someone else grabs it and calls him. He throws an even bigger fit, and demands a sup. Sup speaks to him, and he tells her 'I want the name of your top manager. I'm going to speak to someone and get this nonsense stopped for good.' right.

SC#3:
Guy calls and places order with a checking account. ECH's are different, because we have to verify them manually. First time you use a checking account, we call your bank to make sure it's an open and active account. Once we do this, you can place orders with it till the cows come home. But first time, we HAVE to call your bank. First I run guy through VERID, he passes. No problem. Then I tell him I have to call bank, and he gets upset. Tells me that since he passed VERID, we need to just put his ECH through. Finally I put him on hold to call bank. He immediately hangs up. Bank phone system tells me acct# is invalid, so I cancel order.
He places another order with an entirely different checking account#. Gets another guy near me. Guy tells him same thing, he gets pissed and hangs up. He places 6 or 7 orders that night, all with different ECH#'s. Each one is invalid when we call the bank. He was obviously just making them up. I spoke to him 3 or 4 times, him getting more and more frustrated each time. Finally last time, he calls, and I tell him I have to call bank, and he says---get this---he says 'I AM the bank. I work for the bank. I do 'checking verifications' for the bank. So you don't need to call, because I can verify it.' I say that I am required to call # that comes up on my screen. He screams and yells and demands to be sent to cust srvc (FOR THE THIRD TIME that night)because he wants to get a post-paid phone plan, this is just taking too long for him. Uh-huh.

Ok,well, I have many more, but these are my most recent ones.

Crazy people.

[toolbert]

I don't think I could believe anyone who after failing 6 or 7 times claimes that he "is the bank". What a macaroon. I'm so glad I don't have to verify people's credit or I'd kill myself.

[Becks]

It must be miserable to live with these people. When people act like that, they should automatically have to work at least one shift dealing with people exactly like them.

[Moirae]

I sooo sympathize. We use the last 4 as security too and you wouldn't believe the number of people that freak out at the idea. Even though, most of the time, we don't have their whole number on record, just the last four digits.

You poor thing.

I have to say, they can't pay enough for people to work in a call center when at least half the people that call are insane.

[phillippbo]

I sooo sympathize. We use the last 4 as security too and you wouldn't believe the number of people that freak out at the idea. Even though, most of the time, we don't have their whole number on record, just the last four digits.

I can empathize on this one, because we verify security that way too. I can't begin to count how many people lose their marbles because of it. It makes me wonder what they think we can go and do with a partial SSN? It's a four digit number, and I promise that there isn't a thing that I can actually do with that I couldn't also do with all your other information (name, birthdate, drivers license number, mother's maiden name, etc) that's right in front of me and you have no problem giving to me. On top of that, the ones that freak out the most are usually the ones that are the closest to being disconnected for nonpayment (and are like that every month). Yeah, buddy, I want your SSN so I can steal your identity and be denied credit under your name too. Riiiiight....

[kerrisan]

These are hilarious. They're like the kids who get pissed off for locker checks at school: why get so defensive unless you have something to hide?

[AFpheonix]

I usually only have to deal with socials if that's someone's insurance ID#, and if they don't want to give that to me, then they get to pay full retail for their pills. No skin off my nose.

I DO use birthdates to verify that I'm handing the right pills to the right person, though. There's several vain middle aged women that just get puckered when you ask them to verify birthday.
Good lord woman, we already know how old you are, everyone gets old, deal with it.

[Moirae]

lol, exactly. I've been told "I won't give out my SSN because it's too dangerous." I just say ok and try to get some other method of identification but alot of times they don't like it when I ask for that either.

Like their account number. Most people have to go search for it so they don't like that.

But seriously, do they really want any Tom, Dick and Harry making changes (like cancelling their service) to their account because they think its funny or do they want us to make sure some jerk isn't able to do anything to it?

[South Texan]

We use the last 4 as security too and you wouldn't believe the number of people that freak out at the idea. Even though, most of the time, we don't have their whole number on record, just the last four digits.

In a way, I can understand their paranoia. The media blitz on stolen identities and all the grave warnings on the news about protecting your personal information and not giving it out to a stranger on the phone have made a lot of people scared of every question that could be of a personal nature.

That doesn't justify or excuse having a fit when such a question is asked, but it is understandable that some people will be wary of such questions. I think Phone Goddess handled the situation very well.

[Brighid45]

Finally QA says 'Ma'am, I have been monitoring her for the last hour because she's still in training, and I heard your entire first call. She did nothing of the sort. And the fact that you would sink so low as to lie about one of our employees to try and get her in trouble is dispicable. We don't want your business anymore. Thank you for calling, and have a nice day.'

PhoneGoddess--wow! Your QA manager . . . Our QA people at the security call center wouldn't have stood up for us in a million years.

Anyway--great stories, and all too typical of what happens when you ask for verification.

[Moirae]

Yet somehow asking for your address, phone number, and account number aren't personal. Go figure.

[ThePhoneGoddess]

Another call we often get is where people have a charge on their cc statement they don't recognize. Our # is listed next to the charge, as we are the security department. These calls often go like this:

SC: I have these unauthorized chagres on my cc statement...
me: Okay, do you own a prepaid cell phone or long distance phone card?
SC: Not at all.
me: Allright, well that is what those charges are. Did you lend your card to a family member or friend so they could buy minutes? (happens more often than you'd think)
SC: No.
me: okay, well I can look your cc up in our system to see what account it's under. To do that I need your sixteen digit card number. (not the exp, not the CVN, just the 16 digits.)
SC: I'm not giving that out!
me: Okay, well nothing is coming up under your name or your address. The only other way I have is to look it up by the cc number. If you want to report it to your local police dept, they can investigate it further for you.
SC: I want it blocked so it can't be used again.
me: Well ma'am, I don't have any way to block it because I don't know what account it's under.
SC: Well you need to figure out what account it's under!
me: I looked under your name and address, and nothing came up. They are probably using a made up name & address. The only way I'd be able to find that is to look it up by the sixteen digit card#.
SC: I'M NOT GIVING YOU THAT INFORMATION!
me: That's fine. In that case, I suggest you report it to your local police. They can take it from there.
SC: But what if more charges come through?
me: I suggest you report it to them as soon as possible so they can give us the information we need to block your card.
SC: So your going to get the card # from them, anyway!



Some people are so dense.

[Phone Jockey]

It makes me wonder what they think we can go and do with a partial SSN? It's a four digit number, and I promise that there isn't a thing that I can actually do with that I couldn't also do with all your other information.

Exactly. I get the last 4 of the ssn ONLY if we're talking about billing & ppl absolutely flip out. Of course, that usually indicates that they're not the person on the account anyway, so...

[Broomjockey]

About the whole SSN thing. I had a "credit card company" call me trying to get me to sign up for a pre-authorized card or something like that. I wanted a card at the time, I didn't have one yet. Everything was going fine, then they wanted my number, the whole thing. I told them VERY plainly. I said, and I quote "I will not give that out over the phone, but if you could mail me something out I will fill that out so that I know you are who you say you are." They said ok, time goes by, I get more calls from them. Each time I repeat myself. Nothing in the mail. Finally my roomate answers one day and tells them to do not nice things to themselves.

I honestly believe to this day it was an ID theft scam. Because I doubt Mastercard would have any qualms about sending me an application through the mail, especially after multiple requests. If they had only wanted a partial number, I probably would have gone with it.

[Kusanagi]

Broomjockey - those are common and yes, they are scams.

Another one thats really popular is where they will say your approved, and ask for your bank info so they can draft the card "fees" such as a $200 setup fee. They NEVER offer to put it on the card that you've been approved for.

Once you give them this info, they clean out your account.