What are Weber County Area Codes?
An area code is the set of three-digit numbers that begin all ten-digit telephone numbers in North America. Weber County area codes are the three-digit codes that specify the Numbering Plan Areas (NPAs) that cover Webb County. They are designated by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP). The State of Utah Public Service Commission (PSC) supervises area code administration and implementation in Utah, including Weber County. Utah currently has two active area codes. These are:
Area Code 801
Area code 801 is a Utah telephone area code and one of the original 86 area codes created in 1947. Weber County cities and towns within this NPA include Ogden, Huntsville, Roy, North Ogden, South Ogden, and Washington Terrace. Area code 801 also serves some parts of a few other counties in Utah.
Area Code 385
Area code 385 overlays the 801 NPA. It became active in 2009, covering all the locations under area code 801.
What are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Weber County?
All major phone carriers are well represented in most parts of Weber County. In Ogden, for instance, T-Mobile and Verizon boast over 85% coverage across the city, while AT&T has an estimated 64% fraud. Sprint does not offer any network service in Ogen. In Roy, Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Sprint extend network services to 88%, 82%, 74%, and 64% of the city, respectively. In Weber County, some Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) provide residents with more affordable alternatives to the major phone carriers. MVNOs leverage the major national carriers’ infrastructure to provide network services.
Going by the 2018 National Health Interview Survey, it is safe to conclude that wireless telephony is the most widely adopted telephone service in Utah. Data gathered from the survey revealed that 69.0% of Utah adults used wireless telephony services exclusively, while landline-only users made up 2.6% of the adult population. Similarly, among the state's under-18 population, 71.1% lived in wireless-only homes, while a mere 1.6% of them still used landline phones solely for telephony services. The trend of telephone services adoption in the state is a clear indication of what is obtainable in Weber County.
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone services are available to Weber County residents and businesses. It uses broadband internet to provide telephone services. The services provided by VoIP are more affordable and efficient when compared to traditional telephone services. Residents and businesses can subscribe to the available VoIP service providers within the county to enjoy its numerous benefits.
What are Weber County Phone Scams?
Phone scams in Weber County are fraudulent acts perpetrated using telephone services to extort county residents. Typically, phone scammers use text messages, live phone calls, or robocalls to steal money or deceptively obtain information from their victims. They commit either financial or identity theft, or both, using the information gleaned from scam victims. Fraudsters are known for disguising their identities in an attempt to gain their targets' trust. They usually pretend to be with reputable businesses or government bodies and often spoof their marks' Caller IDs to appear legitimate. Applications that offer reverse phone number lookup services can help Weber County residents identify spoofed phone calls and avoid most scams.
Some of the public agencies saddled with the responsibility of protecting Weber County residents from phone scams are:
- Utah Office of the Attorney General (UAG)
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
- Weber County Sheriff's Office (WCSO)
- The Division of Consumer Protection (DCP), Utah Department of Commerce (UDC)
The prevalent phone scams being perpetrated in Weber County include:
What are Jury Duty Scams?
Be careful when you receive calls from persons who claim to be with the Weber County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) or other local law enforcement agencies. Fraudsters often impersonate employees of these agencies to cheat Weber County residents out of their money. They typically provide fake badge numbers when they call and threaten their targets with arrest for having missed jury duty. To prevent being arrested, the scammers will instruct their targets to make immediate payment of certain fines. Their usual medium of receiving payments includes reloadable credit cards, wire transfers, and gift cards. Never pay anyone over the phone via suspicious payment channels such as these, especially if you did not initiate such calls. These scammers may spoof the official phone numbers of the law enforcement they impersonate to appear legitimate. Caller ID spoofing often fools targets into answering their phones. However, reverse phone lookup applications can detect spoofed phone calls and prevent Weber County residents from falling victim to this scam.
Weber County residents should know that the WCSO or any local law enforcement does not threaten anyone with arrest over the phone for not appearing for jury duty. More importantly, they will never threaten residents over the phone for any reason or solicit money. If you receive this type of call characterized by money or information solicitation, know that you are dealing with a fraudster and should hang up immediately. You may reach out to your local law enforcement agency to verify such callers' claims or report them.
What are Romance Scams?
Romance scams are perpetrated over long distances by persons who profess to be in love with other people who are usually the targets. They are committed by fraudsters who create fake profiles on dating websites and popular social networking sites to prey on naive residents of Weber County. These scammers often disguise themselves by taking up identities other than theirs. Their social media account profiles often contain information that does not belong to them, including photos. One thing is common with persons who perpetrate romance scams. They usually claim to be located far away from their targets and then build relationships with them over time. As time passes by, such relationships will shift from mere social media chats to having telephone correspondences. Once the scammers become intimate with their targets, they will ask for money while citing various reasons for needing the money. They may say they like to visit their marks but currently are in some financial fix. The scammers will then appeal to their targets to send some money for airplane tickets and claim to be eager to meet them physically. They usually prefer to receive money via gift cards and will not stop asking for more until their victims discover they are only being scammed.
In other iteration of romance scams, the scammers may threaten to blackmail their targets using all the sensitive information they have shared. They will repeatedly demand some payment and promise not to share such embarrassing information with the general public, provided they keep getting money. Such data can be in the form of photos, videos, and texts. Weber County residents should be careful with the kind of relationships they enter with unknown persons online. If you are involved in an online romance, use websites that offer phone number lookups by address to identify your lover's actual location to avoid a romance scam. Websites that provide area code lookup can equally retrieve information on these scammers' locations.
What are IRS Scams?
If you receive a call purportedly from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), make sure to do a reverse phone lookup on the incoming call. Reverse phone number lookup services can help you retrieve information on the actual caller. Scammers who perpetrate IRS scams typically pretend to be with the agency to extort Weber County residents, especially around tax seasons. They will call their marks and inform them that they have outstanding taxes due and may be arrested, jailed, or deported if they do not pay immediately. The scammers may also scare their targets with license revocations to coerce payments. They often provide bogus badge numbers in an attempt to appear legitimate and make their targets do their biddings. In other instances, they will spoof their marks' Caller IDs to display IRS official phone numbers and trick them into answering their phones. IRS scammers often demand payments by wire transfers, reloadable cards, or gift cards. Financial transactions on these channels are usually irrecoverable and are red flags.
It is crucial to state that the IRS does not contact county residents by phone or text to demand payment of delinquent taxes on short notice. Their usual means of communicating such to taxpayers is by mail, after which some actions may be taken by the agency. However, such actions will not include the use of threats to coerce payment or solicitation of taxpayers' confidential information over the phone. To avoid IRS scams, Weber County residents can verify their tax status by calling the IRS on 1 (800) 829-1040. The IRS warns taxpayers never to send money to or share their information with anyone who contacts them over the phone and claims to be with the agency.
What are Facebook Scams?
The Weber County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) warns county residents of phone scams initiated online using the Facebook social media platform. Fraudsters hack into unsuspecting users' Facebook accounts and send instant messages to persons on the friend lists of the hacked accounts. A typical message in this scam will state that the users are qualified to receive money through a federal or state grant. The scammers often leave phone numbers to text or call should they be interested in benefiting from such opportunities. They will request some personal information once the targeted persons contact them on the phone numbers provided on the Facebook instant messaging App. The targets' full names, birth dates, addresses, and social security numbers are some of the information these scammers aim to glean. To avoid this scam, a person can conduct a reverse number lookup on such a phone number to find an answer to the question, "who is this number registered to?"
Do not be deceived by this type of instant message, as it usually appears like you are being informed about such a bogus grant by a familiar person. You can call your friend on their phone number to find out if they indeed initiated such a message. The WCSO cautions residents who get such messages never to share their personal information with these fraudsters to avoid identity theft.
What are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are used by political campaign organizations, government agencies, and sales companies to deliver information to a mass audience. A robocall is a pre-recorded message delivered by an auto-dialer to selected phone numbers with very little human input. Robocalls appeal to phone scammers for the same reasons legitimate entities use them. They are cheap and easy to manipulate to display desired phone numbers on recipients' caller ID displays. Robocalls, being a variety of spam calls, are sometimes used by scammers to determine the status of phone numbers for future scam engagements. However, a reverse phone number lookup application can help identify if an incoming call is a robocall.
You can take the following steps to reduce the frequency of robocalls and avoid robocall scams:
- End a call once you identify it as a robocall. Disregard its prompts as acting on them usually lead to more robocalls and future phone scams.
- Report robocall numbers to the FTC by filing an online complaint or calling 1 (888) 382-1222.
- Use some phone number lookup free services that identify robocall numbers and block them.
- Add your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry to exempt it from receiving telemarketing calls. Typically, legitimate robocalls will cease from reaching you after 31 days of registration, and so you can identify illegal robocalls and avoid them.
- Download third-party call-blocking applications to block spam calls and robocall numbers.
How Can You Spot and Report Weber County Phone Scams?
In Weber County, phone scammers employ varying tricks at different times depending on the circumstances at the time of perpetrating their deceptive schemes. Sometimes, they may appear as offering to help their targets, and at other times, they will be aggressive and use scare tactics to extort them. However, knowing how phone scams operate can help county residents spot phone scams before they are fleeced. Reverse phone lookup free services are proven means of uncovering the identities of unknown callers. Such services (App or web) can prevent Weber County residents from falling prey to phone scams. The following are warning signs of phone scams in Weber County:
- The caller uses high-pressure sales tactics and informs the call recipient that there is only a limited time before their offer passes.
- The caller poses as representatives of legitimate entities or the government and threatens you with arrest or jail if you fail to comply with their demands.
- The caller insists that they get paid via odd payment channels such as gift cards or wire transfers. It is often hard to recover money sent via these channels.
- After presenting their offer, the caller is reluctant to answer your questions but persuades you to send money so as not to lose out on such a "rare opportunity."
- The caller claims to be with a familiar government agency and request confidential information such as PINs, passwords, and social security from the call recipient.
Phone scam victims usually lose their identities and money to scammers. The best option for Weber County residents to protect themselves from phone scams is ignoring incoming calls from unknown phone numbers. Residents can file reports of phone scam incidents in the county with the following public agencies:
Weber County Sheriff's Office - The WCSO educates county residents on prevalent phone scams to prevent them from falling victim. Victims of phone scams within Weber County can report them to the WCSO by calling (807) 778-6600. They can also visit them at 1400 Depot Drive, Ogden, Utah 84404 to file in-person complaints.
Federal Communications Commission - The FCC educates residents on how to identify Caller ID spoofing and call blocking. Victims of phone spoofing scams and other phone scams can file online complaints with the FCC.
Federal Trade Commission - Weber County residents can file complaints about illegal robocalls and other phone scams with the FTC using the online complaint assistant. They may also call the agency on 1 (888) 382-1222 to report phone scam incidents. The FTC manages the National Do Not Call Registry. Phone numbers are restricted from receiving robocalls once listed on the registry for at least 31 days.
Utah Department of Commerce - The Division of Consumer Protection (DCP) of the UDC stops unfair business practices, educates residents, and investigates deceptive schemes. It provides an online complaint form for residents to report phone scam incidents.