J received an email couple of days ago from AT&T (via her school district) about a phone scam going around. Thought I might want to share it with all of you.

The basis of the email is that you should never dial a number with the area code 809. Con-artists will get you to call by leaving a message telling you that they have information about a family member who has been ill, to tell you someone has been arrested, died, or to let you know you have won a wonderful prize, etc. In each case, you are told to call the 809 number right away. Since there are so many new area codes these days, people unknowingly return these calls.

If you call from the US, you will apparently be charged $2425 per minute or, you’ll get a long recorded message. The point is, they will try to keep you on the phone as long as possible to increase the charges. Unfortunately, when you get your phone bill, you’ll often be charged more than $24,100.

It turns out that the 809 code is located in the British Virgin Islands and if you start calling it, you will be responsible for all charges regardless of how much it is. I am not sure whether it is true or just a hoax but you never know — better safe then sorry.