Scam Alert I Think

[cherrypie88]

Something strange just happened to me. I was trying to find a number to call Royal Caribbean and I ended up calling 1-888-518-8273 (I cannot retrace how I found that number anymore). I spoke to a reservations agent and when I asked if they could help me with my dining reservation (because I was having troubles making it online) the agent told me that I had a balance owing still and if he could just collect it from me, he could make my reservation. I immediately got concerned because I had fully paid my balance and there was nothing owing. I argued with him and he kept pushing me to pay the balance. He ended up saying I could call the supervisor number and gave me the number that is on the Royal Caribbean website. When I called and spoke to them the only reason why I couldn't make my reservation was because all the earlier times were already taken. I then called this "fake" number back a few times and noted that there were different people who answered and they would just answer "Reservations". When I asked what company they worked for none of the agents I spoke to would answer me. One agent said I was "breaking up on the phone" and hung up on me. Another put me on hold and never came back. I have no idea who these people are and how I came across their number when I was looking up Royal Caribbean but they are clearly up to no good so please beware of the number 1-888-518-8273!!!

Edited June 3 by cherrypie88

[GetToLivin]

Thanks for sharing OP.

 

Anyone else get the urge to have some fun and call these people? 😈

[JJK2008]

13 minutes ago, cherrypie88 said:

Something strange just happened to me. I was trying to find a number to call Royal Caribbean and I ended up calling 1-888-518-8273 (I cannot retrace how I found that number anymore). I spoke to a reservations agent and when I asked if they could help me with my dining reservation (because I was having troubles making it online) the agent told me that I had a balance owing still and if he could just collect it from me, he could make my reservation. I immediately got concerned because I had fully paid my balance and there was nothing owing. I argued with him and he kept pushing me to pay the balance. He ended up saying I could call the supervisor number and gave me the number that is on the Royal Caribbean website. When I called and spoke to them the only reason why I couldn't make my reservation was because all the earlier times were already taken. I then called this "fake" number back a few times and noted that there were different people who answered and they would just answer "Reservations". When I asked what company they worked for none of the agents I spoke to would answer me. One agent said I was "breaking up on the phone" and hung up on me. Another put me on hold and never came back. I have no idea who these people are and how I came across their number when I was looking up Royal Caribbean but they are clearly up to no good so please beware of the number 1-888-518-8273!!!

Thanks for the info. A quick search for the number came up empty. 

[cherrypie88]

21 minutes ago, JJK2008 said:

Thanks for the info. A quick search for the number came up empty. 

Yes, I can't find any information on this number too, and I can't for the life of me figure out how I found it in the first place. I tried to retrace my search but it's not coming up anymore

[cherrypie88]

27 minutes ago, GetToLivin said:

Thanks for sharing OP.

 

Anyone else get the urge to have some fun and call these people? 😈

LOL, please do and have fun. I called them back 3 times trying to get information (none of them would tell me what company they work for or what country they are based in) - they are definately very sketchy.

[leaveitallbehind]

It's not just sketchy. Anyone suggesting that you have a balance due and it must be paid before any reservations (or other action that you are calling about) can be made is absolutely a scam.  They probably advertise online with a copied RCCL logo so they appear to be the RCCL site.  But RCCL would never indicate that to you or tell you to make a payment over the phone in order to provide an additional service.  All they are trying to do is get a credit card number to fraudulently charge.  

Edited June 3 by leaveitallbehind

[fla33023]

53 minutes ago, cherrypie88 said:

LOL, please do and have fun. I called them back 3 times trying to get information (none of them would tell me what company they work for or what country they are based in) - they are definately very sketchy.

I'm just getting a busy signal.

[Engineroom Snipe]

13 minutes ago, fla33023 said:

I'm just getting a busy signal.

It appears that the jig is up. CC members might have just accomplished a "denial of service" on a scam line.

 

All it takes is one person to say, "Something does not seem right.........."

 

Thank you OP for sharing, you just made it a bit harder for the scammers, who will not give up, just move on to a new number.

 

The predators are many but the prey are alert and wary.

[wolfcathorse]

I got my scam by email. While in London after getting off Anthem I got an email from Royal saying they were looking forward to welcoming me on my May 30 Jewel sailing and that I had $100 OBC to use. It even listed a reservation number.  I was flying home May 29 after a B2B and had no other bookings. 

[Engineroom Snipe]

Just playing the game. I called the number and was referred to another number, 866-762-7625.

 

I was put on hold to 'Muzak' for all of you 1960s and 1970s aficionados.

 

What a hoot, it was crystal clear Muzak.

 

🤣

[Engineroom Snipe]

1 minute ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

Just playing the game. I called the number and was referred to another number, 866-762-7625.

 

I was put on hold to 'Muzak' for all of you 1960s and 1970s aficionados.

 

What a hoot, it was crystal clear Muzak.

 

🤣

I am still chuckling, I have not heard elevator music like "Muzak" in years. Just think of the movie, Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005), during the final scene going down in the elevator.

[Another_Critic]

6 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

Just playing the game. I called the number and was referred to another number, 866-762-7625.

That IS the Royal Caribbean reservations number.

[Scottdalfonso]

9 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

That IS the Royal Caribbean reservations number.

I call 866-562-7625, but yes 762-7626 is also a legit RC#

Edited June 4 by Scottdalfonso

[Engineroom Snipe]

Just now, Another_Critic said:

That IS the Royal Caribbean reservations number.

So, it looks like the called number is referring callers to an actual RCI number.

 

They made an honest mistake or someone got caught with their hand in the cookie jar and does not want any problems.

 

The original searched number does not show up in any white pages or known caller directories.

 

If this was a professional business number or a legitimate business, they would have normally answered, "Hello, this is xyz hotel chain, first name of the person answering the call, how can I assist you?"

 

No one identified the business or their name when answering the call but they did eventually refere me to the 'proper' number.

 

Something does not add up.......

[Engineroom Snipe]

1 minute ago, Scottdalfonso said:

I call 866-562-7625

You win the prize, the person answering me said, "866-762-7625" and then quickly corrected themselves to "866-562-7625."

 

A liar has a hard time keeping their lies truthful.

[cherrypie88]

UPDATE - I noticed I got a few missed calls soon after my calls to the fraudsters, the number was 1-888-815-3006 (I find it pretty funny that they tried to call me back). If you google this number there are reports of scams. So beware of 1-888-518-8273 AND 1-888-815-3006. They are the same people.

Edited June 4 by cherrypie88

[Engineroom Snipe]

1 minute ago, cherrypie88 said:

UPDATE - I noticed I got a few missed calls soon after my calls to the fraudsters, the number was 1-888-815-3006 (I find it pretty funny that they tried to call me back). If you google this number there are reports of scams. Sounds similar to one of the other reported scams. So beware of 1-888-518-8273 AND 1-888-815-3006. They are the same people.

Have a great night and thank you for the update.

 

Cruisers have $$$$$$.

 

When caught in a lie, many scammers start throwing out legitimate numbers in order to bolster their credentials and deflect further investigation should the target get suspicious.

 

A fraudulent person in another country just needs one transaction of about $100 USD to pay their monthly living expenses including the overhead owed to the call center sponsors.

 

 

[jsn55]

3 hours ago, cherrypie88 said:

Something strange just happened to me. I was trying to find a number to call Royal Caribbean and I ended up calling 1-888-518-8273 (I cannot retrace how I found that number anymore). I spoke to a reservations agent and when I asked if they could help me with my dining reservation (because I was having troubles making it online) the agent told me that I had a balance owing still and if he could just collect it from me, he could make my reservation. I immediately got concerned because I had fully paid my balance and there was nothing owing. I argued with him and he kept pushing me to pay the balance. He ended up saying I could call the supervisor number and gave me the number that is on the Royal Caribbean website. When I called and spoke to them the only reason why I couldn't make my reservation was because all the earlier times were already taken. I then called this "fake" number back a few times and noted that there were different people who answered and they would just answer "Reservations". When I asked what company they worked for none of the agents I spoke to would answer me. One agent said I was "breaking up on the phone" and hung up on me. Another put me on hold and never came back. I have no idea who these people are and how I came across their number when I was looking up Royal Caribbean but they are clearly up to no good so please beware of the number 1-888-518-8273!!!

Scam FOR SURE.  My friend Michelle, who runs Consumer Rescue, just did an article on this latest little trick.  These guys are very persuasive and very successful, so of course it's proliferated through the travel providers like wildfire.  I've said for years that 'the internet is not your friend' and it's just getting worse every month.  Twelve years ago I got led down a path with "Yahoo" about some issue my husband was having and I'm here to tell you that these guys are really GOOD.  It wasn't until the first guy put the second guy on the line that I even began to be suspicious.  We all need to go back to our 'address books' made of paper and keep the correct numbers for every entity we deal with.  No more searching for a phone number online.  The creepy crooks can ruin anything.  

[Kikkib]

I believe this is the same number that almost scammed my daughter. She was on speaker trying to change her fixed dining to my time dining. I heard the call agent who had an accent tell her it would cost $60 to make the change. I interjected immediately and said I’ve cruised many times and have never heard of this. He said Royal changes their policies all the time. We hung up. She had given her reservation number and all her information to him except credit card info so we called Royal and had a password put on the reservation so it could not be cancelled or messed with. She showed me the Royal Caribbean site she got the number from and it did look legit. 
 

[broadwaybaby123]

I'm actually in school right now for Cyber Security. If there's any suspicious activity on any online account DO NOT open any links. Go to the site you know is safe (the actual site from that supposed vendor) and look closely at their number or sales they have going on. If they don't match up, the email is a scam. Go back to the known goods site and tell them what's happening. If the email says there was a charge, have them check your account for fraud charges. 

 

If any charges were made, call the credit card company and bank to have them place a Stop Payment on the order. Tell them what's going on.

 

Go back to your account on the known goods site and change your login info. If it makes you feel better, change your email login too.

 

Finally, report the scam to the FCC.

 

For added protection on email scams, you can enable 2FA or MFA (2 Factor Authentication or Multi-Factor Authentication), so that even if your password is hacked, it offers an extra layer or protection. Some devices also offer this to unlock them. 

 

Some devices also offer call screening where they'll screen unknown or robo calls. Mine does this: my virtual assistant will transcribe the call on the screen for me and I can decide to accept or reject it.

Edited June 4 by broadwaybaby123

[cherrypie88]

1 hour ago, Kikkib said:

I believe this is the same number that almost scammed my daughter. She was on speaker trying to change her fixed dining to my time dining. I heard the call agent who had an accent tell her it would cost $60 to make the change. I interjected immediately and said I’ve cruised many times and have never heard of this. He said Royal changes their policies all the time. We hung up. She had given her reservation number and all her information to him except credit card info so we called Royal and had a password put on the reservation so it could not be cancelled or messed with. She showed me the Royal Caribbean site she got the number from and it did look legit. 
 

OH they my information too (Name, reservation number and DoB 😞). I'm going to call tomorrow amd put a password on too. Thanks for the tip!

[nelblu]

11 hours ago, cherrypie88 said:

Yes, I can't find any information on this number too, and I can't for the life of me figure out how I found it in the first place. I tried to retrace my search but it's not coming up anymore

Sometimes, unknown I misdial one number and get some weird offers.😜

[firefly333]

I have seen posts where there seem to be IT issues and it says money is owed. I blame royal IT. Sometimes you might cancel a pay restaurant and then it takes money from your reservation, not your dining. IT is glitchy imo. 

[cruisingpeople]

11 hours ago, Kikkib said:

I believe this is the same number that almost scammed my daughter. She was on speaker trying to change her fixed dining to my time dining. I heard the call agent who had an accent tell her it would cost $60 to make the change. I interjected immediately and said I’ve cruised many times and have never heard of this. He said Royal changes their policies all the time. We hung up. She had given her reservation number and all her information to him except credit card info so we called Royal and had a password put on the reservation so it could not be cancelled or messed with. She showed me the Royal Caribbean site she got the number from and it did look legit. 
 

 

Beware of posting or giving out reservation,(booking) numbers. There are articles from 4 days ago of a family's $15K Carnival Cruise vacation canceled just 2 days prior to sailing because she posted a screenshot of an email with the countdown to their vacation on the book of faces and the screen shot inadvertently showed the number.

[cruiselvr04]

I have C and A in my contact list and always use that number.