BBB received a call today from a Laurel, MT teacher who has been receiving information from several students and parents about highly deceptive college prep pitches being made to Montana families of teens. Here’s how the call goes:
The parent receives a phone call from someone advising they are a representative for SAT or ACT testing. They want to make sure their child is registered to take the ACT test and proceed with a couple questions. They then ask for a credit card number, at which point, the parent hesitates and the caller immediately hangs up. The phone number on Caller ID shows 866-569-1215. When BBB tries that number, the # is a constant busy. Some parents are reporting that this number states that it is “not in service.”
There are lots of scenarios out there about these deceptive calls---Here is one of many scenarios that are posted online about this number:
A woman with an accent called us. She could pronounce our son's name. (First and last name.) She said our son had signed up for their software at a school college fair. Our school doesn't have a college fair. She promised a 200 point increase in SAT and 4 point on ACT. (That would make him more than perfect on the ACT.) 30-day free trial but she wanted a credit card to "secure it." If we keep it, it's $169. I asked questions to get as much info as possible so I could warn others. Then I told her that I didn't give my credit card number over the phone to companies I did not know. She refused to mail me literature but offered to take me through the process online. I told her the same thing about using my credit card online. She kept talking. I hung up.
BBB ADVICE
We strongly urge you to NOT share any personal information with someone who cold calls you like this. We also caution you to not ever confirm or verify personal and/or family information (such as childrens’ names and/or gender, age, etc.) It goes without saying, never give or confirm your credit card # or any other financial information, to anyone who calls you like this.
If you are a victim of this type of call, or have compromised any information to such a caller, we urge you to contact your merchant card service and dispute the charge ASAP. We also urge you to report the call to your local high school so they can warn others. You can file formal complaints with BBB, your state Attorney General’s Office, as well as with the Federal Trade Commission. BBB has seen a rash of issues surrounding college prep sales pitches via phone. On our radar----
This is a Dallas BBB media warning about SAT and ACT Prep Center of TX:
http://www.dallas.bbb.org/article/bbb-in-the-news--test-prep-scam-on-the-today-show-12287
http://www.bbb.org/dallas/business-reviews/services-general/the-sat-and-act-prep-center-in-coppell-tx-90122311
Here is the Dallas BBB report on SAT and ACT Prep Center:
http://www.bbb.org/dallas/business-reviews/services-general/the-sat-and-act-prep-center-in-coppell-tx-90122311
Another college prep test group that is on BBB’s radar is College Prep Center of Las Mesa, CA, which states to its BBB that it won’t respond to BBB complaints and that they will handle their own complaints, however, people report that they can’t get through to them via phone with concerns:
http://www.bbb.org/san-diego/business-reviews/career-and-outplacement-counseling/the-college-prep-center-in-la-mesa-ca-30003727/#