Korean Job Discussion Forums

[somethingawful]

So I've had 7 different wrong numbers. People calling me from different phones (all cell phones) in the past two days. Two yesterday, and 5 today.

Now this is odd considering I have had this phone since August, and have had a grand total of 0 wrong numbers calling me. Here is where it gets strange, they're all koreans who speak a bit of English. What are the odds that one phone would get so many wrogn numbers in two days, and that they would all be Semi-English speaking Koreans?

Is this some sort of scam to get free english practice by calling a native speaker and having him explain they have the wrong number while they say sorry and then hang up?

Any explanation someone can come up with? A grand total of 8 friends have my number, none of them have lost their phones or have given out my number.

[losing_touch]

Some students found out my number in the past. I put them on the phone with my boss, and that was the end of that ....

[Straphanger]

Answer the phone, "Jake Jones, Accounts Payable?"

"Yoboseyo?"

"Ne, Jake Jones, Accounts Payable, can I help you?"

[chris_J2]

I ended up switching my cell phone off, between 10pm & 7am, as I would get multiple spam calls, even at 2am in the morning, all in Korean, & some were 'real' people, wanting to sell things. Don't give out your number to anyone, but a trusted coteacher.

[somethingawful]

Can't be students since I teach 5-7 yr olds, and only one korean co-teacher has my number.

I'm guessing maybe a wrong number by the first guy, then he shared it with all his friends to f*ck with the wayguk.

Ok, so what is the comedy option for when I answer the phone? How do you say, "Please call back later, I'm making love to your mom" in Koean?

[Robot_Teacher]

Please, no more double big mac attacks. I ordered a single.

[Robot_Teacher]

I too get late night calls from Korean men who know no English, usually on the weekends. I think they're drunk and just randomly pulling old numbers out of nostalgia out of their phone memory and dialing to see if they can still talk to someone they met before that used to have my number. I do know a woman had my number before me as I got a Korean woman's old cell phone and number who helped me get the phone while she got a new phone and number. I can hear they're quite disappointed they can't talk to whoever it is they hope to talk with. Understand that phone number libraries people create can last for years as they're xferable to new phones.

[crossmr]

I got late night calls..one night.. 3 am..3 in a row same number.. told em to *beep* off, never again.

[Blueberry]

Never call a number back you don't know--it may be a form of SPAM that if u call back, you can get charged 20,000 won + per minute, minimum 1 minute charge. I learned the hard way.

[JongnoGuru]

Many years back I moved into a place where I took over the existing land-line phone number. Pre-Caller ID days. It may have been available, but I didn't have it.

About once a month, this drunken, non-English-speaking ajosshi would ring up. Always on a Friday or Saturday night, always around midnight to 1 a.m., always drunken, and always asking for Tony. My name is not Tony. I'd tell him this. It made no difference.

[crossmr]

[somethingawful]

Just got 2 calls a few seconds ago (let them ring out). Both different numbers, and this text message from one of the previous calls that I actually answered.

"Where r u come from brother ,may i" ask?

So far I've had 11 calls, from 8 different numbers.

This is getting annoying.

[Jane]

My husband got 3 calls in a row from the same unknown number last week, each time he hung up on them. He did a search for the phone number in Naver and found out that it was a number listed for an insurance company who continually call and call until someone picks up.

Turns out some people write info about spam numbers on blogs and such sometimes. You'll probably need a Korean speaker to help, but a Naver search might prove helpful.

There is also a block function on your cellphone. If the same number keeps appearing, try blocking it.

The best thing I think, however, would be to have a Korean pick up, and who will threaten to take their numbers to the police!! hahaha !

[WendyRose]

I get people calling the wrong number all the time. And they're very persistent about it and won't stop calling, even after I've made it very clear I don't understand what they're saying. I've kept my phone off more as a result.

[bluelake]

A couple that I received were quite strange. The first claimed to be from the post office to say I had a package, but he was surprised to find it was a foreigner on the other end. He said he'd have to look for the package and would call back. As I had been waiting for a package, I called the number back some time later only to receive a recording that the number did not exist. Very similar experience with the second one. I have heard since that there is a big problem in Korea with phone phishing.

I think the earlier advice to not respond to strange numbers is good.