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Thread: FAA Registration renewal

  1. #11

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    Nov 2012
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    I tried calling the FAA back and so glad I did. I got someone on the phone, someone is watching over me. Anyway this person found that code that was sent to me and gave me this code. He told me to go on-line and renew my registration. I will contact my credit card and stop the payment to that scam sight.
    I never would have got this done without the help here.
    Thank you Joda for that number.
    Tony

  2. #12

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    Glad it's getting squared away. Scammers deserve horse-dragging down the middle of Main St. Sadly if all these various scams -phone and e-mail - were not $$ productive, they would go away, but their scams keep trapping good folks and stealing their money keeping the evil enterprises rolling on.
    "Don't believe everything you see or read on the internet" - Abraham Lincoln

  3. #13
    FlyingRon's Avatar
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    Aircraft registry actually responds pretty quickly to email inquiries. https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftemail/

    Actually, if you have a May 31 expiry, I think the letter should be coming out in the next couple of weeks.

  4. #14
    EAA Staff Tom Charpentier's Avatar
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    Sep 2012
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    This isn't the first time this website has come to our attention - it looks like their latest tactic is to send an official-looking mailing instructing people to google "registration renewal," or something to that effect, rather than providing a URL. They then buy an ad on Google ensuring that their site pops up at the top of the search results, above that of the actual FAA. They operate out of an address in OKC to make it appear more authentic. To be overly charitable, I will say that I don't have direct knowledge of the "service" these outfits claim to provide that justifies their "processing fees," but 1600vw is one of many people we've heard from who thought they were dealing with the FAA, not a third party.

    These sorts of operations are hardly unique. I actually fell for one myself on another type of government fee not long ago. An attorney I spoke with said they are common on patents, corporation fees, and anything else where the list of fee payers and date of renewal is public information. They know exactly how to walk right up to the line of what's illegal without crossing it. We are looking into what we can do with the FAA registration branch to curb this activity, but it's often like playing whack-a-mole. We have written education pieces on aircraft registration in the past (https://www.eaa.org/eaa/news-and-pub...With-Suspicion) and are considering stepping up the frequency in light of several recent complaints. We will also encourage the FAA to do the same, as they have already done on similar operations targeting drone registration.

    Disputing the credit card charge is your best recourse if you have already paid money. There is no guarantee you'll be successful, especially if your registration was in fact renewed, but at least you'll have the satisfaction that the company spent some of your money fighting the dispute.
    Tom Charpentier
    Government Relations Director
    EAA Lifetime #1082006 | Vintage #722921

  5. #15

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    Oct 2011
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    Let us know how the credit card dispute goes. Credit card companies usually prefer for you to ask the merchant for a refund first.

  6. #16

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    My wife almost fell for this type of scam when she looked up a number for Microsoft Windows support on the net and a scam number came up at the top of the search results. The guy tried to tell her that her computer was infected with a deadly virus and all her files would be corrupted and all her personal information would be vulnerable if she did not run down to CVS and buy two $100 gift cards and then email the numbers to him. Fortunately while she kept him talking I was able to look the scam on the web and advise her to hang up. He then proceeded to call us back for several days from different numbers! We would block one number and he would call from a new one later.

    I also believe that this scam has been mentioned before on this forum.

    Anyway, I hope VW is able to get the money refunded by the credit card company and does not get soured on our great hobby because of it.

  7. #17
    rwanttaja's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Capt Bob View Post
    My wife almost fell for this type of scam when she looked up a number for Microsoft Windows support on the net and a scam number came up at the top of the search results. The guy tried to tell her that her computer was infected with a deadly virus and all her files would be corrupted and all her personal information would be vulnerable if she did not run down to CVS and buy two $100 gift cards and then email the numbers to him. Fortunately while she kept him talking I was able to look the scam on the web and advise her to hang up. He then proceeded to call us back for several days from different numbers! We would block one number and he would call from a new one later.
    Older friend got taken this way... gave them her credit card number and remote access to her PC. But she doesn't use her PC for anything but email/web access and her writing. She's a fairly prolific Christian author, so maybe it did them a bit of good if they read her stuff.

    Here's my recommendation if you get called for something like this: WASTE THEIR TIME. Cussing at them doesn't matter; complaining to some agency or the other won't make a bit of difference. But if you can hook the scammer to stay on the phone with you, that's time they won't have to call anyone else.

    I got a call like my friend's not long after she was ripped off. I went into "dumb grampa" mode. Asking them to explain what the problem is in details I could understand, pleading with them to wait because my (non-existent) grandson handled all my computer stuff. I led him on for about ten minutes ("Windows key? None of the keys say 'windows' on it!"). Finally, at the point I was supposed to enter the command giving them remote access, I said a few blistering words about scammers and hung up.

    And you know, I haven't gotten a call like that since. They may keep a "Don't bother with this one" list.

    Ron Wanttaja

  8. #18
    Dana's Avatar
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    I kept one of those guys going for a while as he instructed me to do things to my computer that I of course didn't do. He finally got wise when I said, "What did you have me do? There's SMOKE coming out of my computer!"

  9. #19
    robert l's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dana View Post
    I kept one of those guys going for a while as he instructed me to do things to my computer that I of course didn't do. He finally got wise when I said, "What did you have me do? There's SMOKE coming out of my computer!"
    I like to make the telemarketers hang up on me, wasting their time and pretending I'm doing what they want me to do. I have many different voices I use just for the fun of it and sometimes I talk real soft so they have to listen real close, then I blast them with the air horne ! Ahhhhh, it's the simple things that make life so good !
    Bob

  10. #20

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    Here is a hilarious example of how to waste the scammers time and have a little fun at the same time. James Vietch relates how he gets back at the email scams: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4Uc-cztsJo

    Bob

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