What are Orleans Parish Area Codes?
An area code is a three-digit number assigned to a geographical area in the United States. It is added before a seven-digit telephone number when placing a call to or even within an area. An area code can cover the same area as another area code. Such area code is referred to as an area code overlay. You can find the area code for a community or region in the United States by using area code lookup tools online.
There is currently only one area code covering Orleans Parish.
Area Code 504
Area code 504 is one of the first 86 area codes created by AT&T and the Bell System in 1947. Originally, it served the entire state of Louisiana. However, it was first split in 1998 to create area code 225, and again in 2001 to form area code 985. Major cities covered by area code 504 include New Orleans, Metairie, Kenner, Marrero, Terrytown, Harvey, Gretna, Chalmette, and Estelle.
What Are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Orleans Parish?
Per a National Center of Health Statistics survey conducted in 2018, about 57.6% of Louisiana adults exclusively used wireless telephone services, while 4.2% used landline telephone services only. Among persons aged under 18 in the state, 67.8% used wireless telephone services only, while 2.7% used landline services exclusively.
Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile all offer good wireless telephone coverage in Orleans Parish. Other Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) also exist providing telephony services under their own brands. MVNOs are small carriers that leverage on existing infrastructure of major networks, typically offering cheaper phone plans and not requiring credit checks to get started. AT&T has the best wireless coverage in Orleans Parish with its services covering about 88% of the Parish. T-Mobile has 84% coverage, Verizon has 72%, and Sprint has 64% coverage.
Many companies are also providing VoIP services in Orleans Parish at competitive rates. VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol, a technology that converts voice signals into digital data for transmission using the internet. Setting up and maintaining VoIP services require lower costs compared to landline telephony due to the minimum requirement for hardware. Since VoIP uses the internet as the pathway for communication, rather than cables as used in landline, calls are cheaper for both service providers and users.
What are Orleans Parish Phone Scams?
Orleans Parish phone scams occur through unsolicited calls from scammers who use lies and deceit to con Orleans Parish residents into parting with their money or personal information. Orleans Parish residents typically get nothing in return and lose their cash. Scams are getting more sophisticated and difficult to spot. Reverse phone number lookup services can help identify such scam calls. Several public institutions provide information and assistance to Orleans Parish residents of Orleans Parish to help combat the menace of phone scammers.
What are Orleans Parish Jury Duty Scams?
In a jury duty scam, the caller poses as a Sheriff's Office employee saying that you have missed jury duty. The scammer goes on to inform you of a court-issued warrant to arrest you for failing to appear for jury service. You will be asked to make a payment in exchange to have the arrest canceled or required to verify certain information to stop the arrest. Any verification will tactically involve obtaining your personal information or defrauding you of money. Note that both Criminal and Civil Courts in Orleans Parish will not demand money over the phone. The Sheriff's Office also advises Orleans Parish residents to refrain from paying money in exchange for getting out of jury duty. Potential jurors who have indeed received a summons and would like to verify its authenticity can call the Orleans Parish Jury Commission Office at (504) 658-9200. You can use good reverse phone lookup tools online to quickly do a number lookup or reverse number lookup.
What are Orleans Parish Tech Support Scams?
The technical support scam is an increasingly popular type of scam in Orleans Parish. Here, the scammer calls the target and claims to be an employee of Microsoft or another reputable tech company who has detected a problem with your computer. Relying on a combination of aggressive sales tactics and lies, the scammer tries to convince the target that the computer is infected by having a look at a system log file that shows harmless or low-level errors. However, the real intention is to lure you into allowing remote access to your computer.
A tech support scammer may use publicly available phone directories to find out your name and other information which will be used in gaining your trust during the call. Upon gaining your trust, the scammer asks you for your username and password and instructs you to open an application on the computer. You may be asked to visit a legitimate website to download and install software that grants remote access to the computer. Once you do this, the files on the computer and the device become vulnerable to attack and information theft. Alternatively, the scammer may ask you to purchase an antivirus or a system repair and diagnostic tool to fix the problem. Any payment will end up in the scammer's account. You can use good reverse phone lookup tools online to quickly do a number lookup or reverse number lookup.
What are Orleans Parish IRS Scams?
In Internal Revenue Service (IRS) impersonation scams, the perpetrators falsely claim to be employees of the IRS and inform the intended victims that they owe taxes and must pay through wire transfer, money order, prepaid debit cards, or an iTunes card. An IRS scammer may threaten you with arrest, deportation, license revocation, or imprisonment if you do not make payment immediately. Although many IRS scams originate within the United States, there is a strong international component to the scam stemming from beyond the shores of America. You may conduct a “reverse phone lookup international” search online to verify the source of such calls. A “reverse phone lookup USA” search will help track the origin of a call placed within the United States.
What are Orleans Parish Lottery Scams?
In a lottery scam, the scammer informs you that you have won a big lottery prize which only requires payment for shipping or tax before the prize can be cashed in. A lottery scammer may inform the target to keep the win a secret and get in touch with one of the agents of the company or organization which the caller represents. When the target does, the scammer asks for payment to be made through a money transfer service such as PayPal, MoneyGram, and Western Union for processing fees. While crooked individuals often disguise themselves using names associated with legitimate lottery organizations, you can easily spot a scam for the simple fact that nobody can win a lottery prize if they never bought a ticket. There are free reverse phone number lookup tools online to uncover who called and find who a number is registered to.
What are Orleans Parish Health Scare Scams?
Senior citizens in Orleans Parish are more susceptible to health care scams. Not only are they more likely to trust strangers, their extra health coverage also makes them attractive targets to scammers. In health care scams, scammers pose as healthcare workers or Medicare representatives before asking their targets for their contacts or other personal information. A healthcare scammer typically tries to build a relationship of trust with the target and may tactically offer to help the target obtain medical insurance in exchange for personal information. In some instances, the scammer may not ask for personal information straight away. Instead, the scammer waits a few days before calling back, stating that contact has been made with a close relative of the target and has determined that it is safe for the target to release important information such as Social Security numbers, driver's license numbers, debit and credit card numbers, and other sensitive information. You can use free reverse phone number lookup tools online to verify the true origin of a call.
What are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are pre-recorded messages delivered to phones by automatic dialing announcing devices (ADADs). These devices store thousands of telephone numbers and then dial them automatically and play the message. While there are helpful robocalls including robocalls alerting you to when a prescription is ready and of impending natural disaster, a huge portion of robocalls are scam calls while many others are outright marketing pitches.
Scammers now combine robocalls with spoofing technology to falsify the caller ID on the recipient’s display. They can mimic a neighbor's caller ID or your bank or an insurance company's caller ID. The aim is to gain your trust so that obtaining sensitive information from you can happen without any eyebrows raised.
To combat the scourge of robocalls and limit your exposure to the fraudulent acts of scammers through robocalls, follow these guidelines:
- Hang up on robocalls. If you answer a call and hear a prerecorded message, hang up immediately. Do not press any button or number. That could lead to you receiving more calls from scammers.
- Avoid answering calls from unknown numbers.
- Do not provide or confirm personal or financial information to anyone over the phone, as the request may be fraudulent.
- Request your phone provider to block numbers associated with robocalls. Some of them provide services that can help conduct a suspicious phone number lookup or reverse phone lookup.
- Download and install a third-party call-blocking application on your mobile phone, such as Nomorobo, Truecaller, Hiya, and YouMail.
- Report robocalls online to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or call 1 (888) 382-1222.
- Add your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry maintained by the FTC. Registration is free and can be done by calling 888-382-1222 from the number you intend to register or online.
How to Spot and Report Orleans Parish Phone Scams?
Every day, several Orleans Parish residents are taken advantage of by professional criminals and con artists using sophisticated methods to steal their money and personal information through phone scams. Tools such as reverse phone number lookup services are effective in identifying potential phone scams. The following are pointers to identify possible phone scams:
- Pressure from the caller trying to force you into making an immediate decision: Most legitimate businesses will give you time to decide whether you want their offer and get written information about it before asking you to commit. Take your time. Avoid getting pressured into making a decision on the spot.
- A request to make a payment through an insecure or unofficial channel: Scammers do not want to leave a trail about how they receive money from their victims. Hence, requests for payments are typically required by cryptocurrencies, prepaid debit cards, or wire transfers. Avoid making payments to any caller who insists on receiving funds through only this means.
- A threat of arrest, imprisonment, or deportation: Scammers often claim to work for reputable companies and government agencies. They ask their victims to make payments or else they will be jailed or have their licenses revoked. The aim is to scare you into paying. However, real law enforcement or government agencies will not threaten you that way
- Get a prize if you just pay a little: If you must pay to obtain a prize, then it is no prize. Do not fall for this classic trick.
- A request for sensitive information: It is never a good idea to release sensitive information to anyone who calls unexpectedly, no matter who they are. Regardless of what government agency or organization a caller claims to be with, do not give out information such as bank details, date of birth, and Social Security number over the phone.
You can file complaints in Orleans Parish with any of the following public bodies if you have been contacted by a scammer:
- The Inspector-General of New Orleans City: The Office of the Inspector General for the City of New Orleans encourages residents to report frauds and scams to its office. Complaints can be made by telephone, fax, email, online reporting form, or in writing. The Office fax line is (504) 681-3230. The phone contact is (504) 681-3247. The complaint form is available online on the OIG website.
- The Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office: Orleans Parish residents can report phone scams, especially scams related to identity theft to the parish's Sheriff's Office immediately by calling (504) 822-8000.
- The New Orleans Police Department (NOPD): Residents of New Orleans Parish can file complaints online to the NOPD or call (504) 658-6800
- Federal Trade Commission - The FTC seeks to promote competition and to protect and educate consumers. You can learn more about consumer topics and report scams, fraud, and bad business practices online. The FTC created the National Do Not Call Registry as part of its efforts to stop unwanted calls. If you still receive unsolicited calls 31 days after adding your number to the registry, they are likely to be spam calls.
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC) - The FCC educates phone users on how to avoid unwanted robocalls and phone scams through its website. Victims of any of these offenses can file complaints online with the FCC.