What are Union County Area Codes?
Area codes are the three-digit numeric codes that begin 10-digit telephone numbers and identify specific numbering plan areas (NPAs) in telephone service territories. They were introduced by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) to streamline long-distance telephone calling. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities implements and manages area codes in Union County.
Three area codes currently serve Union County. These are:
Area Code 908
Area code 908 serves parts of northern New Jersey, including most of Union County. The 201 NPA was split to create the 908 NPA in 1990. Union County communities under this NPA include Berkeley Heights, Cranford, Elizabeth, Fanwood, Hillside, Linden, New Providence, Plainfield, Roselle, Scotch Plains, Springfield, Summit, Union, and Westfield.
Area Code 732
Area code 732 is a New Jersey telephone area code for the central parts of the state, including portions of Union County. It was activated in 1997 in a split of the 908 NPA. Locations in Union County under this area code include Clark, Plainfield, and Rahway.
Area Code 848
Area code 848 is the telephone overlay code for the 732 NPA. It became active in 2001 and serves the same communities.
What are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Union County?
The National Center for Health Statistics conducted a survey in 2018 which inferred that Union County residents preferred wireless telephony services for their telecommunication purposes. The survey reported that 38.1% of adults and 41.5% of children in households in the state exclusively used wireless telephone services for communication. Contrastingly, only 4.9% of adults and 3.2% of children in New Jersey homes solely relied on landlines for their communication needs.
Wireless telephony service is excellent in Union County. The major phone carriers – AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint- all boast over 95% coverage in the State of New Jersey. Telephone service coverage is patchy in rural areas and close to the shoreline. Numerous MVNOs also provide telephone services as cheaper alternatives to the major carriers. Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) are smaller carriers that leverage the network infrastructure of the major carriers to provide telephone services to county residents.
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) uses IP networks to deliver more flexible and efficient telephony services at lower costs than traditional telephony services. Increased flexibility, added efficiency, and lower prices are key reasons why VoIP subscriptions rose steadily over the last decade. Several companies offer VoIP telephony services to Union County residents for both business and personal use.
What are Union County Phone Scams?
Union County phone scams are schemes perpetrated to steal money and confidential information from county residents using telephony services. Live calls, automated calls, and text messages are all used to commit phone scams against unsuspecting victims. The Union County Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) protects residents from unlawful and deceptive practices. Residents can contact the OCA at (908) 654-9840 and file complaints. County residents can also report scams to the New Jersey Division of Consumer Protection, the FTC, and their local police departments. Common phone scams in Union County include:
What are Social Security Scams?
Scammers contact county residents and impersonate employees of the Social Security Administration (SSA). These callers inform their targets about issues with their social security numbers (SSNs) and usually claim these SSNs have been implicated in criminal investigations and are therefore compromised. They tell the victims that they risk arrest and prosecution if they continue to use their SSNs. They then offer to issue the victims new SSNs for fees they must pay immediately.
In other instances, these callers ask for the personal information of their victims for verification purposes. They threaten to suspend the victims’ benefits if they do not provide the information. The scammers request payment in prepaid debit cards, retail gift cards, and wire transfers. Residents who acquiesce to the scammers’ demands open themselves up to financial losses and possible identity thefts.
Union County residents should know the following facts: the SSA does not randomly issue new SSNs and when it does, recipients must make applications in person. The SSA will not make unsolicited phone calls and ask for personal information and will never ask for payment for any reason. Residents who receive such phone calls should hang up immediately and contact the SSA directly to verify claims made by unknown callers. Victims can report such scams to the Office of the Inspector General at 1 (800) 269-0271 or use the online reporting form. They can also file reports with their local police departments. A phone number search application can identify if such a call is from the SSA.
What are Grandparent Scams?
Callers running these scams claim to be the grandchildren of their targets caught up in emergencies in far-off locations. These emergencies could be car accidents, hospitalizations, arrests, and being stranded in foreign countries. They ask their targets to wire them money immediately to resolve their issues and also request that the situations be kept secret from other family members. In some instances, the callers claim to be attorneys or associates of the grandchildren calling on their behalf to request bail money. These scams exploit the emotions of victims and their impulse to help out family members in distress.
Residents should never be in a rush to act if they receive such phone calls, which typically come in at odd hours. Always take time to confirm the callers’ claims by asking questions and reaching out to other family members. Phone number searches can help verify the authenticity of such phone calls. Residents who are victims of these scams should file reports with their local police departments.
What are Utility Scams?
Scammers contact county residents, impersonating employees of local utility companies such as Public Service Electricity and Gas (PSE&G). The callers claim the victims have overdue bills they must clear immediately, else their services will be discontinued. The callers ask for credit card information or ask their victims to buy gift cards or prepaid debit cards and provide them the numbers.
PSE&G warns county residents and its customers to disregard such calls. PSE&G will never call customers and threaten to disconnect their services over unpaid bills. Defaulters will receive multiple overdue bill notices before any disconnections are scheduled. PSE&G will also never insist that customers make payments using specific payment channels. If you receive this type of call and are unsure of its authenticity, hang up and contact PSE&G directly at (800) 436-7734 to verify. A reverse phone lookup service can identify if such a phone call is legitimately from your utility provider. Victims of these scams should file reports with their local police departments.
What are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are telephone calls that deliver automated messages to auto-dialed phone numbers. They were developed for use by telemarketers, political campaigns, and organizations making public service announcements to reach large audiences with little human interactions. Robocalls have, however, been co-opted by fraudsters to steal financial and identity information from unsuspecting residents.
Robocalls allow scammers to contact their targets covertly and even spoof official numbers of reputable organizations. Residents who are already used to receiving robocalls are more likely to respond to them than to live calls from unknown persons. The best options for dealing with illegal robocalls include:
- Add your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry. Once included on this list for 31 days, the number is restricted from unwanted telephone solicitations. This reduces the number of spam calls you will receive and alerts you to the possibility of scam calls.
- If you answer a phone call and hear an automated response, end it immediately. The automated messages will prompt you to press certain numbers to connect to a live operator or remove yourself from a list. Disregard these instructions as they confirm your number as active and set up more robocalls.
- Report incidences of illegal robocalls to the FTC online or call 1 (888) 382-1222.
- Verify robocall numbers with online applications that offer phone number lookups free services. Use these applications to identify and block them.
- Use call-blocking tools from phone manufacturers and network service providers to identify and block spam callers.
The FTC provides tips for blocking unwanted calls on any platform on its website.
How to Spot and Report Union County Phone Scams?
Scammers adapt their schemes to get the better of uninformed and unsuspecting residents. Because new scams are mostly variations of old ones, spotting certain tell-tale signs can counter their actions. Therefore, education and awareness remain the most effective means of avoiding phone scams.
Online services that perform suspicious phone number lookups can answer questions like “who called me?” and “who is this number registered to?” Using these services to run phone number searches by name, number, and address can return information on phone scammers’ identities. These services are available in free and paid versions.
Indicators that unknown callers are potential scammers include:
- The callers claim to be law enforcement officers or representatives of government agencies and threaten you with arrests and other punitive measures. Legitimate law enforcement and government agents do not threaten residents over phone calls to gain their compliance.
- The callers claim to represent legitimate organizations and make unsolicited requests for personal and financial information. Legitimate organizations will not ask for your sensitive information on phone calls you did not initiate.
- The callers ask for payments through irregular channels such as wire transfers, retail gift cards, and prepaid debit cards. Legitimate organizations will never insist on payments made via these channels. Scammers use these methods because funds received through them are difficult to trace and retrieve.
- The callers offer attractive business and investment opportunities but fail to provide satisfactory answers to any inquiries you have. They also actively dissuade you from seeking the opinions of third parties claiming the offers are fleeting and require immediate responses.
- The callers claim you won prizes, lotteries, or sweepstakes but require upfront payments from you before receiving the winnings. If you have to pay upfront for prize or lottery winnings, it is most likely a scam.
Targets of phone scams in Union County can contact any of the following agencies for assistance:
Union County Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) - The Office of Consumer Affairs (OCA) protects Union County residents from unlawful and deceptive practices and enforces consumer rights. Residents can file complaints with the OCA online, call (908) 654-9840, or send faxes to (908) 654-3082.
New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs - The Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) of the DCA enforces the New Jersey State Consumer Fraud Act and its regulations. Residents can contact the OCP for assistance at (973) 504-6200 or by email.
Union County Prosecutor’s Office (UCPO) - The Office of the Prosecutor investigates crimes against county residents and prosecutes perpetrators of these criminal acts. Residents can contact the UCPO at (908) 527-4500 or by email.
Local Law Enforcement Agencies - Local law enforcement like the Union County Sheriff’s Office (UCSO) and municipal police departments in the county receive complaints about scams in their jurisdictions. Residents can report phone scams and other fraudulent acts at their local police stations.
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - The FTC is the federal authority that protects residents from deceptive and fraudulent practices. It provides resources to facilitate this, such as the National Do Not Call Registry. The FTC also issues tips and instructions on call-blocking, a useful tool for dealing with suspicious phone calls. Residents can file reports on illegal robocalls and other phone scams using the online complaint assistant or call 1 (888) 382-1222.