Two months ago, I blogged about almost getting victimized by the Dugu Dugu Gang. I guess this kind of operation is done by many many different groups because just today, there was another incident.
Since my mom flew in from the US almost two weeks ago, I’ve been constantly on the go accompanying her around town and out visiting relatives, shopping, eating, etc. Today was no different. I was out but I called our yaya at home to say that I ordered food for delivery from Ha Yuan for my stepdad who chose to stay home for the day.
So anyhow, shortly after we spoke, the house phone rang. The conversation went something like this:
Male caller: “Hello? Ito po ba ang bahay ni Ms. Rowena Lei?”
Yaya: “Opo, sino po ito?”
Male caller: “Ay kakausapin kayo ng secretary namin.”
Yaya: “Okay.”
Female caller: “Hello? Sino ito?”
Yaya: “Si Yaya.”
Female caller: “Ya, nandito si Ms. Rowena Lei sa office namin kasi na-aksidente siya. Gusto ka niya makausap.”
Yaya: “Okay.”
Female caller: “Alam niyo ba anong nangyari sa kanya?”
Yaya: “Oo, kasi kakatawag lang niya dahil nag-order ng pagkain para sa uncle niya.”
Female caller: “Ay shet!”
Then she promptly hung up.
Yaya immediately told me what happened when I got home and we all had a good laugh about it.
Now one question that may boggle the mind is… where are these people getting my name and number? And why is it always Ms. Rowena Lei? Then it hit me. Our house phone is registered under my name and all phone companies (Bayantel, Digitel, PLDT, Globe, etc.) publish a residential directory that is pretty easy to get a hold of. My mom suggested that I call them to ask if I can request not to be listed in the future editions. She said that in the US, you have to pay additional fees for this service.
I immediately called our phone company and I was told that yes, I can file a request for confidentiality. The customer service rep just asked for the usual details — my phone number, personal details, and ID number for verification. I was told that my request would be granted within 24-48 hours. It’s called change of directory status, I believe. I think it’s a good idea to do so as it’s an additional precaution against crank callers and the like. Unfortunately, my conversation with the customer service rep was cut short because I had to wait a long time before I could talk to someone then she put me on hold for another extended period of time and so the battery on our cordless phone died before we could conclude. I’ll call again later. *sigh*
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