What are Parker County Area Codes?
Area code is a three-digit code that specifies the Numbering Plan Area (NPA) of phone numbers in North America. It was introduced in 1947 by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) to facilitate long-range telephone communications. The Texas Public Utilities Commission (PUC) implements and manages area codes in Parker County. The North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA) provides an area code lookup portal on its website.
There are three area codes in Parker County, which include:
Area Code 817
Area code 817 was created from a split of the 214 and 915 NPAs and put into service in January 1953. It covers Benbrook, Arlington, Burleson, Bedford, Flower Mound, Mansfield, Haltom City, North Richland Hills, Watauga, and Southlake in Parker County.
Area Code 682
Area code 682 was officially put in service in October 2000. It is an overlay code for area code 817. It serves all the cities and communities covered by area code 817.
Area Code 940
Created in 1997 from a split of the 817 NPA, area code 940 covers Whitt, Poolville, and Millsap in Parker County.
What are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Parker County?
Cell phones are fast dominating landline phones in Parker County, as revealed by a survey carried out in 2018 by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). The data showed that about 67.9% of Texan adults over 18 years used wireless-only telephony services. Those who relied on landlines solely constituted an estimated 2.5%. The trend is similar among children under 18 years, where about 76.6% were exclusive cell phone users. Only about 1.4% of that demographic still used landline phones as their sole means of telephony.
All four major phone carriers in the United States provide decent network coverage in Parker County. Verizon has the best service coverage of about 96%. T-Mobile ranks second, with about 90% network spread. AT&T covers 82% of the county, while Sprint has a network penetration estimated at 60%. There are also smaller prepaid carriers known as Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs). They depend on the major phone carriers to provide network services for Parker County residents at relatively cheaper rates.
As an alternative to regular phone services, Parker County residents also use Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) for phone calls. VoIP is a technology that enables users to make calls over broadband internet connections. It allows users to call phone numbers outside their area code coverage.
What are Parker County Phone Scams?
Phone scams in Parker County use phone calls, text messages, and the use of other phone services to obtain money or personal information from residents fraudulently. Phone scammers usually conceal their identities by altering their phone numbers via phone spoofing to fool their targets into answering their calls and responding to demands. Residents can use free reverse phone lookup services to identify spoofed phone calls and avoid scams. Confidential information obtained by scammers is usually used for financial or identity theft. Hence, residents must be wary of deceptive phone calls and report observed fraudulent activities over the phone to the appropriate government agencies. The commonly reported phone scams in Parker County include:
What are Parker County Warrant Scams?
Parker County residents receive phone calls from unknown persons claiming they have a warrant to arrest them for missed jury duty. The callers usually pose as officers of the Parker County Sheriff's Office (PCSO). They inform the targets that they can make payments to them over the phone to avert arrests. The PCSO warns residents to beware of such requests as the Sheriff does not contact residents by phone calls over missed jury summons. Also, the Sheriff's Office does not request any payment over the phone. Residents may contact the County Sheriff to verify any jury summons claims. Phone number lookup by name can assist residents in finding out the actual callers if they suspect scams.
What are Parker County Lottery and Sweepstakes Scams?
Scammers pose as representatives from shops or companies that unsuspecting Parker County residents are familiar with to defraud them using lottery claims. They inform their targets that they were automatically registered for a lottery as an incentive for their patronage, and they have emerged winners. The alleged winnings are usually huge to entice targets, and in turn, require them to pay a processing fee before claiming such prizes. Sometimes, the scammers may request personal information from the targets under the guise that they want to confirm their identities as rightful winners. To appear genuine, they may spoof their marks’ Caller IDs and appear as reputable lottery companies. However, residents may uncover the callers’ real identities using phone number lookup services.
The Texas Attorney General urges residents to desist from responding to phone calls bearing the news of lottery prize winnings. According to the Attorney General’s Office, legitimate lottery companies do not mandate winners to pay any upfront fee before claiming their prizes. As such, residents who receive these types of calls are advised to hang up the phone to avoid falling victim to lottery scams.
What are Parker County Debt Collection Scams?
Scammers contact residents by phone to claim that they have outstanding debts and need to settle them immediately to avoid severe consequences. Such scammers may threaten arrests, lawsuits, or deportation to compel their targets to comply. The Attorney General of Texas advises residents to verify that such claims are legitimate and valid before responding to them.
Fraudsters involved in debt collection scams may disguise their phone numbers to appear like their targets’ creditors. Phone number search services can assist residents in unveiling the real identities of such callers. One of the surest ways residents can avoid debt collection scams is to keep tabs on their credit reports. Residents may obtain their credit reports for free through the official free credit report website authorized by federal law and carefully examine them for false or inaccurate entries.
What are Parker County Impersonation Scams?
Impersonation scams involve scammers who fake their identities as officials of reputable organizations to dupe unsuspecting Parker County residents. A typical example is the IRS scam. Scammers identify themselves as IRS representatives to coerce residents into making payments to them over the phone. They may threaten to deport, sue, or arrest their targets if they do not cooperate with them. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) indicated in an official statement that the IRS does not request payment or confidential information via phone calls. The statement further stipulates that the IRS does not threaten taxpayers over the phone. Residents who fall victim to IRS scams can file their reports online with the TIGTA.
Scammers also impersonate bank officials to manipulate residents to disclose financial information. They may claim that targets need to upgrade their accounts. However, marks must confirm their account details over the phone to do so. It is best to disregard such claims and verify the callers. A good reverse phone lookup can help residents in answering the questions "who called me?" or "who is this number registered to?"
What are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are phone calls from auto-dialers that deliver pre-recorded messages to multiple recipients. It may allow recipients to respond to instructions or make choices via preset input codes. The FTC permits robocalls that deliver only information to the recipients from genuine sources, such as messages from charities, health care providers, and flight information.
The FTC recommends that residents be extra cautious of the phone numbers displayed by incoming robocalls as scammers often spoof recipients' Caller IDs. Reverse phone number lookup services can help residents to identify robocalls, spoofed or not.
Spam calls are phone calls considered irrelevant and unwanted by the recipients. Robocalls constitute a large percentage of spam calls. In 2019, 70% of spam call complaints to the FTC were robocalls. As such, Parker County residents can take specific actions to ensure that they are safe from illegal robocalls. These actions include:
- Hang up on robocalls immediately you suspect fraud. The more you respond, the higher your chances of getting manipulated and victimized.
- Block unwanted calls using apps with call blocking features. App marketplaces such as Google Play Store and App Store offer such apps.
- Use online services that provide phone number lookup free services to identify incoming robocalls.
- Enroll your phone number in the National Do Not Call Registry and Texas No-Call List. These lists help limit the number of robocalls received by residents.
- Report illegal robocalls and identified spam numbers to the relevant agencies. You may submit your reports to the Texas Attorney General's Office through their Consumer Complaint Form or to the FTC through their Report Fraud online portal.
How Can You Spot and Report Parker County Phone Scams?
Identifying and reporting phone scams can help residents to fight the menace of phone scams in Parker County. It may not be easy to spot phone scams as scammers steadily modify their tactics. However, residents can always watch out for the following phone scam warning signs to avoid getting fleeced:
- Persuasion to make immediate decisions and payments on the phone suggests that the caller may have fraudulent intentions.
- Scammers are often manipulative and sometimes resort to threats to compel their targets to give in to their demands. Common threats scammers issue include arrest, deportation, license revocations, fines, and lawsuits.
- Requests to provide or confirm confidential information such as Social Security Numbers or debit card information are most likely scam calls.
- Display of false caller ID information is also common with phone scams. You can identify spoofed phone calls using phone lookup services.
- When a caller insists on a particular payment channel, they are a potential phone scammer. Residents are advised to verify thoroughly before consummating any payment over the phone.
Parker County residents can obtain information and assistance from some government agencies over phone scam issues. These agencies include:
Parker County Sheriff’s Office - The PCSO shoulders the responsibility of ensuring safety and law enforcement in Parker County. They also provide information on the latest scams and guidelines to prevent them. Phone scam targets or victims may contact the County Sheriff to file their complaints.
Texas Attorney General’s Office - The AG Office provides an online platform where residents can submit phone scam complaints. Residents may also source information regarding phone scams and safety measures from the Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General's Office.
Federal Communications Commission - The FCC empowers residents with strategic information about common phone scams. They also receive and act on reports submitted via the Consumer Complaint Center to assist residents in combating phone scammers.
Federal Trade Commission - The FTC helps residents prevent robocalls and minimize robocall scams via the National Do Not Call Registry. They also provide an online platform that allows residents to submit phone scam reports.