Time Warner Cable: Prepay offer is a scam

Ed Ziskin of Dayton said he knew right away that the amazing offer he was given by phone recently was fake, and he wanted to warn others not to be tricked.

Ziskin said a caller told him about an offer from Time Warner Cable of cable, phone and Internet service for what Ziskin called “a ridiculous amount of money.”

The offer was “$360 upfront for six months, then for the other six months, a charge of just $59,” Ziskin said. The offer included a Samsung tablet and a payment for what it would cost to break his contract with AT&T.

It sounded like a great deal, but Ziskin said the catch was that he would have to go to Meijer, Walgreens, CVS or Walmart and pick up a Green Dot credit card, which he would use to pay the upfront fee and further bills.

“It’s definitely a scam,” said Time Warner Cable spokesman Michael Pedelty. “We would never limit how you would pay, and make you pay in advance.”

The scam has been reported by Time Warner Cable customers in central Ohio, the Dayton area and northeastern Ohio, Time Warner Cable spokesman Mike Hogan said.

“The Time Warner Cable security department is looking into the matter and will determine the best course of action,” Hogan said. “Time Warner Cable will never make an offer for service, discounts or other special offerings contingent upon payment through a MoneyPak or other cash-load card.”

If customers get a call demanding payment via a cash-loaded card, Hogan said they should “disconnect without providing any information or taking any instructions from the caller.

“If you feel you may be a victim of fraud, you should immediately contact your local police agency and file a report,” Hogan said.

Ziskin got a call-back number; when he dialed, the message said: “Thank you for calling the loyaltyrewards department of Time Warner Cable.” Then the message outlined options for customer service and tech support.

“It’s not our number or our message,” Pedelty said.

Eve Mueller, a spokeswoman with the Ohio attorney general’s office, said in an email that it is common for scammers pose as legitimate, wellknown companies.

“Unfortunately, we see this story of (imposter) scam all the time,” she said. “Scammers prefer to use wire transfer or Green Dot money cards. Once the consumer pays, their money is usually gone forever.”

Scams or potential scams can be reported to the company involved, the local police and the attorney general’s office.

Dispatch Reporter Tim Feran contributed to this story.