What are Kendall County Area Codes?
Established by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), area codes specify the Numbering Plan Areas (NPAs) in a state. Area codes are the three-digit numeric codes at the beginning of American telephone numbers. Kendall County area codes differentiate the telephone service territories within the county. In Illinois, the administration and implementation of area codes are solely the duty of the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC). The four area codes serving Kendall County are:
Area Code 815
Area code 815 is an Illinois telephone code in the NANP that came into service in 1947 as one of the original 86 area codes in the United States. It serves a vast number of counties in northern Illinois, including Kendall County. In Kendall County, the 815 NPA covers Yorkville, Newark, and Millington.
Area Code 779
Area code 779 is an overlay code for the 815 NPA created and put into active service in 2007. It currently serves the locations covered by area code 815 in Kendall County.
Area Code 630
Split from the 708 Illinois NPA code in 1996, area code 630 serves Kendall County and a few others in Illinois. Kendall County communities under the 630 NPA include Yorkville, Oswego, and Plano.
Area Code 331
Area code 331 is an overlay telephone code for the 630 NPA and was launched into service in 2007 to serve some counties in Illinois. It also covers Kendall County locations within the 630 NPA.
What are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Kendall County?
Kendall County is served by the four major phone carriers in the United States. These carriers and some Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) offer decent cell phone plans, however, with varying degrees of coverage. Services are more reliable in the cities than in rural areas. For instance, Verizon and T-Mobile offer a network spread of 96% and 84%, respectively, in Yorkville. Other parts of the county also enjoy adequate network services by MVNOs and the major carriers.
A 2018 CDC survey suggests an increasing reliance by Illinois residents on wireless telephony services. This survey was conducted to understand telephony service usage in the United States. In Illinois, it was gathered that about 59.8% of adults (over 18 years) had adopted wireless-only telephony services, while 3.0% were exclusive landline phone users. Among Illinois minors, an estimated 68.9% used cell phones solely for telephony, while an insignificant 0.5% still used landline phones as their sole telecommunication devices. At this rate of wireless telephony adoption in Illinois, landline phones experience an imminent extinction.
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) routes communications over broadband internet connections and at a more affordable rate than traditional phone services. It supports video conferencing, audio calling, and text messages. An increasing number of Kendall County residents continue to adopt VoIP as a cheaper alternative to regular telephony services.
What are Kendall County Phone Scams?
Kendall County phone scams are deceptive practices perpetrated against Kendall County residents over the phone. Phone scammers use regular telephone services such as text messages and live phone calls to commit these malicious acts while hiding their identities using phone spoofing. Phone spoofing is a technology that allows them to manipulate targets’ Caller IDs to display whatever phone number they so desire. As a result, phone scammers often choose to display the official phone numbers of reputable entities, such as familiar government agencies and businesses. They do this to fool targets into answering phone calls they ordinarily will ignore and then fleece them. Applications offering reverse phone lookup services can identify spoofed phone calls and prevent Kendall County residents from falling victim to phone scams.
Leading other consumer protection agencies in combating phone scams in Illinois, as well as Kendall County, is the Office of the Illinois Attorney General (AG). The Attorney General's Office publishes regular scam alerts to get residents up to speed on the prevalent phone scams and recommends how to avoid them. Some of the commonly reported phone scams in Kendall County are:
What are Kendall County Jury Duty Scams?
Fraudsters are impersonating employees of the Kendall County Sheriff's Office (KCSO) to accuse uninformed residents of missed jury duty in an attempt to extort them. They often inform their targets that warrants have been issued for their arrests for not showing up in court and ask them to pay court fines to cancel such arrests. These scammers usually spoof their targets' Caller IDs to display the official phone numbers of the KCSO, an attempt to appear credible and fool them into answering their calls. Their preferred payment methods include gift cards, wire transfers, and cash. Reverse phone number lookup applications can return identifying information on the callers and prevent residents from falling prey to scams.
The KCSO warns residents to beware of unknown persons who call them out of the blue, claiming to be with the agency with frivolous requests. The agency does not solicit money to cancel arrest over the phone or threaten any resident with arrest for missed jury duty. Typically, the courts contact residents who missed jury duty via mail and not by phone. If you get this type of call, hang up immediately and contact your local court to find out if there was an invitation for jury duty in the first place. Afterward, call your law enforcement to know if there is an arrest warrant in your name for missed jury duty.
What are Kendall County Bank Scams?
There are many variations of bank scams, but typically, persons who engage in them usually appear calm and willing to help. Be not fooled by these attributes. The scammers are only out to rip you off. They make up various claims for contacting Kendall County residents, but their primary aim is to obtain targets' confidential information, with which they eventually commit identity and financial theft. Kendall County residents who receive these types of calls out of the blue can use free reverse phone lookup services to retrieve information about the callers and ascertain if they are actual bank employees. These scammers often spoof the official phone numbers of their targets' banks to trick them into divulging information they will not disclose in any normal circumstance. At other times, they will request a call back from targets via text messages or ask them to provide certain information by clicking fraudulent links embedded in such text messages. Residents who open such links end up sharing confidential information, including PINs and account passwords. With such information, fraudsters can easily log on to victims' accounts and withdraw their life savings.
The prevalent version of bank scams in Kendall County preys on naive residents via debit and credit cards. The scammers will inform targets that they noticed some unusual debits on their cards and claim such charges are fraudulent. They offer to investigate the source of such unusual charges and stop subsequent ones. However, targets must provide PINs, card numbers, CSVs, and some other information to enable them to do that. Scammers use this ploy to glean financial information for eventual theft. It is crucial to state that no legitimate bank employees will request this information over the phone. If you get this type of phone call, hang up immediately and make sure to contact your bank on their official phone numbers for verifications. Reverse phone lookup free can uncover the identities of these callers and help you steer clear of bank scams.
What are Kendall County Grant Scams?
Phone scammers are contacting unsuspecting Kendall County residents via text messages and robocalls, claiming to be with government agencies in charge of grant disbursement. They often make up names that sound official to dissuade targets from suspecting them. The scammers will claim that targets were selected to receive grants and inform them that they will never have to pay back. Generally, such offers are attractive, and it is the reason targets fall victim to these scams. The text messages sent to targets usually contain call-back phone numbers, which the recipients can contact and take advantage of the offers before them. Residents who call the phone numbers provided are told to share some personal and financial information to enable the supposed agency process of such grants. These persons end up becoming victims of identity and financial theft. If you receive this type of robocall or text message and suspect that it might be a fraudulent one, conduct a phone number lookup to probe; "who is this number registered to?"
Legitimate government agencies entrusted with the task of disbursing grants do not contact beneficiaries randomly by text messages or robocalls. Authorities in Illinois warn residents never to disclose confidential information to unknown persons over the phone in the name of accessing financial grants. Kendall County residents who want to report such calls to law enforcement or other relevant government agencies can retrieve information on the callers using reverse phone lookup free services.
What are Kendall County Social Security Scams?
In these phone scam schemes, the callers pretend to be with the Social Security Administration (SSA) in an attempt to extort uninformed Kendall County residents. Reverse phone number lookup applications can help residents fetch the real identities of these callers and prevent them from falling victim to scams. The callers often inform the targets of criminal activities involving their social security numbers (SSNs) and claim such SSNs might have been previously compromised. They will offer to help targets out of the situation, but a fee. During the phone call, they will tell marks that their SSNs have been suspended as a consequence of the alleged criminal activities. The fraudsters will also offer to reactivate these SSNs, again, at a fee. They ask targets to share complete SSNs for supposed verifications and activation, a trick to glean this information for identity theft.
The scammers have a preference for receiving payments by wire transfer and gift cards. They often inform hesitant targets of the possibility of not getting the benefits associated with their SSNs to get them to comply. Persons who are victims of social security scams in Kendall County can file complaints online with the OIG, SSA. They can also contact the OIG at 1 (800) 621-0508 to file their reports. The SSA does not suspend social security numbers and will never ask residents to provide confidential information over the phone. Do not share personal information or send money with such unknown persons if they call you.
What are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are automated phone calls that deliver pre-recorded messages to selected mass phone numbers. Telemarketers, political campaign organizations, and government agencies make public service announcements using robocalls. Robocalls can reach mass audiences with little or no human input, and they are cheap to set up. These features are the reasons robocalls appeal to phone scammers. Phone scammers can change robocall numbers at will to conceal their identities and even spoof the official phone numbers of veritable entities to fool unsuspecting targets and dupe them. Spam calls are unwanted calls placed en masse to random phone numbers to persons who never gave their consent. Free reverse phone lookup services can identify robocalls, spoofed or not, and help Kendall County avoid scams.
The best way to deal with robocall inundations and avoid robocall scams are:
- Register your phone number on the National Do Not Call Registry to stop receiving legitimate telemarketing robocalls. If you still get robocalls after 31 days of registration, they are most likely scam calls.
- Use applications offering phone number lookup services to identify robocall numbers and block them using call-blocking applications (built-in or third-party apps can do this).
- File reports of illegal robocalls and spam calls with the FTC online or call 1 (888) 382-1222.
- End a call once you identify it as a robocall. Ignore any messages prompting you to press a number to speak with live operators. It is a ploy to know if your phone number is active and following such prompts will lead to more robocalls.
How Can You Spot and Report Kendall County Phone Scams?
Phone scammers employ various tricks when preying on unsuspecting Kendall County residents. Their primary aim is to steal money and confidential information. Having the necessary information about phone scams and how to prevent them cannot be overemphasized. Services providing free reverse phone lookups can help you unravel the real identities of unknown persons who try to defraud you.
The following are some of the warning signs of phone scams, especially if the caller is an unknown person:
- The caller tries to get you to submit to their demands using threats of arrest, jail, deportation, and other extreme actions.
- If you are registered on the DNC list and still get unsolicited calls, they are potential scam calls.
- The caller wants you to pay them via unofficial payment channels. Scammers' favorite mediums of receiving payment include gift cards, wire transfers, and cash. They sometimes request for targets' credit card information to complete payments.
- The caller lures you with overly attractive offers and wants you to take advantage of the opportunity (sending money immediately) before it slips away
- The caller hesitates to provide answers when you ask questions about their offer.
Kendall County residents are encouraged to report all phone scam incidents (failed or successful attempts) to the appropriate government agencies for investigations and prosecutions, if possible. These agencies include:
Federal Trade Commission - The FTC also shares information on call-blocking and manages the National Do Not Call Registry. If you have been a victim of a phone scam, report it to the FTC online or call 1 (888) 382-1222.
Kendall County Sheriff's Office - If you fall victim to a phone scam in Kendall County, report it to the KCSO by calling (630) 553-7500.
Federal Communications Commissions - The FCC regulates communications throughout the United States. Kendall County residents can file phone scam complaints online with the FCC.
Office of the Illinois Attorney General - The AG's Office protects residents from unfair business practices and provides essential information to prevent them from falling victim to phone scams. The Attorney General's Office encourages residents to file all phone scams with it online.