What are Tazewell County Area Codes?
Introduced in 1940, the North American Numbering Plan assigns a three-digit number prefix to every phone number in North America. This three-digit number prefix, also known as an area code, identifies the different numbering plan areas in North America. The area codes are unique to specific geographical locations in North America. The North American Numbering Plan Administrator is responsible for the allocation of area codes in North America. The Illinois Commerce Commission ensures the adequate, reliable, efficient, and cost-effective delivery of telecommunications services within the State of Illinois.
Area Code 309
Area code 309 is the only area code that is active in Tazewell County. The area code was brought into service on the 1st of January 1957. Area code 309 was created from the split of the area codes 217 and 815. The area code 309 serves a portion of the west-central part of the State of Illinois. It covers several cities such as East Peoria and Pekins.
What Are the Best Cell Phone Plans in Tazewell County?
Two of the four major wireless phone service providers, namely Verizon and Sprint, provide significant wireless coverage in Tazewell County. Verizon covers 100% of Tazewell County, making it the wireless cell phone service provider with the widest coverage in the county. On the other hand, Sprint provides only 66% wireless phone service coverage to Tazewell County. Note that other major wireless phone service providers are available in Tazewell County. However, they provide less than 50% wireless phone coverage in the county. Also, both major wireless phone providers in Tazewell County provide below average 4G data quality.
A survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics in 2018 showed that a significant percentage of residents in the State of Illinois prefer wireless cell phone services to traditional landlines. This preference was observed with both adults and minors in the state. The survey discovered that 59.8% of adults in the State of Illinois used only wireless cell phone services. This is a stark contrast to the 3.0% of adults in the state that exclusively used traditional landlines. The preference was even more significant amongst minors in the state, where 68.9% used only wireless phone services and just 0.5% of minors used only traditional landlines exclusively.
The increased preference for wireless telephone services has invariably led to rapid technological advancement with wireless phone services. One of the major technological advancements is Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). VoIP is gaining increased popularity among residents and businesses of Tazewell County, as it provides an affordable and more liable means of wireless communications. The technology leverages internet broadband connections to enable users to make telephone calls.
What Are Tazewell County Phone Scams?
Tazewell County phone scams target Tazewell County residents to defraud them. The scammers generally call county residents and perpetrate their fraudulent schemes, attempting to steal money or personal information from the residents. These scammers leverage technologies such as robocalls and caller ID spoofing to hide their identities. They then impersonate legitimate businesses, agencies, government establishments, or individuals to commit these scams. Tazewell County officials have instructed residents to always be vigilant in order not to fall victim to these scams. They have also recommended that residents conduct suspicious phone number lookups using free phone number lookup tools to determine who the specific phone numbers are registered to.
What Are Tazewell County COVID-19 Phone Scams?
The COVID-19 contact tracing scam and the Covid-19 relief scam are the major Covid-19 phone scams used by scammers to defraud Tazewell County residents.
In the COVID-19 contact tracing scam, a scammer employs caller ID spoofing techniques to mask their phone number. This makes the phone number appear like the legitimate phone number of the local health service office. During the call, the scammer claims to be a health service officer working on COVID-19 contact tracing. The scammer then informs the target that they have been exposed to the virus and would have to quarantine for some days. The scammer proceeds to request the target's personal information such as Social Security Number, personal phone numbers, and address.
In the COVID-19 relief scam, a scammer calls a county resident and tells them about the COVID-19 relief package. The scammer uses caller ID spoofing to mask their phone number and take on the caller ID of the government agency. During the call, the scammer requests the resident’s bank details to pay the COVID-19 relief fund directly into their account. This scam aims to steal Tazewell County residents’ bank details. Residents should not respond to such demands. Note that the COVID-19 relief payments are mailed directly to residents or paid into their accounts filed with the IRS.
What Are Tazewell County Jury Duty Scams?
In the jury duty scam, a scammer spoofs the caller ID of the Tazewell County Sheriff's Office to call a resident of the county. During the call, the scammer informs the resident that there is a warrant out for their arrest because they did not show up for jury duty. The scammer then tells the recipient that the warrant can only be revoked if payment is made in the form of gift cards, iTunes cards, or prepaid debit cards. The Sheriff has alerted residents to be wary of these scams and not make any payment in response to such calls. They have also advised residents to use good reverse phone lookup tools to identify scam callers.
What Are Tazewell County Investment Scams?
In an investment scam, a scammer posing as a representative of a legitimate business offers a resident a seemingly lucrative business opportunity that guarantees high returns on investment with little or no risks. Such scammers often mask their phone numbers and spoof the caller IDs of the legitimate businesses they are impersonating. Tazewell County residents are advised to first verify the authenticity of such business or investment opportunities before considering them. In most cases, business or investment opportunities that appear too good to be true have fraudulent intentions. Residents should also endeavor to get the real identities of the callers by conducting phone number lookups.
What Are Robocalls and Spam Calls?
Robocalls are automated calls that use automatic dialers to call a large number of people. They are often used by political campaigns, telemarketers, polling agencies, and tax-exempt nonprofit organizations. Robocalls can be legal or illegal, depending on how they are used. Legal robocalls are made in accordance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. The act regulates the use of robocalls to protect the privacy and public safety interest of telephone subscribers. Robocalls are illegal when used by fraudsters to perpetrate their scams. Services such as reverse phone number lookups and phone number searches may help identify robocalls and block them.
The best options to deal with illegal robocalls include:
- Avoid calls from unknown numbers and hang up if you immediately pick a robocall.
- Never follow any prompts from robocalls because this may set your phone number up for more robocalls.
- Employ the use of call blocking tools and solutions to block unwanted calls. Many of these tools are easily accessible online or through telephone service providers.
- Register your phone number online with the National Do Not Call Registry.
Finally, if these calls persist, residents should file complaints with the Federal Trade Commission FTC.
How Can You Spot and Report Tazewell County Phone Scams?
Phone scammers are continually coming up with new and more sophisticated ways to defraud Tazewell County residents. Therefore, residents need to be vigilant and well-informed so they do not fall victim to these scams. The sophistication of these scams has improved over the years. This is due to the easy access to the technologies used in committing these scams, such as caller ID spoofing and robocalls. Here are red flags that help identify scam calls:
- Requests that payment is made only via cash apps, bitcoin, gift cards, or MoneyGram.
- The use of high-pressure sales tactics to get the resident to make decisions without careful consideration of the facts.
- The conversation gets very aggressive, unfriendly, and evasive once the recipient starts to ask questions, seeking clarifications on the subject of the call.
- Offers of a business opportunity that guarantees an unusually high return on investment with little risks. Residents should always ensure to do their thorough due diligence before they invest in any business opportunities.
- Requests for personal or financial information
Federal, state, and county agencies are available to residents that fall victim to phone scams. These agencies receive, investigate, and prosecute perpetrators of phone scams in Tazewell County. The agencies include:
Tazewell County State Attorney - The Tazewell County State Attorney is tasked with the responsibility of protecting residents from phone scams. Reports can be filed in person at:
Tazewell County Courthouse
342 Court Street, Suite 6
Pekin, IL 61554-3298
Phone: (309) 477-2205
The Illinois Attorney General’s Office - The Consumer Protection Bureau of the State’s Attorney General’s Office is charged with protecting the interest of consumers in the State of Illinois. They also provide alerts on the new types of scams in the state. Complaints of phone scams, robocalls, and other types of fraud can be filed online or submitted in person at:
For complaints in English:
Office of the Illinois Attorney General
Consumer Protection Bureau
500 South Second Street
Springfield, IL 62701.
Phone: (217 782-1090)
For complaints and reports in Spanish:
Office of the Illinois Attorney General
Consumer Protection Division
100 West Randolph Street
Chicago, IL 60601
Phone: (312) 814-3000
Federal Trade Commissions - Victims of phone scams and fraud can file complaints to the FTC. These complaints can be made online or by phone at 1-877-ID-Theft and 1-877-FTC-HELP.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) - The FCC is responsible for regulating communications in the United States. They also receive consumer complaints of illegal robocalls and other phone scams online.
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center - Report cases of internet crime and phone scams online to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center. The Internet Crime Complaint Center is a partnership between the National White Collar Crime Center and the FBI.