I don't know about you, but when I see a number like 800-000-000 I'm pretty certain it is either a spam call or a call from a beloved dead one in the great beyond. It doesn't exactly scream "real person," but apparently Verizon (News - Alert) calls its customers from these kinds of numbers, thus making the latest phishing scam all the more buyable.

Examiner.com reports that unsuspecting Verizon users are answering numbers from this call to hear the usual phishy “congrats” we've come to expect from scammer – something along the lines of, "Hello Maurice! We love you and you are amazing and we have all this dough for you because we know you are poor and just give me your bank account info and social security number and I'll be dumping needed monies in your account immediately!"

Well, that's probably not exactly what the automated calls are relaying, but it's likely not too far off. All that is missing is the Nigerian Prince connection. Otherwise, we've got the exemplary spam scenario.

So far, the 800-000-000 phishing scam has affected only the Bristol area. At least two Verizon customers in the area got calls from the number and reported them. Potential spam victims are advised to do (or rather, not do) the usual. Don't give out any precious security information.

Just don't do it! This seems obvious to many, but as Examiner.com points out, we must bear in mind that elderly people are particularly vulnerable to such schemes. I know my mother, for instance, would probably be in tears if she thought she was in trouble with Verizon, and would be reading off credit card numbers that go back to the 80s to stave off trouble. So, share the tips with your granny-aged friends and family, as chances are not many of them are reading this.