Lock your doors, Queens residents! IDT zombies are on the prowl in your borough, and if they catch you they’ll try to eat your ConEd account and replace it with their more expensive offer. Jeff says there’s one outside his building right now, trying to buzz its way in.

Jeff writes, probably in the dark from under his desk, trembling in fear,

I’m working from home today and an IDT rep saw me through my ground floor window. He circled back and tapped on the window with his pen. He said “Excuse me” I looked at him, saw his IDT id tag around his neck, and said “No thank you.” He stuttered slightly and said “Have a good day.” Now he’s trying to buzz into my building. So far no one has obliged, but is there some way to report this guy before he gains access? My apartment building is mostly old people or people who don’t speak English very well, so I’m concerned about the big scam potential. If he comes by my window again I’m gonna get a picture of him for you.

A few minutes later, Jeff emailed us again. This time he was probably locked inside a cabinet, trying very hard to type quietly.

So I read some of your past articles about IDT, and called the attorney general’s office. The first guy who answered said he had heard about IDT, and thanked me for calling, and said he’d transfer me to “Investigations.” But when I got connected there, the woman had no idea what IDT was, and didn’t really seem to care about my explanation. I even told her to go to your website. She ended up just taking my address and said she’d send a form so I could file a report. Unfortunately, there’s not much to report, as I didn’t let the guy give me his pitch. In hindsight maybe I should have let him in, but I have two kittens, and I read what they do to pets! [They kidnap them. -Ed.] So for now, I’m posting a note in my building lobby warning people about IDT and suggesting they visit your site for more info.

Jeff brings up a good point, which is that in NYC there are a lot of people who maybe don’t speak or read English that well. In an attempt to spread the word about IDT, we’ve written a short Spanish version of a warning. Unfortunately, we don’t know Spanish very well. Please improve upon this in the comments (maybe take out the zombie references), and we’ll post a downloadable PDF warning in English and Spanish next week.

¡Peligroso!

No abiertes la puerta por zombis de IDT. [Something here like, “They will try to get your account information for ConEd, and then will switch you to a more expensive service without your permission.”]

Si tu lee un IDT zombi, email detalles a escocomplaint@gmail.com, o llame 718-766-8828

You can also copy or print out this statement to get the word out.

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(Photo: atp_tyreseus)

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