“M is for the million things she gave me . . . ”

Here is a short quiz: When does 202 equal 876? Think of telephone area codes, not mathematics. As the 876 area code (Jamaica, West Indies) is increasingly publicized as a red flag for scams on caller ID, schemers are responding by disguising their true locations with seemingly safe substitutes, such as 202 (Washington, D.C). This scam to shield an underlying scam is known as caller ID spoofing, which is no joke. A more accurate moniker would be caller ID cover-up.

He was calling from the police station and he was crying. We had a bad connection, but it sounded as if he were in some awful trouble up in Canada. He didn’t want me to tell his parents, just wire the bail money right away so he could get out of those handcuffs. I don’t know if that’s right, but he’s my grandson.