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When the random calls from unknown numbers first began coming in, she tried to ignore them, assuming they were scammers.

But the calls continued, so a Mothership reader who identified herself as Ms. Tan decided to find out what was happening.

It turns out, the callers were not scammers after all, but rather people trying to get in touch with the Klook SingapoRediscovers Vouchers hotline.

Initially thought calls were scammers

Tan told Mothership that she began receiving the calls to her home phone around three weeks ago. She was told about the calls by her mother, and they decided to ignore them as they thought that the calls were likely scammers.

However, after a couple calls, they realised that the numbers were local numbers, so they decided to pick up the phone to tell the callers to stop.

That was when Tan found out that the people at the other end of the line were genuinely trying to contact Klook.

A case of misheard phone number?

So, how did these Klook customers looking for support end up calling a random woman in Singapore?

According to Tan, the mishaps seem to have occurred due to a change in Klook's SingapoRediscovers Vouchers hotline number.

Previously, the hotline number was 6302 5999. However, it has since been changed to 3105 1360.

However, the old hotline number is still available online. So, when customers called the now-defunct hotline number, they were directed to a voice message that instructed them to call Klook's new number, and listed the number out.

This is where the confusion happened, Tan said. Her home phone number is almost identical to the new Klook hotline — six out of the eight digits are exactly the same.

Tan claimed that the initial voice message instructing customers of the new number was "unclear", which resulted in people calling her by mistake, instead of the Klook hotline.

Upon discovering that this was the problem, Tan says that she contacted Klook on Jul. 10 about the issue.

She claims that she was instructed to ignore the calls, but that it was "not practical" as the calls kept coming in.

More than 10 calls, some as late as 11pm

After informing Klook about the voice message issue, the recording has since been changed to more clearly articulate the new phone number that customers should call, Tan said.

Despite that, she has continued to get calls from people trying to reach Klook, she told Mothership.

She said that she has received more than 10 calls, some as early as 9am and others as late as 11pm.

As a result, she contacted Klook again to inform them about the continued calls. She also said that she reached out to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) to ask them to update an online press release that includes Klook's old hotline number.

Tan stated that because she is working shift work, the calls are affecting her rest.

In addition, she said that changing her number is not an option:

"I could not change the number as my elderly grandma only remembers my house number."

"This issue has affected me and family over the weeks. Your help is greatly appreciated," she said in an email to Mothership, asking us to create awareness about her situation and the correct Klook hotline number.

Klook is aware of situation

A Klook spokesperson told Mothership that Klook is aware of Tan's situation:

"We are in conversation with the member of public and are currently taking steps to address the concerns.

Klook is working with our customer service team to update the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) to ensure an even greater distinction."

The spokesperson added:

"Klook would like to take this opportunity to advise our customers to be mindful of the prefix of the number of the hotline - 3105 1360.

This is to avoid mis-dialing and reaching the wrong number."

Alternatively, customers can reach out to Klook via email at Ask Klook.

Top photo by Jane Zhang.