Scam Calls from Area Code 252

Area code 252, assigned to eastern North Carolina, has generated 1,114 complaints across 492 distinct numbers since February 2026, with activity continuing through June. That volume places it 25th among the 44 North Carolina area codes tracked, a mid-tier position that nonetheless reflects a sustained and broad-based pattern rather than a narrow cluster of offenders.

Impersonation calls lead the categorized complaint volume at 124, followed closely by dropped or silent calls at 137, which together suggest a two-track operation: live or prerecorded pitches on one side and probing hang-ups on the other. Debt-reduction solicitations account for 86 complaints and medical and prescription calls for 68, with a smaller slice of 13 vacation and timeshare complaints rounding out the picture. FCC records show the dominant delivery method is prerecorded, accounting for 72 of the 119 mode-coded records, with live calls at 37.

The top number by complaint count, 252-757-2141, drew 21 complaints with no category on record. Close behind it, 252-501-6300 generated 18 complaints and falls under medical and prescriptions. Two other uncategorized numbers, 252-228-1694 with 9 complaints and 252-200-3061 with 8, add weight to the high-volume end of the list. The impersonation category gets a specific face in 252-445-2027, logged at 7 complaints, while the dropped-call pattern appears in both 252-382-0918 and 252-203-6658, each at 7.

Although the reported locations are anchored in North Carolina cities including Charlotte, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and Castle Hayne, complaints have also been filed from California and Florida, with San Jose specifically named. That geographic spread indicates the numbers are not reaching only local targets, and the spoofed 252 prefix is being used to project a regional North Carolina identity to recipients well outside the state.

The combination of impersonation volume, a heavy prerecorded-call footprint, and cross-state reach points to an operation using the 252 prefix as a trust signal rather than a genuine geographic anchor. With the activity still ongoing and the top numbers accumulating complaints without resolution, the threat from this code is best read as active and expanding.