Ten calls a week about Microsoft cloud services has one Gripe Line reader suspicious of a con job Remember reader Bob’s recent Grip about a possible service-invoice con that turned out to be an error? Here’s another dubious practice — repeated phone calls about Microsoft cloud computing — that proved worthy of investigation.“Am I the only one getting multiple phone calls from Microsoft Cloud Computing every day?” asks Gripe Line reader Jim. “I’ve received no less than 10 calls this week alone from a call center in India claiming to be from Microsoft with questions about my cloud computing use. One fella named Mario has called four times already. Do you know if this is something Microsoft is doing, or is it some form of phone SPAM?”[ Keep nefarious companies’ hands out of your pockets — read “Dirty vendor tricks” | Frustrated by tech support? Get answers in InfoWorld’s Gripe Line newsletter. ] This relentless calling had such a whiff of phone con that I almost assumed that’s what it was without even looking into it. But to be sure, I sent a note to Microsoft’s public relations. My contact assumed this was a scam as well, but put a call into the cloud services group to verify.As it turns out, the calls are in fact coming from an overzealous contractor hired by Microsoft to promote its cloud services.“We are investigating the process behind this outreach to ensure it meets our rigorous privacy and security standards,” a Microsoft representative replied. “Microsoft regrets any inconvenience caused by these calls.” Thanks, Jim, for not assuming someone was invoking Microsoft’s name in its phone scam. Hopefully, thanks to this heads-up from you, Microsoft will reign in its phone dogs.Got gripes? Send them to christina_tynan-wood@infoworld.com.This story, “Microsoft cloud services: Phone scam or hard sell?,” was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Read more of Christina Tynan-Wood’s Gripe Line blog at InfoWorld.com. Cloud Computing