Pesky robocalls targeted by 40 state attorneys general, including Texas AG Paxton

[Elderberry]

Houston Chronicle By Catherine Marfin 12/25/2018

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has joined a bipartisan group of 40 state attorneys general to stop and reduce robocalls. But robocalls can be nearly impossible to stop, and their prevalence continues to increase across the state.

Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, telemarketers are prohibited from calling cellphones using automatic telephone dialing systems or prerecorded messages without express written consent.

In 2017, Americans received 30.5 billion of these robocalls, according to YouMail, an app that blocks robocalls. That year, nearly 236 million robocalls were made to San Antonio area codes, 225.6 million were made to Austin area codes, over 1 billion were made to Houston area codes and nearly 1.2 billion were made to Dallas area codes, according to the data.

More: https://www.chron.com/news/politics/texas/article/Pesky-robocalls-targeted-by-40-state-attorneys-13489830.php

[Sanguine]

I get 3 or 4 of them a day.  Very irritating.

[Smokin Joe]

I get 3 or 4 of them a day.  Very irritating.

" We have been trying to contact you about your vehicle warranty....

I have six on the pavement, but they are all old enough to vote. They didn't get my name off any dealership roles....


Similar situation with the student loan thingy the spew about. Never had one.

But the calls are a PITA.

[GtHawk]

I get 3 or 4 of them a day.  Very irritating.

I had to sign my mother up for https://www.nomorobo.com/, there were asses that called her every night at 8 PM just as she was falling asleep(she' 87). One of the biggest violators I found was the GOP. Since I signed her up the calls have been blocked, except for a single ring so I still need to figure out how to stop that. I recommend the service if you get tired of constantly have to add numbers to your block list.

[Fishrrman]

Some days I get several of these on my home (VOIP) phone.
Fortunately, "nomorobo" handles most of them. One ring, and... poof! They're cut off, sometimes so quickly that the caller ID info can't even make it through.

The others go to the answering machine, because I generally do not answer phone calls in any case.

This is a problem that likely can't be solved by going after the robo-callers themselves.

The telephone companies themselves might be able to cut a lot of these calls. I imagine they have the technology to block a lot of the calls, but persuading them to do so may be problematic if they're making money by "passing" them (I don't know whether they do or not).

The best way to handle robocalls is by pro-actively taking charge of them "at the receiving end" -- your own phone.

If you have a VOIP service (phone signal comes in over internet), you can probably sign up for Nomorobo for free. It works very well.

Nomorobo also has a service for cell phones, but it's not free.
I have no need for it because the only cell phone I have (old flip-phone) is ALWAYS turned off. It can't ring.

I believe Nomorobo also offers "business solutions", but these are also pay-for services.

If you have a traditional landline-based phone that comes in over the copper wires, Nomorobo can't work. In that case, you have to research and buy one of the traditional hardware "call cutters" and wire it into your phone line.

Addendum to GTHawk:
You -can't- eliminate that first ring with Nomorobo -- because the caller ID info by which the system works comes in between the first and second rings.
Nomorobo works because when your phone rings, it also "rings" Nomorobo, which quickly compares the number against a database of "known bad numbers" and then immediately cuts the call -- hence, the first ring and then.... silence.

The only way to keep the phone from ringing at all MIGHT be to use some kind of hardware-based call cutting device...

[LadyLiberty]

I've been using nomorobo since it came out.  Lately I've been getting calls that claim to come from my area code and exchange, which I'm sure is a spoofed number.  They are not stopped, but I simply don't answer them and of course they never leave a message.  I wish there was technology that would detect spoofed numbers and block the call before it was transferred and allowed to ring my phone.

This service gives me a chuckle, though:  https://jollyrogertelephone.com/

[240B]

I've been using nomorobo since it came out.  Lately I've been getting calls that claim to come from my area code and exchange, which I'm sure is a spoofed number.  They are not stopped, but I simply don't answer them and of course they never leave a message.  I wish there was technology that would detect spoofed numbers and block the call before it was transferred and allowed to ring my phone.

This service gives me a chuckle, though:  https://jollyrogertelephone.com/

I used to get spam call for siding, or roofing, or new windows, when I lived in an apartment. These idiots didn't even check the address to see they were calling Weeping Willows Apartments Apt# XXX. So stupid.

And they also used spoofed numbers which appeared to be in my area code, even though they were calling from California.

These guys are exactly why nobody answers their phone anymore, unless it is a contact number.

[Applewood]

I don't get many robocalls except around election time.  What I do get since I retired are people trying to sell me insurance -- health, life, nursing home and funeral expense.  I suspect Social Security, Medicare or Highmark Blue Cross/Blue Shield sold my contact info to these clowns.  So much for privacy.

[rustynail]

The calls aren't bad.  You can talk to some really friendly people and get some amazing offers.

[mountaineer]

I've been using nomorobo since it came out.  Lately I've been getting calls that claim to come from my area code and exchange, which I'm sure is a spoofed number. 

We get those, too, but don't answer. Sure enough, they don't leave a message. I think one of our Republican state legislators is trying to enact a law prohibiting fake phone number calls like those.

[musiclady]

I had to sign my mother up for https://www.nomorobo.com/, there were asses that called her every night at 8 PM just as she was falling asleep(she' 87). One of the biggest violators I found was the GOP. Since I signed her up the calls have been blocked, except for a single ring so I still need to figure out how to stop that. I recommend the service if you get tired of constantly have to add numbers to your block list.

Thanks for that. 

We are inundated with robocalls daily, some political, some 'you're old so you need this,' some actual hoaxes.

I hate them all.

[Sanguine]

We get those, too, but don't answer. Sure enough, they don't leave a message. I think one of our Republican state legislators is trying to enact a law prohibiting fake phone number calls like those.

From what I understand, when they spoof the number, the actual number they are calling from can't be traced, so it's pretty much impossible to prosecute or stop them. 

[mountaineer]

From what I understand, when they spoof the number, the actual number they are calling from can't be traced, so it's pretty much impossible to prosecute or stop them.

Yeah, I don't know how any legislation could be effective. Thank goodness for caller ID. We've stopped answering the phone unless it's a number we recognize (mostly because we're still getting calls for a produce vendor who had our number over 10 years ago and never bothered to tell his customers he changed it): "Do you have any punkins?!?" they ask. We reply, "Sure. Come on down. They're free!"

[Smokin Joe]

Yeah, I don't know how any legislation could be effective. Thank goodness for caller ID. We've stopped answering the phone unless it's a number we recognize (mostly because we're still getting calls for a produce vendor who had our number over 10 years ago and never bothered to tell his customers he changed it): "Do you have any punkins?!?" they ask. We reply, "Sure. Come on down. They're free!"

We're the same--If I don't recognize the number, they can talk to the beep...but that only works on the landline. The ones who call on my cell are the real PITA.

[Applewood]

Speaking of scams, a couple of weeks ago, I received a call on my cell -- didn't recognize the number, so I let it go to VM. Believe it or not, the scammer left a message (most don't).  He said he was from Publishers Clearing House and I had won.  Well, I never enter PCH or any other sweepstakes and I'm reasonably sure a person doesn't win unless he or she enters.  The caller spoke in heavily accented English and  he sounded like he was reading from a script.  Caller ID produced a phone number with an 876 area code, but after some research I found out that 876 is not an American area code; rather, it's a code for Kingston, Jamaica. Further research revealed that the phony PCH scam is widespread and most of the calls originate from Jamaica.  A variation of the scam is that the recipient of the call won the Jamaica lottery.  I don't even know if Jamaica even has a lottery. 

Most of us, I believe, would not fall for such a scam, but I immediately called my 87 year old aunt to warn her.  I believe it's up to us to warn any relative or friend we think might be suckered by these scammers.

[Smokin Joe]

Speaking of scams, a couple of weeks ago, I received a call on my cell -- didn't recognize the number, so I let it go to VM. Believe it or not, the scammer left a message (most don't).  He said he was from Publishers Clearing House and I had won.  Well, I never enter PCH or any other sweepstakes and I'm reasonably sure a person doesn't win unless he or she enters.  The caller spoke in heavily accented English and  he sounded like he was reading from a script.  Caller ID produced a phone number with an 876 area code, but after some research I found out that 876 is not an American area code; rather, it's a code for Kingston, Jamaica. Further research revealed that the phony PCH scam is widespread and most of the calls originate from Jamaica.  A variation of the scam is that the recipient of the call won the Jamaica lottery.  I don't even know if Jamaica even has a lottery. 

Most of us, I believe, would not fall for such a scam, but I immediately called my 87 year old aunt to warn her.  I believe it's up to us to warn any relative or friend we think might be suckered by these scammers.

Another biggie is the IRS scam (They always send a letter, they don't initiate contact with a phone call).
Also, no American can win a foreign lottery, so if they send you a letter, well, keep the stamp for any collectors in your family...but don't think you are rich.
Our State's attorney general's office keeps a list of the more common scams, yours might, too.

[Restored]

My wife's aunt fell for the Jamaican lottery. They took her for everything. She wanted that money so she could lord it over everyone but it ended up killing her.
Greed is a great motivator.

[Applewood]

My wife's aunt fell for the Jamaican lottery. They took her for everything. She wanted that money so she could lord it over everyone but it ended up killing her.
Greed is a great motivator.

So sorry, Restored.  This happens a lot.  Older people in particular are vulnerable.    They can be so trusting.

My aunt has one thing going for her -- she can't hear well.  I think if the PCH scammer called her, she would have said, "I can't understand you" and hung up.

[Cyber Liberty]

Nomorobo was not available for my carrier, so i cut the land line.

[Restored]

So sorry, Restored.  This happens a lot.  Older people in particular are vulnerable.    They can be so trusting.

She suspected it was a scam. But the lure of waving that money around to impress her friends and family overrode her suspicion. Once she took the bait, they scared her by describing her apartment to her and threatened to hurt her. By then, she was too embarrassed to admit she had been taken. If she had told anyone, we could have stopped it. We have done two talks on scammers to our Kiwanis club and one of them still fell for one. I even told them "If someone wants money from you, call someone".

My aunt with Dementia forgot to pay her credit card so she doesn't have one. She can't drive so a scammer is going to be frustrated dealing with her because she can't pay them.

[InHeavenThereIsNoBeer]

We're the same--If I don't recognize the number, they can talk to the beep...but that only works on the landline. The ones who call on my cell are the real PITA.

On my ancient apple phone I can hit the power button to reject a call.

Well, I could if it were turned on.

[240B]

It seems to be a kind of drug. One that I am immune, thankfully. Saw a video about a guy in Britain that went for the very famous Nigerian Prince scam. They took him for more than $50,000 American. That is a lot of money in England. These stories are common.

What made this case unique was the inflexible stubborness of the victim. Even after his family, friends, neighbors, and even British legal authorities, intervened and told him very clearly that it was a fraud, he adamantly refused to believe them and continued to send money. He thought these people were trying to prevent him from becoming rich, or maybe they wanted the money for themselves.

That was the point of the video. It wasn't about the scam because that is old news. It was about how this guy would never let it go no matter what. He wasn't just hooked. He swallowed the hook. Eventually he ran out of any money to send them, and nobody would ever give him any more than they had already lent. That is where it ended.

I suppose the guy wound up in some mental disorder treatment center in the end, but the video did not go that long. To some people it becomes an obsession. Because they have already invested so much money into the scam, they simply cannot bring themselves to accept that it was all fake. He seemed to believe that he could somehow 'make' it real by sheer force of will. "I just need a little more money!"

[Smokin Joe]

It seems to be a kind of drug. One that I am immune, thankfully. Saw a video about a guy in Britain that went for the very famous Nigerian Prince scam. They took him for more than $50,000 American. That is a lot of money in England. These stories are common.

What made this case unique was the inflexible stubborness of the victim. Even after his family, friends, neighbors, and even British legal authorities, intervened and told him very clearly that it was a fraud, he adamantly refused to believe them and continued to send money. He thought these people were trying to prevent him from becoming rich, or maybe they wanted the money for themselves.

That was the point of the video. It wasn't about the scam because that is old news. It was about how this guy would never let it go no matter what. He wasn't just hooked. He swallowed the hook. Eventually he ran out of any money to send them, and nobody would ever give him any more than they had already lent. That is where it ended.

I suppose the guy wound up in some mental disorder treatment center in the end, but the video did not go that long. To some people it becomes an obsession. Because they have already invested so much money into the scam, they simply cannot bring themselves to accept that it was all fake. He seemed to believe that he could somehow 'make' it real by sheer force of will. "I just need a little more money!"

Oh. Kinda like Democrats with Socialist policy...

[Wingnut]

Thankfully the Nigerian Prince who needed assistance in transferring millions of dollars of excess money out of Nigeria only communicates via email.

[Snarknado]

My favorite is the guy from Microsoft who knows about 25 words of English and needs access to my PC so he can fix it. If I'm not busy it can be fun to string him along for a while...