Something needs to be done about robo and scam phone calls
Published 9:04 am Wednesday, March 13, 2019
Hardly a day goes by that we, the public, are not besieged by robocalls and phone calls, many from scammers. Most of us are tempted to turn our phones off or not answer the calls.
There are calls soliciting donations for firefighters, policemen, from insurance companies, home alarm companies, survey companies, the IRS, and yes, that one call informing you that you have won a vacation, a dream home, etc. Even politicians call, and they are exempt from the “Do Not Call” lists.
Hardly a day goes by that most people don’t get at least one call, but most days it is several calls.
These scammers are smart. They now use the practice called “spoofing” where it appears that they are calling from a local number, hiding where they are really calling from, which is often another country.
In an age when cellphones have become extensions of our bodies, robocallers now follow people wherever they go, disrupting business meetings, church services, and mealtime.
Though automated calls have long plagued consumers, the volume has skyrocketed in recent years. It is estimated that more than 48 billion robocalls were made in 2018, and they were the top source of consumer complaints to government agencies and resulted in millions of dollars in consumer losses.
As we all know too well, the calls — often with recorded messages — from automated dialers are an extreme nuisance. In addition, scammers are increasingly perpetrating the calls, and millions of people fall victim to them annually. A poll released last year yielded a report estimating that one in every 10 American adults lost money in a phone scam in the previous 12 months and that victims overall were scammed out of about $9.5 billion overall.
Of course, there are strategies to avoid these calls. There are apps that will screen them out, but there is a cost to the apps. Many people just won’t answer a call that’s not from someone they know or a person in their contacts. The “Do Not Call” registry doesn’t seem to do much good against scammers.
But should Americans really have to go to such great lengths to avoid getting an onslaught of scam calls every day?
Both the federal governments and various states are striving to blunt the problem through new legislation. For example, Congress passed and President Trump signed in April legislation strengthening efforts to crack down on the issue, including new penalties against transmitting misleading or inaccurate caller identification information. Last year, it authorized telecommunications companies to be more aggressive in blocking suspected culprits.
But, it doesn’t seem to be working, at least not at my house or my neighbors’ houses.
The bottom line, at this point, appears to be that the onslaught of robocalls will continue, with officials suggesting that any real strides won’t come until technological advances give law enforcement more effective tools.
The only option we, the general public, have is to not answer these calls.
Also, hang up on unwanted callers. Don’t talk to them or press any buttons. If you engage with them, they might flag you as someone who’s responsive and inundate you with more calls. Block the number after the call, if possible. Also, avoid saying “Yes” to any questions posed to you.
Don’t give callers personal information, like bank accounts or Social Security numbers.
Use call-blocking apps, but be sure to check the app’s policy to see if it’s sharing your call or contacts data with marketers.
Maybe someday, this all will become unnecessary. For now, however, keep in mind that a call from an unknown phone number can do you harm.