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posted by Fnord666 on Wednesday June 26 2019, @05:23PM   Printer-friendly
from the shuffling-step-in-the-right-direction dept.

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

FTC cracks down on robocalls with new initiative

The Federal Trade Commission and law enforcement partners unveiled on Tuesday a new initiative to combat robocalls. "Operation Call it Quits" is a partnership at the local, state and federal level that includes 94 actions targeting illegal robocall operations, including shutting down robocall companies and issuing fines in the millions.

"Nearly all robocalls are illegal unless you've given consent in writing," Andrew Smith, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said during a press briefing.

The initiative comes at a time when illegal robocalls have permeated not just household and business landlines but also hospital phone lines. These calls run the gamut from services that promise to reduce your credit card's interest rate to operations that say they'll help you earn money from home. Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill mentioned during the briefing that last year alone $10.5 billion was lost to phone scams in the United States.

[...] Earlier this month, the Federal Communications Commission gave wireless carriers the green light to block robocalls for customers by default.

Similarly, the FTC hopes that in the upcoming months Congress will give it greater jurisdiction over telecommunications carriers to trace calls back to their source, according to Smith.


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  • (Score: 4, Informative) by Snotnose on Wednesday June 26 2019, @05:39PM (12 children)

    by Snotnose (1623) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @05:39PM (#860174)

    Swear to god, any politician that robocalls me can rest assured I'll vote for their opponent, no matter who they are.

    --
    Why shouldn't we judge a book by it's cover? It's got the author, title, and a summary of what the book's about.
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  • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Wednesday June 26 2019, @05:54PM (6 children)

    by fustakrakich (6150) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @05:54PM (#860179) Journal

    That won't leave you any choice, unless you write in somebody who doesn't want the job, because if they do, you will get a call.

    The thing is watered down bullshit. We have to demand the blocking tech in our own phones, not rely on the carriers' "good judgement".

    --
    La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:05PM (5 children)

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:05PM (#860184) Journal

      Most of the robocalls I get these days are spam/scams. But I do remember at least one campaign where I got a robocall from one party's politician (probably the incumbent) and not the other.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:24PM (3 children)

        by fustakrakich (6150) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:24PM (#860196) Journal

        politician, spam/scams, same thing, no?

        I still don't know why there is statistically no demand for an end to number spoofing and our own whitelist in our own phones. Then we don't have to think about politicians barging in. The carriers have no business blocking anything. This "initiative" is a product of the advertisers.

        --
        La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:46PM (1 child)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:46PM (#860211)

          politician, spam/scams, same thing, no?

          No.

          Glad I could clear that up for you.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 26 2019, @10:10PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 26 2019, @10:10PM (#860268)

            Each one worst than the other, repeat, way down to the bottom.

        • (Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:53PM

          by NotSanguine (285) <NotSanguineNO@SPAMSoylentNews.Org> on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:53PM (#860213) Homepage Journal

          end to number spoofing and our own whitelist in our own phones.

          What's wrong with having both?
          https://transnexus.com/whitepapers/understanding-stir-shaken/ [transnexus.com]
          https://fossbytes.com/best-android-call-blocker-app/ [fossbytes.com]

          The carriers have no business blocking anything. This "initiative" is a product of the advertisers.

          If a carrier can confirm that callerID is being spoofed, I *want* them to block the call long before it gets to my device. What's more, apps on mobile phones do nothing for SIP/VOIP and/or PRI/DID lines.

          What? Which advertisers? Why would advertisers care about it at all? Please do explain. If I didn't hate popcorn (AKA 'devil spawn') I'd make some. This ought to be good.

          --
          No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
      • (Score: 2, Interesting) by nitehawk214 on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:34PM

        by nitehawk214 (1304) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:34PM (#860205)

        I get mail from incumbent candidates, but our state forces them to print "paid for with taxpayer money", if they did so.

        Guess who didn't get re-elected, that year.

        --
        "Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
  • (Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:09PM (3 children)

    by DannyB (5839) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:09PM (#860187) Journal

    any politician that robocalls me can rest assured I'll vote for their opponent

    It would be good to call or write some politicians, maybe the ones you like, and tell them that.

    --
    People today are educated enough to repeat what they are taught but not to question what they are taught.
    • (Score: 2) by Snotnose on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:26PM (2 children)

      by Snotnose (1623) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:26PM (#860198)

      If they're so tone-deaf they don't realize people absolutely hate robocalls, then a letter to them ain't gonna do squat.

      --
      Why shouldn't we judge a book by it's cover? It's got the author, title, and a summary of what the book's about.
      • (Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:31PM (1 child)

        by DannyB (5839) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:31PM (#860201) Journal

        You could be right. I'm being generous assuming it is simple ignorance on their part. Unawareness of how hated robo calls actually are. To politicians, robo calls may seem like some new high tech idea of which they know little about. Being politicians they are unable to imagine how robo calls do not scale.

        --
        People today are educated enough to repeat what they are taught but not to question what they are taught.
        • (Score: 1) by nitehawk214 on Wednesday June 26 2019, @07:48PM

          by nitehawk214 (1304) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @07:48PM (#860232)

          I think I heard about false-flag robocalls during the last couple of election cycles.

          --
          "Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
  • (Score: 2) by Freeman on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:59PM

    by Freeman (732) on Wednesday June 26 2019, @06:59PM (#860215) Journal

    I got one of these for one of the democrat candidates in my area last election.

    --
    Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"