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Blocking Annoying Cell Phone Callers?
RobertB-DC asks: "Twice a week, for the past several months, I receive a call on my cell phone, from a 'Restricted' number. It's always the same: 'Please hold for an important non solicitation message.' It then tells me to call 1-800-842-0640 for further instructions. When I call (from a CID-blocked work phone), all I can get from them is the company name: NCO. They won't tell me more about their company unless I tell who I am. Verizon says they can't block the caller. Short of exposing my own identity to someone I don't know, how can I get rid of these annoying calls?" Are there cell phone carriers who are progressive enough to offer call blocking services of some kind?
I thought about this. But they still know his cell phone number. What happens if they sell his personal information to other companies? Then he could get *more* calls from companies looking for "David Yaw," or whatever made-up name he gave them.
I don't have a link but I thought cold calls to cell phones were against the law.
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That said, there are a few posts in this thread that say that NCO is a collection agency, in which case just pay up. Either way, find out if they are that NCO before calling the police, because then you'd just look like an idiot and would probably have to pay a fine if you filed false charges.
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If you live in the US and that happened, you would have had a massive lawsuit on your hands. Otherwise, you're likely lying (as were all the people that said *I* did that to them, when i worked for a collection dept at a credit card company).
It is a violation of the Fair Debt and Credit Practices Act (FDCPA) for a company to leave any information whatsoever, other than their name and phone number, with anyone other than the verified party or their spouse (depending on the state). No nature of a debt or anything like that my be disclosed to a 3rd party.
An answering machine is consdered 3rd party since anyone could listen to that message, and thus privacy is given away.
I'm not saying it coudln't have happen, just that it is far from likely because no debt collection company would risk getting their ass sued off; especially when an answering machine took the message, as that is proof of their law violation that could be used in court.
If you've ever given your cell phone number for anything, it eventually is sold into huge databases that are used for these purposes. They can cross-reference your billing information with your name or even your SSN.
That is why privacy matters.
Lie AND call from:
a) A payphone
b) A caller-ID-blocked phone (which the original author said he did)
But you can't block caller-ID to a 1-800 number! Nor 1-888, 1-877, 1-866, the soon-to-be-if-not-already 1-855, 1-900, or 911. They use ANI which is not blockable.
And all the toll-free numbers will get the number on their billing statements too, since they pay for the calls made. (I get detailed billing on my cell phone that lists every number called in or out, but that still doesn't get me CNID-blocked numbers.)
And unfortunately payphones are becoming increasingly rare.
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Create a system much like the email spam prevention methods which require someone to do something special the first time they email you. After that first time they can email you at will.
1) turn off the default ringer&buzzer on your phone
2) set up the feature on your phone which makes calls from friends/family/expected callers ring using a specified ring, not the default one.
now, when people who you would like to call (ie are already in your phone book), the phone will ring.
if someone you don't expect to call calls, they will get routed to your voicemail. if you really want to talk to them in future, just put them in your phone book.
Is there a hole in this method?