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Cell Phone Directory Coming Soon
applemasker writes "According to this story on Yahoo News via the L.A. Times, an upcoming cell phone directory which supposedly includes 75% of all cell users is in the works. Some people are already receiving cell phone spam and telemarketing calls. Worse yet, unless you opt-out at the beginning of your contract, some carriers such as T-Mobile can gladly hand over your info (though the article says that T-Mobile is changing the contract now). Some good news though, Verizon Wireless has said that it will not share its customer lists. Still, maybe it's time to submit your cell number to the Do Not Call List if you haven't done so already." We had a related story last year.
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Linux is a joke as long as it continues to lack sexy girls like her! I mean just look at this girl! Doesn't she excite you? I know this little hottie puts me in need of a cold shower! This guy looks like he is about to cream his pants standing next to such a fox. As you can see, no man can resist this sexy little minx. Don't you wish the guy in this pic was you? Are you telling me you wouldn't like to get your hands on this ass?! Wouldn't this just make your Christmas?! Yes doctor, this uber babe definitely gets my pulse racing! Oh how I envy the lucky girl in this shot! Linux has nothing that can possibly compete. Come on, you must admit she is better than an overweight penguin or a gay looking goat! Wouldn't this be more liklely to influence your choice of OS?
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$Id: ceren.html,v 7.0 2004/01/01 11:32:04 ceren_rocks Exp $
I just assumed the Do Not Call list was to apply to cell phones too, so when it came time to enroll, every number in my household, cell and not, became a "Do Not Call" number.
Memories become legend, Legend fades to myth, and even myth is forgotten by the time that age comes again.-Robert Jordan
Well, i just got a contract for Verizon recently and I must say, even if they gave out their numbers I'm not really sure if the spammers could ever get a call to me without it getting dropped... The phones they have just don't do it for me, I wish Verizon had some of the sprint phones.. specifically picture phones. They don't have great quality but i'm not trying to document a exploration, i'm trying to take a quick snap of something or someone.
I've left to find myself. If you happen to see me, please, keep me there until I return.
I thought telemarketing to a cell phone was illegal, due to the fact that you are charged for both incoming and outgoing calls on a cell phone. As I understood it, it's similar to the anti-junk fax laws, which were put in place because you pay for the ink and paper that is wasted.
When their numbers dwindled from 50 to 8, the dwarves began to suspect Hungry.
What happens to existing customers who have had the same number for 10 years and enjoyed 10 years of bliss? (or as much bliss as one can expect owning a device with which you be reached anywhere)
I thought it was illegal for business to make unsolicited phone calls to cell phones because the customer gets charged for it. Am i wrong?
"I can not bring myself to believe that if knowledge presents danger, the solution is ignorance" - Isaac Asimov
i thought telemarketer calls to cell phones were already illegal. is that incorrect?
-ninjaneer
I almost never get telemarketing calls on my cell. I get a wrong number sometimes.
:)
As soon as I get a telemarketer calling my cell phone, I demand their name, number, organization, address, etc. (as the DNC registry stipulates). Then I will inform them that I will be sending a bill to that address to recover the cost of the minutes that their company just used for me.
Once, I got a telemarketer and as soon as I realized who it was I informed them that it was a cell. She apologized profusely and voluntarily put me on their do-not-call list.
I'm in Indiana, so we have a stricter DNC anyway.
Color me ignorant, but I was under the impression that telemarketing calls to cell phones was already illegal, primarily because the called party pays for all airtime. Was this ever true? Has this suddenly changed?
Schwab
Editor, A1-AAA AmeriCaptions
Maybe I'm naieve, but I personally think this would be a good idea. Telemarketers are irriting, no question, but worse still is losing a phone number and being unable to find it. I don't have to refer to the phone-book too often for landlines, but every time I do, it saves me mucho effort or results in me being able to contact someone I otherwise would not be able to.
"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one " -Albert Einstein
It is like a firewall - take the call once. :)
:)
*Phone rings*
Me: who's this? Them: We are calling to see how many children you have..
Me:I have registered this number in the Do not call registry
*click*
There you go
What can i say? I am a lonely guy
Admittedly, I know only a bit about cel-phones, but the many people I know and work with tend to change numbers frequently. What's practical about a list like this, if the information is consistantly out-of-date? I realise an electronic DB would be easy enough to keep current, but who's goign to use it (besides spammers?)
funny- when I first signed up for the Federal DNC list, it asked me to provide up to 5 phone numbers. Didn't anybody else enter their cell numbers at that point?
SJW: a person who perceives an injustice, and while correcting it, commits a greater injustice.
So the bastard next to me in the movie theater can ruin the experience by getting a call from a jackass he *doesn't* know?
"Wireless carriers say they doubt there will be widespread abuse. They point out that most mobile phones come equipped with caller ID, distinctive ring tones, call blocking and other tools to manage unwanted calls. And several carriers say they have made refunds to subscribers who have received unwanted calls. "
What they fail to understand is that, atleast with my carrier (Sprint), text messages pop up all the time. I have no options to block text messages from certain users, or only allow messages from those in my phone book. I think the biggest area won't be the unwanted calls, but rather the unwanted text messages that cost about as much as it does to send spam messages.
By far.. Worst idea EVER!
Hmmm.
Don't get a cell phone. Not only will you not get annoying calls but you also won't be one of the lucky recipents to get a brain tumor 20 years from now. Oh you know it's coming.......
This has been avaiable here in Norway for several years now.. allthough I do imagine there is a certain difference in volume between Norway and the US. Had a funny experience with this btw, one day when I was bored, I looked up my number in one of the online catalogs - and behold, they had gotten hold of even more information about me than I ever gave my cell provider, it was kinda scary I can tell you :)
Doolittle :
Bomb no.20 : To explode of course.
According to this article , the CTIA claims that all the carriers who are going along with the plan are doing so on an opt-in basis for existing customers, and an opt-out basis for new customers, without any additional fees.
That was over three years ago! I'm not under contract with T-Mobile now but I still am a customer, I wonder if they'll say I have to get back ON contract to get off the directory. My plan's so old I still get the first incoming minute free. Does that mean I can't sue for cost of minutes if I get telemarketer calls?
Hmm.. I think it would be prudent to document all the incoming calls/spam. Given that most companies charge per.. it now costs you money. It would be worthwhile to take up your cell provider's customer service time by requesting documentation on who is using up your paid resources. If you run into any roadblocks, IANAL, bring up your lawyer. You can use that effectively I think. Complain enough and you could be put on the do not call list.
(1st sig) If this were a snappy sig, you'd be reading it right now. (2nd sig) I'm a karma whore. >Insert FUD here
Not only is a business risking loss of clientel,I feel the cell companys involved are at risk too. Besides that you know somewhere down the line there will be a law suit (or two). ----- "you are unique, just like everybody else"
You are unique, just like everybody else.
So they just telemarket you on friday night, saturday and sunday :-).
Modesty is one of life's greatest attributes
... outlaw the use of the "star codes" that block caller ID (*67).
"Obviously, I'm not an IBM computer any more than I'm an ashtray" (Bob Dylan)
Until recently, when customers switched carriers, their numbers changed as well, so marketers were reluctant to invest much in compiling databases.
For once I thought that something good was being done for the consumer...my mistake.
There is no guarantee that you have "Free Nights and/or Weekends."
The law still applies, as does the one that telemarketers cannot call you on Sunday.
It's about time there was a cell phone directory. I can't remember how many times I've lost someone's cell phone number when I need it. It exists for landlines, why not cell phones?
I think the underlying excuse from the parent is the "right to privacy" which doesn't exist in the first place. This is just an example of privacy activism gone awry.
Good! For the premium they charge, they'd better offer all of the "default protections" they can come up with.
I run my business from my PCS phone.
Did you know that you CANNOT get a white pages listing for your cell phone unless you get your cell phone service from your local RBOC?
Try getting a D&B on a number they can't verify with the RBOC!
but I wouldn't trust any "do not call" registry. You're handing out your cell number in blind trust that the list won't be adulterated in the future. It's just like those opt-out links at the bottom of spam - it will likely only alert spammers that it's a "live" and important contact.
Trust no one.
SEO Copywriter. Just Say ON
Thank god the DNC doesn't work like the CAN-SPAM act... I couldn't handle getting so many calls for V1@g.RA.
Hmmm.
Really! What is it with these companies, and screwing over their customers for an extra few dollars? No spammer is going to pay as much per number as the user is going to pay making and receiving calls.
This shows a total disregard for their customers. This is a stupid attitude, towards the people who actually pay the bulk of their income. They need to stop courting the extras, and make sure those who supply their primary income are as happy as possible with the service.
Will the Do Not Call list include a do not bluetooth spam? Im more worried about shops and like offering me things on a more personal level direct to my phone whenever I enter a mall or go to the bar.
With SprintPCS I was getting occassional spam text messages, so I when to their Website and turned that feature off - except then I kept getting spam text messages from ... SprintPCS. I had to call and have them "unprovision" text messaging entirely in order to get any assurance that they could stop themselves from spamming me!
"with their freedom lost all virtue lose" - Milton
Crazy talk, who the fuck pays for incoming calls?
The FCCis in the process of making rules to protect consumers regarding cell phones and spam. On another related note: The American Teleservices Association filed a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the constitutionality of the National Do Not Call Registry. If the Court takes the case, I do not believe that they will over turn the 10th Circuit's decision.
Verizon already phone spams their own customers.
About a month ago, I got one of those annoying automated calls offering me "great new services" through Verizon. The recording said "Push 1 for more information".
So, I pushed '1' and waded went through several levels of systems until I could talk to a human. I asked him to set all my privacy preferences to prohibit any further calls or sharing of my personal information, and he was totally lost at how to proceed. He acted as if this was an unprecedented request.. "I don't have any idea how I could do that. We don't have any settings for that in the user accounts."
After spending 30 minutes on the phone with this guy, I was pissed to have wasted so much time and just wanted to hang up. But he agreed to submit some paper form that was supposed to ensure this did not happen again.. He did not inspire a lot of confidence, but I haven't gotten another call.. yet.
I can never remember my home phone number and they are always kind enough to inform me what my number is, right before I call hang up on them.
They are so much fun. As soon as I realize it is them, I put the phone down and walk away for a few minutes. Political callers are the best, as, I usually spout some anti-Capitalist, anti-Democratic stuff their way.
Hm, maybe I should un-register my home phone, I do so love messing with the telemarketers.
Now, my cell is another story. I have an international cell, as in, I can take it to other countries and it still rings with my USA-based number. I would not be happy to recieve a call from a telemarketer while in Australia, 11 hours ahead, and at a cost of US$1/min.
Oh, I use T-Mobile, so, this does not make me too happy.
-CPM
---You're all I need, When the water runs deep, You're all I need, Now I cry my soul to sleep -- Collective Soul, Needs
http://www.vintagepork.com/ isn't working, damn it. What's it about?
riding round the world on an old motorcycle
I will start writing a spam filter for cell phones.
Make sure you set your rules wizard on your phone to only accept calls from your address book. =>
I have many friends with cell phones through different companies, and none of the other companies seem to be raising their prices at all because of this bill. T-mobile is a horrible company that doesn't give a shit about the customer, everytime I had a problem with them they simply told me that is the way it is and they wont make any effort to change it. I don't know where they got their business practices but where I come from the customer is ALWAYS right!
I am now switching to Verizon for reasons such as them not giving out the personal information of customer THAT PAY FOR THEIR SERVICE! Until companies start caring about the customers and not their profits...their profits will continue to go down.
I highly reccomend to anyone that is considering moving to T-Mobile or any of their affiliates to think twice and look at Verizon or Nextel instead. Peace...
If carrots got you drunk, rabbits would be fucked up. - Comedian Mitch Hedberg R.I.P. 03/30/68-2/24/05
I think except in US, calls to cellphones are usually only charge to the callers. That makes sense...
Codeala - Just another mindless drone
You have to remeber that they are talking about the US. It is new there. And it is a problem, as they are paying for incoming calls. And they seem to not have a general, working do-not-call registry(?).
Strange, but true.
(Have Karma, flame away...)
In Sweden, where I live, anybody can look up any cell phone number. That is, unless it's an unregistered pre-paid card (then there's no way to tell who's using it) or the subscriber chose not to be listed. I don't think it's a big deal.
Martin
every day i see the fax machine out by the server room near my office, spitting out worthless faxes about vacations to tahiti and MCSE bootcamps.
/expect/ you to necessarily know the answer haha.. but does someone? =D
not calling you a liar, just saying i wasnt aware that this practice (junk faxing) was illegal.. and if it really is, how come every business i've worked at that has a publically accessable fax machine, seems to get these faxes everyday (i.e. why isnt the law being enforced). i dont
Here's a place where a whitelist would work without being a problem.
A feature to block all messages from numbers not in the phones directory. The phone should just discard them without notifying you at all.
I'm not surprised that T-Mobile has been selling personal information. They also send email spam, via "affiliates". I'm shopping for a new cell phone (camera phone) to replce my old cell phone, and the spam they sent me kept them from consideration. Never do business with spammers.
A couple of times I tried calling back the caller number after a TM call. In UK you can dial a number to get the number of the last incoming call. When I tried the number, I got a message saying the number was for outgoing calls only. In other words the caller ID is spoofed because the number is useless.
Clever idea though.
Well, it's nice to gain a little benefit from the grievous breach of separation in this country.
Now, let's see; 7th-day Adventists can cover Saturday, and the Dischordians should get Friday covered too.
How can a telemarketer know if you are roaming or not?
Sure i might have free minutes when i'm in colorado, or even the usa. But if i fly home to britain i'll be paying for every second.
Another peeve of mine is that they don't consider the time of day where your phone terminates.. as such when i was living in the UK, i'd get telemarketer calls at 1am since I found it convenient to have a 303 (Denver) number.
It should be illegal to call a phone if it's possible that it rings in a country where it's after 9pm.
It's a damn shame that the US gov can't write a simple reg program that will work cross platform. I simple see no reason to write IE dependent code. Especially when the code is related to a government service. When will people learn that by writing IE dependent code, they are only hurting themeselves and their users.
Alternatively, what about the customers who go through cell phone numbers, plans and services like there's no tommorrow?
I've gone through 5 different plans in the past 3 years (pay as you go, 1 year plan, etc).
My phone got deactivated once and I had to get a new number.
This book might be horribly inaccurate at some points.
"Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality." -Jules de Gautier
Mod parent up!
All cell phones are already a "Do Not Call" telemarketing item. You don't have to be on any list because its the same as a fax machine. You pay the charges for the call because its your minutes, and so they can be reported and fined with no signup.
~~ Please keep your arms, legs, and outright stupidity inside the ride at all times. Thank You ~~
a scan of the do-not-call registry page reveals this little tidbit:/ njs.gif?dcsuri=/nojavascript"
src="http://g6589dcs.nyc2.aens.net/DCS000003_6D4Q
Nice of AT&T to be monitoring/logging all the traffic to that site.
I won't register because they have no business associating an IP or e-mail with a telephone number in an opt-out list.
I can cross index this the liscense plates, and I can call the bozo who just cut me off, when they get off th phone.
I can see it now:
"Hello"
"Is this Paul?"
"yes"
Paul Bozo?"
"yes, who is this?"
"This is the person you just cut off. Have a nice day."
Let the paranoia begin!
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Name: g6589dcs.nyc2.aens.net
Address: 63.240.16.174
Name: donotcall.gov
Address: 206.16.196.198
Aliases: www.donotcall.gov
No ethical reason for a webbot to be in that page, going to a completely separate network. Period.
Cell phone directory or catalog is not worth news.
It has been talked about for a long time - the first time I heard it being talked seriously was in Italy in 1998.
It is being enforced. It's just that the legal process is slow and the perpetrators are weasels who will start up a new company when their old company is shut down.
Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
75% of _all_ mobile users is a big call...I don't think all the Australian cell users will be too worried about this.
I just got a new cellphone yesterday and I started thinking... I have 5 phone numbers in my area code just of my own and Im just an average guy. With so many people having a home phone, a cell phone, a work phone, often a fax number or a second line for (heaven forbid) dialup access, that kind of thing... it sure seems like 9 million phone numbers isn't very many for a given area code... Maybe it is, I dont know, but I think theres a few million PEOPLE in my city, let alone the other 1/3 the state that share the same area code, and if most of those have 2-3 phone numbers... seems suprising to fit them all within that 9 million cap?
I'm Rick James with mod points biatch!
Then forward that number to your cell. Its extra $30 a month or a $1 day.
Have you ever been to a turkish prison?
Personally, I think it's a sham that US phone services charge for incoming calls. In no other country is this the case? I mean, when I call from a Verizon cell phone to a Verizon cell phone why should both people be paying?
As far as I know it, in New Zealand, Australia, Europe and Asia, it's free to receive cellphone calls, generally speaking. Callers can tell by the phone number prefix that it's a cell phone, and they pay when they call.
(Yes, that means you can receive all the calls you like on your cellular phone for something like $10 US per year to stay connected.)
There are schemes like call-diversion that send calls to (e.g.) your home phone line to your cellphone. In these cases the cellphone user pays because they made the decision to send the call over the cellular network.
It's no wonder cellphone penetration is so low in the states when having a cellphone means taking on a huge liability for bozos ringing you up!
Why is the system so different in the US to everywhere else?
I am about to file a lawsuit against traffic-power.com. They called my cell phone advertising search engine optimization services (I run an informational site for a niche sport [floridacaves.com]). The number they called was listed in my website whois data, however that really doesn't matter.
1) The website is not business related, no advertising, no banners, and nothing commercial related. If they were calling a business, there might be an excemption, however there is not.
2) In order for an entity to call solicit by junk fax, prerecord, or to a cell phone, you must have given express prior permission. The mere listing in a directory (i.e. membership list, phone book, etc) does not constitute express permission.
Had they even ettempted to talk to me once, I wouldn't be likely filing, but they failed to send me a copy of their company do-not-call policy, didn't train the reps in the use of a DNC list, and failed to follow state and federal law. They leave me little choice but to file suit, and I have a pretty substantial bit of case-law backing it up. I've done a lot of research into this. If anyone has goten a call from these people (or even email) then I'd love to hear it and will keep you updated as how the case goes. Right now I'm looking at at a $4500 suit in trebled statutory damages.
These types of services (nicknamed "block the blocker") often work only if the caller's caller ID is actually blocked by *69 or per-line blocking. Depending on the telco, block the blocker won't block calls when "out of area" is sent (which means the caller's originating telco doesn't support caller ID transmission, or the call was manually dialed by an operator, there was a failure in transmission of caller ID from the business' PBX to the telco, etc.).
These services also won't block anyone with, say, a Cisco CallManager configured to send 000-000-0000 as the calling number. Where I work we can set our CallManager to send *anything* to the telco as caller ID (and toll-free ANI too!). Whatever we send the telco over our digital trunks will show on your caller ID box. For a while we had it misconfigured to send only the 4-digit extension number as caller ID, so when calling home from work caller ID would be only "0123."
I registered my cell phone and house line at the same time. Since I use my cell more then my house line, I figured it was important.
However, there are a lot of ways for telemarketers to get around it. First off, they claim its not a sales call, when it fact it damn sure is. Second, they make it look like it was something I requested.
I got 5 calls total from a local (same state) car dealer. They claim I submitted a request via car.com and couldn't verify anything beyond that. They also claimed all of this was via E-Mail and I was talking to a rep for 2 weeks about a car.
a) They couldn't verify my E-Mail address, opps sorry, its listed as unknown or invaild.
b) Its a car I never would buy to begin with.
c) I called there managment each time telling them to stop calling me before I file a complaint.
Needless to say, not only did I file a complaint with the FTC, I also filed a complaint with the BBB and the local police. They are looking into changes being pressed for harrasment.
This is the only problem I have had so far with cell phones and telemarketers. Eitherway, I would be VERY pissed if they called my phone, if I didn't have an unlimited package through nextel, so for me its not a big deal.
I just hope if they are building a directory of cell phone numbers, they include some sort of feature to allow customers to request there names and numbers NOT be included.
until (succeed) try { again(); }
I don't ansewer my cell if I the person isn't in my address book (Meaning there name doesn't show up when the phone rings). If its important they'll leave a voice message, which if they do, my phone beeps at me and I check right away (say if it was an emergancy of something) otherwise I if its a tele, I just delete the message with in the first 10-20 seconds).
Sure its a hassle, but it keeps me from having to listen and argue with a telemarketer, and I end up using less minutes by just checking voicemail than ansering the bleeping phone.
Obviously I'm not one of those Americans who HAVE to check there phone when ever it rings, (no matter where they are).
My cell phone is set so that if the calling number is not stored in my phone book, the ring tone is "silent."
Most carriers already have yourphonenumber@carrier.com set up for text messaging, and most of the ones who don't have forms that are easy to hack and use yourself. (I've done it before, for specific clients to reach me.)
Step 1: Download entire list of available numbers.
Step 2: Sort list into sublists based on carrier, if available.
Step 3: Write a <20 line script to send your "important message" to yourphonenumber@carrier.com.
Step 4: Ignore the rule in Step 3, and add another 5-10 lines of code to make sure your spam goes to yourphonenumber@everycarrier.com, just to be sure.
Step 5: Profit! (Via your spam clients.)
Yes, report spammers! But don't expect them all to stop. Most of the spam we all get these days isn't legal, but it still comes.
After all, if you want a service (eg. to talk to someone) it seems only fair that you should pay for it and not someone else - when I go to get my hair cut, it's not as if the barber pays me for the privilidge of me coming to him.
Because of this, cold calling by companies to mobile phone users is virtually non-existant.
Avantslash - View Slashdot cleanly on your mobile phone.
When I got a Nextel phone i didn't get the text messaging service. Next thing I know I get couple ad type text messages from Nextel, when I got the bill I was charged $0.25 for each! They said I hadn't asked to have text message ads blocked, I said why would I ask, I wasn't paying for the text messaging option and thus couldn't recieve messages anyway from what I understood. They credited me the charges and put the block on.
- Disclaimer: Information in this post deemed reliable but not guaranteed.