TrapCall Service To Bypass Caller ID Blocking

cemaco writes in with news that TelTech, developers of the infamous SpoofCard service, have come out with something even more controversial: a set of services for revealing blocked caller ID numbers. The services take advantage of a loophole in the way caller ID blocking works — it has never been effective when calling an 800 number, because the recipient is paying for the call. So TelTech instructs you how to forward blocked calls (transparently) to their 800 number; the call comes back to your phone in seconds with the formerly hidden caller ID revealed. Advocacy groups for victims of domestic violence are concerned. Victims of annoying calls hiding behind caller ID blocking are rejoicing.

Comments

Re:Yeah really

[KillerBob]

Why would a wife-batterer be able to keep custody of their kids? I'm sure it happens, but it seems a little ridiculous that you could beat your wife and take the kids.

Sometimes a battered wife doesn't have the option of taking the kids with her when she leaves. Sometimes it's a case of "he's gone, get to the shelter now." Usually when it's a case like that, she will ultimately get custody of the kids, but it's in process. The legal system is not instant.

Re:Yeah really

[techess]

In theory this might be how it is "supposed to work" in practice not so much. A friend of mine had an abusive husband and she lived in Washtenaw County (one of the more "civilized" counties in MI). The last time her hubby put her in the hospital she decided it was time to get the kids out. She left and after several months of trying to get a restraining order she still had to contact him because he still had visitation rights. They did visitation exchanges at the local police station, but some direct contact via the phone was required especially since was often late in returning the kids. If she had gone to a shelter they may have had someone handle that for her, but staying at one is a terrible thing. They are horribly overcrowded.

What she ended up doing is moving in with me in Ingham county. Once she had moved in we went to the special domestic abuse court Ingham County has and she walked out with temporary full custody and a restraining order. This lasted until the actual abuse case made it to court nearly a year and a half later then she got permanent full custody and a more permanent restraining order.

So while you say that even the Brazilian police take this serious, what happens to you in the US is soley dependent on the county you live in.