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FCC Chair Wants Carriers To Block Robocalls From Spoofed Numbers (arstechnica.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: The FCC in 2015 made it clear that voice service providers can offer call blocking tools to customers, but commissioners said at the time that more needed to be done about Caller ID spoofing. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has now scheduled a preliminary vote for March 23 on new rules designed to solve the problem. "One particularly pernicious category of robocalls is spoofed robocalls -- i.e., robocalls where the caller ID is faked, hiding the caller's true identity," the proposal says. "Fraudsters bombard consumers' phones at all hours of the day with spoofed robocalls, which in some cases lure consumers into scams (e.g., when a caller claims to be collecting money owed to the Internal Revenue Service) or lead to identity theft." The proposed rules would let providers "block spoofed robocalls when the spoofed Caller ID can't possibly be valid." Providers would be able to block numbers that aren't valid under the North American Numbering Plan and block valid numbers that haven't been allocated to any phone company. They'd also be able to block valid numbers that have been allocated to a phone company but haven't been assigned to a subscriber. The proposal would also codify the FCC's previous guidance that phone companies can block calls when requested by the spoofed number's subscriber. The upcoming vote on March 23 is for a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which means the rules won't take effect immediately. The FCC uses NPRMs to seek comment on proposals before issuing final rules.
There's no reason for companies to mask or spoof their phone numbers. Yes, please, stop all that!
Sent as ripples into the electromagnetic field. No single photon has been harmed in the process.
Why the F would you want to block only robocalls from spoofed numbers? Let me make a better proposition:
1) Ban/block *ALL* robocalls, period.
2) Ban/block *ALL* spoofed numbers, period.
On this topic I actually feel like I can trust Ajit Pai.
After all, there is no big company making these robocalls, hence no big bribes for Ajit to collect.
Should Verizon or AT&T ever start the practise however, I suspect Ajit will turn the ship around on a penny like he did with net neutrality.
There is one thing to be said for Ajit, he represent predictability and stability.
If they have multiple lines that terminate at the same building, an office PBX has been able to be set to one of them for outgoing calls for decades. VoIP can have the same. But cheap businesses don't like that, or even to show a fixed line number. They'd rather advertise some NGN that costs them $5/y that means they get paid cents on the minute for every incoming call.
"Wait. Something's happening. It's opening up! My God, it's full of apricots!"
As soon as they start blocking the obviously forged numbers, then all the spammers will switch to forging real numbers. Then they'll have to switch to routing-based blocking. If the number is assigned to a Verizon customer, and the call isn't being routed in a manner that Verizon uses, drop it.
Of course, this means Verizon customers couldn't use VoIP robo-callers with their own number, at least without registering it in some database first. Those customers wouldn't like the extra step, so they'll complain and block the rule.
What we really need is some unforgeable authentication system. This would require some trusted authority to give a public/private key pair for each phone number, so that each call would be accompanied by digitally signed Caller ID. For most customers, this would be handled transparently by their provider. Verizon and the like could even charge a fee for providing keys for use with VoIP dialers. Of course, this would be a major change in how calls are handled, so it would likely take many years and lots of equipment upgrades.
I use Ring Central for one of my businesses, and it does everything you're asking for (except maybe the whitelist, I haven't looked into that because I've never needed it - but people "in the know' can hit an extension number to get through immediately.) My personal extension forwards to an IP phone at my desk and my mobile phone simultaneously.
When a call comes from a number I do not recognize, I just don't answer. Doesn't matter what it is. Once in a while if I am expecting a call I might answer an unrecognized number. Otherwise, let it go to voicemail.
If they leave a message and it is someone I want to talk to, I add them to my contacts and call them back
And if they robocall from the same number a few times, I add the number to the "ignore" list so I am not bothered by the sound of a ringing phone.
A pretty good mode. Self defense against the phone Visigoths at the gates. I am really surprised that legitimate business interests haven't worked on curing this along time ago. These days, charitable organizations who rely on phone canvassing are included in the listing of calls that aren't answered, that political calls are psychologically associated with fix your PC scams, or the IRS scams, or whatever other scammy crap these criminals are promoting.
The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
So the conditions that would be blocked would be;
--numbers that aren't valid under NANPA: foreign numbers and nonsensical numbers like 000-000-0000
--valid numbers that haven't been allocated to any phone company: in NANPA's reserve (like bogons)
--valid numbers that have been allocated to a phone company but haven't been assigned to a subscriber: in a carrier's reserve
which completely ignores all calls that spoof legit numbers that already belong to another entity, which is the most dangerous type of spoofing and the one that needs the most attention. "Hi, I'm from the IRS. See my number? I'm legit!"
Come on, grow some teeth
No! No! No! The only time I get a friendly call from a woman is when Heather, from Account Services, calls to offer me help on my credit card debt. I look forward to those calls every day. When I'm in a bad place, Heather calls and I say "Excuse me, I have to take this". And Heather is amazing. She really gets around. She calls from Maine one day and from Arizona the next. Once while talking to Heather on the office phone, she also called my cell. And a different number every time. Amazing woman, that Heather. Please don't take her away. Could it be I'm falling in love?
So allow same origin spoofing. Any line the local pizza place or doctor's office owns can advertise any number assigned to them but no others.
Apply the rules at the border should a call be handed off for completion.
He doesn't seem to grasp the concept of ignoring phone calls. I don't get it.
It's a generational thing, one I had a hard time breaking myself of in fact. It's hard to explain, but when I was younger, a call wasn't normally an interruption or scam attempt. Every call was likely something that was legitimately needing attention.
When I finally got rid of my AT&T land line, I had not received a single legitimate phone call on it for more than three years but received on average 9 calls a day, and never used it to make calls. Once AT&T demanded almost $75 a month for a simple POTS and no other service, I said ENOUGH! and got rid of them. I've never felt better than to be completely free of the horror of AT&T.
Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.
And what do you do when a loved one is in an accident and the hospital or police are trying to call you to notify you Mr. Smarty pants?
If I get two phone calls from the same number within three minutes, it will ring through. They can leave a message as well, Mr Sweetie Pie.
What if they call while I'm taking a dump. What if they call while I'm inside a tunnel. What if they call while I'm on the phone talking to someone else, what if what if?
Are you one of the millenials who breaks into a cold sweat of fear when that last little bar disappears form your phone? I've worked with some who won't leave an area with cell phone coverage. Had one try to get me to turn around while on the way to a remote site. Spent most of his time there climbing on things to try to get a little extra height to re-establish his wireless umbilical cord. Something might happen that someone might need to get hold of them about something that is the most important thing they will ever take a call about. That's addiction personified.
Do you sleep with your phone? And how in the hell did humans ever manage to survive before we had these little things? Did they never leve their loved ones?
The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
I get reminder calls from my doctor, dentist, pharmacy, etc. None of them are human, but all are welcome.
Just another day in Paradise
All I can say is: Thank goodness and it's way about time that now in 2017 this might get done.
I see ppl complaining about collateral damage, e.g. legit uses for spoofing but I say screw it. It's not worth it. If you need those features or whatever find another way to do it. Spoofing needs to be stopped completely once and for all.
I would also like to see more actual enforcement against spammers. Would be great to read about them being locked up which is where they belong.