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Energy Firm Slapped With $65,000 Fine For Making 1.5 Million Nuisance Calls (theregister.co.uk)
A UK firm offering people energy-saving solutions has been fined after making almost 1.5 million unsolicited calls without checking if the numbers were registered on the UK's opt-out database. From a report: Southampton-based Home Logic used a dialler system to screen the telephone numbers that it planned to call against the Telephone Preference Service register, which allows people to opt out of receiving marketing calls. This system was unavailable for at least 90 days out of the 220 between April 2015 and March 2016 due to technical issues -- but that didn't stop Home Logic from continuing to make phone calls. Some 1,475,969 were made in that time. And, as a result, Blighty's data protection watchdog the Information Commissioner's Office received 133 complaints about the firm from people who had registered with the TPS and did not expect to be picking up the phone to marketeers. It ruled that the biz had breached the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations and duly fined it 50,000 pound ($64,500).
We call that, "the cost of doing business"
Wouldn't it make more sense to fine £50,000 *plus* 10x the financial gain from those calls? If 1,500,000 calls generate more than £50,000 in profit (over say 2 years), there is no incentive to obey the law. Make it hurt to defraud the public, make it financially debilitating to commit financial crimes, and tadaa, you will see a decline. When companies get slapped on the wrist for lying, destroying the environment, scamming the elderly, or stealing money from the poor, they will continue doing so. This isn't rocket surgery.
Opt out list are the grabbing the pig by the wrong leg.
We could have gone with Opt In lists.
But the best way to go about it is to have a way to set your own phone line to not accept telemarketing calls. Then when a telemarketer makes a call to that line, the phone switch simply drops that call. Marketers with an exsisting relation ship could over ride that by sending a counter signal that yes, they have a signed permission slip from the lessor of that number to make a marketing call. If they use the over ride signal, and the lessor doesn't agree, the lessor hangs up, dials a #XX number to say "Oh, no they didn't!" Then the caller has to provide evidence they did have permission. If they don't then it's a $10,000 fine per each call. And after 20 calls in 24 hours of folks say "Oh no they didn't!", the marketer's line gets automatically shut down.
End of unsolicited telemarketing problem.
Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.
Can't speak for the UK, but here in the US Do Not Call lists allow calls from pollsters, """nonprofits""" and politicians. They're more like 100% free Do Rip Me Off lists. Here's some numbers we guarantee are real and the certainty you aren't competing with people who sell actual products.
I bet if you asked people, they'd say they'd prefer an inverted list that allows telemarketers but forbids all the others. I mean, if a telemarketer tricks me into an extended vehicle warranty, I at least get some kind of extended vehicle warranty. I can't say I felt as good about subsidizing the latest Wounded Warrior rootbeer can pyramid party.