Do Not Call List

[mickeyd]

I have been on the national DNC list since it's beginning and I recently signed up for 5 more years. However I received a robophone solicitation today anyway...I had time to waste, so I wanted to see who was violating the list with this pitch for medigap insurance, but I never found out. After the one minute spiel, they advised "If you want to hear more about this important coverage press one. If you wish to be placed on our DNC list press 9."

Well 9 it was, but I still never got to find out who was is violation of the law.

 

[CuppaJoe]

And I really love the calls for deadbeats with my last name, "...if you are not TeacupJoe, disregard this message."

 

[W2R]

How about the recorded message "with important information regarding your Mastercard or Visa card".

What they don't know, is that I am one of the 3 people in the U.S. with no credit card. So, I just hang up.

 

[MikeD]

How about the recorded message "with important information regarding your Mastercard or Visa card".

What they don't know, is that I am one of the 3 people in the U.S. with no credit card. So, I just hang up.

I mute my speakerphone, press the number to speak to a person and let them say "Hello?" a few times. I never hang up first.

Mike D.

 

[megacorp-firee]

How about the recorded message "with important information regarding your Mastercard or Visa card".

What they don't know, is that I am one of the 3 people in the U.S. with no credit card. So, I just hang up.

Wow, are you sure that there really are 2 others? I heard that you're an urban myth.

 

[My Dream]

How do you get on the DNC list in Ontario Canada? It sure would be nice not to have telemarketers calling anymore.

 

[Nords]

We leave our answering machine on and our ringer off, and that pretty much seems to stop the calls.

Once the computer detects an answering machine on the line it moves on to the next number.

 

[FIRE'd@51]

How about the recorded message "with important information regarding your Mastercard or Visa card".

What they don't know, is that I am one of the 3 people in the U.S. with no credit card. So, I just hang up.

I've gotten a few of these lately, and, since they never identify the bank, I think it may be a phishing scheme.

 

[W2R]

I've gotten a few of these lately, and, since they never identify the bank, I think it may be a phishing scheme.

That could be. I have never listened past the beginning of the first sentence, so I have no idea what they are asking for. I know it would be of no interest or concern for me.

I mute my speakerphone, press the number to speak to a person and let them say "Hello?" a few times. I never hang up first.

Can't do it since I never listen long enough to hear the number (see above). It's not worth it for me to listen to them that long - - that would feel like giving up!

Wow, are you sure that there really are 2 others? I heard that you're an urban myth.

Apparently so! I think the other two are over 103 years old, disabled, senile, and completely unable to mark their "X" on the credit card application forms.

 

[cantlogin]

I uncharacteristically answered my phone the other day because I was standing right next to it when it rang. The caller asked if I was the head of the household and at least 16 years old or something like that. I told her, politely, that I wouldn’t answer any of her questions and she should never call me again. She explained that she was calling for the Nielsen television rating company and that she wasn’t selling anything. After she responded to my question as to weather or not she understood English I repeated my original response to her question. The tone of her voice changed and she seemed quite offended when she said “don’t worry, we won’t”.

It was a minor victory, but I'll take it.

 

[youbet]

Since registering on the do not call list a few years ago, the number of commercial calls we get is now very low, close to zero. And those seem to be generated by robots as opposed to a human calling off a list. We also pay about $1.50/mo to have an unlisted phone number since DW was a special ed teacher. That may help as well.

What used to be a big problem has turned into no problem so I'd call the do not call program a success. A happy success!

 

[poboy]

Something I have done that seems to throw them off when they ask for me, the wife or head of household is respond, "that is not very funny and I do not see why you would call at a time like this." I say no more and hang up the phone.

 

[Goonie]

We leave our answering machine on and our ringer off, and that pretty much seems to stop the calls.

Yup, that ended 90% of the calls here. Most of the other 10% were taken care of by the DNC list. Almost everyone we know, knows that we let the answering machine sort the calls, so if they call all they have to do is say "Hello. It's (insert name here)." Then we'll pick it up.....IF we want to talk to them at that time. It's nice not having dinner interrupted by callers!

 

[Nords]

Almost everyone we know, knows that we let the answering machine sort the calls, so if they call all they have to do is say "Hello. It's (insert name here)." Then we'll pick it up.....IF we want to talk to them at that time.

We used to screen our calls, but now we don't even have the volume turned on. We'll turn the ringers on if we're expecting a call, but it's really nice not to be interrupted by loud phone/answering-machine noises in the middle of whatever you're doing. Another symptom of impending hermitage, I guess.

Other side effects include our kid actually planning ahead or dealing with adversity (since Mom & Dad aren't just a rescue call away) and way fewer teenage homework-begging interruptions...

 

[vinnieg24]

I hate getting calls. I have been getting them more frequently as well

 

[clifp]

I also signed up for the Do Not Call list at the beginning. My understanding is that recently cell phone numbers got release to companies. I got a robocall yesterday I've only had a couple in a few years, so I hope this is not a trend.

 

[virginia]

Here's a question.
I just recently got a cell phone and did not give my number to anyone but family members, and recently received a text message soliciting stocks. Is it possible this major phone company is selling my information? I wouldn't think so - but how else would they get my number? Or are they doing some kind of speed dialing of every number?

 

[HFWR]

I don't get the Pavlovian response to the phone ringing. People will jump up from the shitter to answer the phone...

As for me, the DNC list worked for all but local solicitations and political calls. Disconnecting my landline fixed those...

 

[Goonie]

Here's a question.
I just recently got a cell phone and did not give my number to anyone but family members, and recently received a text message soliciting stocks. Is it possible this major phone company is selling my information? I wouldn't think so - but how else would they get my number? Or are they doing some kind of speed dialing of every number?

When I first got my new Tracfone I was getting calls because the phone number had been re-issued (or whatever the term is). The person who had the # before had creditors chasing him. As soon as I 'ported' my own cellphone # over, the calls ceased.....obviously. So perhaps the number you have now is just a re-issued #, and the previous owner subscribed to some outfit that's still texting to that #. Just a hunch.

 

[eridanus]

I've gotten a lot more calls too recently. I've received cold calling brokers (think "Boiler Room") to the Mastercard and Visa calls to someone from India wanting my SS# to process an award stay from Holiday Inn.

I usually set the phone down and let them ramble on for a minute or two. The MC&V robocall repeats itself several times.

 

[AltaRed]

How do you get on the DNC list in Ontario Canada? It sure would be nice not to have telemarketers calling anymore.

Canada has been very slow to implement DNC due to special interests. Been at least 2 years in the making. Current status is for Bell to operate it (heaven help us) and get it up and running by Sept 30, 2008.

CRTC selects National Do Not Call List operator

Added: I don't seen anything in the materials that would stop telemarketing calls coming in from USA. I already get telemarketing calls originating mostly out of Michigan (the unemployed gotta do something). I suspect it might be (is) the same in reverse, i.e. Canadian call centers harassing Americans.

 

[gindie]

A very funny bit from the "Bob and Tom" radio show, dealing with telemarketers:

digg / video display

 

[mickeyd]

Along this line of thinking, DW and I have begun to receive CC offers in the mail (mostly AE as I recall) after years of finally receiving no CC offers. What I have begun to do is something that I did years ago. I write on the application that is enclosed : "NO Thanks. Take me off your list and send me no more s**t like this in the future" and mail it back to them (along with any items enclosed in the initial mailing including their envelope) in the business reply envelope that they have conveniently enclosed for my use.

I do not know if this causes them any inconvenience or not, but it sure makes me happy to increase their cost of retrieving the mail and having some minion open and sort it out.

 

[Goonie]

Along this line of thinking, DW and I have begun to receive CC offers in the mail (mostly AE as I recall) after years of finally receiving no CC offers. What I have begun to do is something that I did years ago. I write on the application that is enclosed : "NO Thanks. Take me off your list and send me no more s**t like this in the future" and mail it back to them (along with any items enclosed in the initial mailing including their envelope) in the business reply envelope that they have conveniently enclosed for my use.

I do not know if this causes them any inconvenience or not, but it sure makes me happy to increase their cost of retrieving the mail and having some minion open and sort it out.

I signed up for the junk mail opt-out at OptOutPrescreen about 1 or 2 years ago, and I don't receive hardly any junk mail anymore! The only CC stuff I get is from the CC's that I already have....NO new CC offers!

I used to mail them back their applications, with "NO THANK YOU" scrawled side to side and top to bottom.....in wide-tip black El Marko! After a while of doing that, I started filling their prepaid envelops with subscription cards that fall out of magazines. Once in while I'd switch the El Marko scrawled apps, and send Amex apps to MC, VISA apps to Amex, etc. And just for fun, one time I filled their prepaid envelops with confetti......that had to have made a mess somewhere!

Now if I get anything, I just mail them back their prepaid envelop....empty. I figure it generates a little extra revenue for the USPS.

 

[mickeyd]

prepaid envelops with confetti......

Wow, I'll bet the mail opening machines loved that one...