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Old 09-02-2011, 05:16 PM   #41
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Even though I'm one of those geezers who is supposed to cling to copper wires to the bitter end, I'm not a fan of land line phones. We live in a rural area and our land line reliability was the pits. I was happy to say goodbye to the bill and the frustration of picking up the phone, not hearing a dial tone, and dealing with "Ernestine" at the phone company.
I thought I heard someone call my name.

We pay $25/month for our landline (which is surprisingly reliable), and we paid something like $90 for an answering machine whose ringers we can turn off. We don't have to tell anyone to put us on their do-not-call lists... their computers detect the answering machine and never call again. After a year or so we're removed from everyone's lists, although we do have problems with election years.

This system is amazingly effective for our friends, who know to either (1) send us an e-mail, (2) leave a voicemail and we'll call back when we walk by the phone, or (3) leave us alone. Yes, we miss out on a lot of short-notice "opportunities". Thank goodness.

Another unexpected benefit is that our daughter has learned to solve her own problems instead of outsourcing their solution to Dial-A-Dad. These days we get voicemail along the lines of "Here's my problem, here's what I'm thinking, call me back within x hours if you get the chance, or else I'll send you an e-mail to tell how it worked out-- love you, bye!" Best empty-nester present ever.

Meanwhile Hawaii's ridges & valleys practically guarantee crappy cell-phone connectivity (as verified by our daughter whenever she's home on break). Our pay-as-you-go cell phone costs a minimum of $20 every 30 days. Even when we pay $1.99 for the day's first call, we'll still finish a month with a $12 balance. It's fun to see Verizon get so upset when we let the money lapse at the 30-day mark and then don't reload the phone until the 89-day mark.

So, between the robocalls and the cell-phone hassles, I can see us sticking with a landline and an answering machine for a long, long time.
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Old 09-03-2011, 09:51 AM   #42
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I have noticed an uptick in the number of these types of calls over the last year. I am also noticing incoming texts to my cell phone for offers to get out of debt and to refinance my home.

I let the answering machine pick up most of them.

I am on the "Do not Call Registry" so I am not sure why I am getting the calls.
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Old 09-03-2011, 09:55 AM   #43
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I am on the "Do not Call Registry" so I am not sure why I am getting the calls.
Probably from overseas boiler rooms where the FTC can't touch them.
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Old 09-03-2011, 11:12 AM   #44
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Probably from overseas boiler rooms where the FTC can't touch them.
It might take a little discussion to get to the name of the company...

But I would think if they are acting on the behalf of a domestic company or company that does Business in the US... the client company would be accountable for those regulations.

Unless this is the big loophole!
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Old 09-03-2011, 11:14 AM   #45
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It might take a little discussion to get to the name of the company...
Yeah, good luck getting answers to "who are you" and "who do you represent" -- they are, no doubt, specifically trained to NOT answer those questions. When you start asking those questions, they tend to immediately hang up.
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Old 09-03-2011, 11:18 AM   #46
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Yeah, good luck getting answers to "who are you" and "who do you represent" -- they are, no doubt, specifically trained to NOT answer those questions. When you start asking those questions, they tend to immediately hang up.
That was my experience. The first time the guy said our phone was not on the do-not-call list. The second guy just hung up on me. Next time I will ask them to hold while I go find a responsible party to take their call. Should at least slow them down a bit.
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Old 09-03-2011, 12:31 PM   #47
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Yeah, good luck getting answers to "who are you" and "who do you represent" -- they are, no doubt, specifically trained to NOT answer those questions. When you start asking those questions, they tend to immediately hang up.

Perhaps the approach is to hold the curses till after you understand what it is about.

I would expect they have a pitch to sell something and would get to it pretty quick. You may have to listen a little and ask a few questions (nicely). Act like the mark they are hoping for...

Questions cannot begin with: "What the F^%@ are you doing calling..."
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Old 09-03-2011, 12:36 PM   #48
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Perhaps the approach is to hold the curses till after you understand what it is about.

I would expect they have a pitch to sell something and would get to it pretty quick. You may have to listen a little and ask a few questions (nicely). Act like the mark they are hoping for...
My wife has been getting a lot of these calls on her cell phone and we did play this game once recently. It turns out she was asked for the 'man of the house' or some such, and this time instead of hanging up or playing Grand Inquisitor, she said "yeah, hold on a moment."

Sure enough I get on and someone with a nearly impossible accent mentioned something about my Viagra prescription and how they could save me some money or some such (can't be sure; the accent was really hard to get past). But never would they identify themselves or the entity they were representing.
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Old 09-03-2011, 12:47 PM   #49
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Recently, I have had callers asking for complete strangers. When I say that I don't know such or such person, then the caller offers to "help" me instead...
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Old 02-13-2012, 09:02 AM   #50
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Sorry to open an old thread, but I think you'll like this article published today about a robocall scam being shut down. I'm sure we've all been called by "Rachel, from Card Services".

Top 5 Things to Know About Robocalling - ABC News
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Old 02-13-2012, 09:08 AM   #51
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Thanks for posting this, axtec. These idiots have been annoying me on both home and cell phones. Now if they would just find the mega-idiots who send the spam text messages...
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Old 02-13-2012, 10:09 AM   #52
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Sorry to open an old thread, but I think you'll like this article published today about a robocall scam being shut down. I'm sure we've all been called by "Rachel, from Card Services".
Hot dog! I'm excited. I was getting really annoyed with "Rachel".

From the article,
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Companies are no longer allowed to robocall you, unless they have your written permission.
I still receive about a dozen robocalls each week, despite being on the no call list and not giving written permission.

I don't expect this to stop. I am a registered member of a major political party who votes in every election, and apparently that gives politicians implicit permission to robocall me constantly. I have health insurance and ditto for many health related businesses. I don't have any credit cards but I frequently get calls related to credit cards (though the ones from Rachel will cease, apparently). I hang up on all of them.
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Old 02-13-2012, 10:11 AM   #53
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Sorry to open an old thread, but I think you'll like this article published today about a robocall scam being shut down. I'm sure we've all been called by "Rachel, from Card Services".

Top 5 Things to Know About Robocalling - ABC News

Great news! Goodbye to Rachel.
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Old 02-13-2012, 10:17 AM   #54
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I still receive about a dozen robocalls each week, despite being on the no call list and not giving written permission. I don't expect this to stop.
Same here.
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Old 02-13-2012, 10:24 AM   #55
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There are a number of call blocker apps for smart cell phones. They do a good job of getting rid of the robocalls. Most are free but the one I use is EZBlock for 99 cents. very easy to use and effective.
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Old 02-13-2012, 10:40 AM   #56
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Wife will be happy to know that Rachel is gone--those calls drove her nuts!
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Old 02-13-2012, 03:10 PM   #57
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Rachel may be gone, but her twin sister called me just yesterday. Same voice, but can't remember if she identified herself.
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Old 02-13-2012, 03:18 PM   #58
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Well, to be fair, though the article mentioned "Rachel" and "Card Services", it is unclear if that was the "company" which was actually shut down. The entity mentioned by name is AFL Financial Services / F&F Payment Processing.
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Old 02-15-2012, 08:45 AM   #59
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Just got a another one. This time I held for a person and asked why they call when it's against the law to call people on the do not call list. She said "it's not against the law for your credit card company to call you." When I asked for the identify of her company.....click. The call didn't begin as Rachel, but the same voice or so it seemed.

These calls will never go away.
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Old 02-15-2012, 08:48 AM   #60
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These calls will never go away.
Maybe not entirely, but maybe we will get fewer of them in the future...

FCC set to impose new limits on automated telemarketing calls - CNN.com

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New rules expected to be approved Wednesday will further limit automatically dialed or pre-recorded calls know as "robocalls" and automated text messages. The FCC's rules go beyond the existing Federal Trade Commission rules which have been in force since 2008.
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