Americans received a record-breaking 47.8 billion robocalls in 2018
April 10, 2019 10:51 AM Subscribe
"With more than 100 million calls placed every day, robocalling might well be the most ubiquitous, most hated, and least punished crime in the country."On the Trail of the Robocall King
Americans received a record-breaking 47.8 billion robocalls in 2018
That's per person, right? Pretty sure I received at least 46 billion robocalls last year.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 11:06 AM on April 10, 2019 [53 favorites]
That's per person, right? Pretty sure I received at least 46 billion robocalls last year.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 11:06 AM on April 10, 2019 [53 favorites]
I get at least three or four a day.
The worst part is that the FCC could stop them almost overnight, but of course Pai and his fellow Republicans on the board refuse to take action. And the very worst part is that we can't *wholly* blame the Republicans, as the gaping loopholes in the caller ID laws were known prior to Pai's ascendance and the former Democratic dominated FCC didn't close them.
In fairness, it wasn't quite as bad back in early 2016, but still it's been known among techs for a long time that the way we mandate caller ID in the USA sucks.
posted by sotonohito at 11:06 AM on April 10, 2019 [14 favorites]
The worst part is that the FCC could stop them almost overnight, but of course Pai and his fellow Republicans on the board refuse to take action. And the very worst part is that we can't *wholly* blame the Republicans, as the gaping loopholes in the caller ID laws were known prior to Pai's ascendance and the former Democratic dominated FCC didn't close them.
In fairness, it wasn't quite as bad back in early 2016, but still it's been known among techs for a long time that the way we mandate caller ID in the USA sucks.
posted by sotonohito at 11:06 AM on April 10, 2019 [14 favorites]
We had been getting a ton, huge increase last year - but then just lately they've stopped entirely.
posted by LobsterMitten at 11:09 AM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by LobsterMitten at 11:09 AM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Mine seem to come and go in waves --2 or 3 for a few days, then 4 or 5 for a week or more. Then blessed quiet. Then the cycle starts again. I should start charting these and see if it's a phase of the moon thing . . . .
posted by carrioncomfort at 11:17 AM on April 10, 2019 [6 favorites]
posted by carrioncomfort at 11:17 AM on April 10, 2019 [6 favorites]
They came in waves for me.
If I was in my car I'd answer the call (hands free) and just try to string them along during my commute as long as I could. I really liked the ones who need you to say "yes" to any question (apparently they just want to record your voice saying the word "yes" for whatever nefarious reasons that will probably never work). So I'd answer "affirmative, yep, uh-huh, gotcha, you betcha, roger that, hoo boy ain't that right, totes ma goats, I can't say no to that". They'd get increasingly frustrated and would eventually say "sir, you have to answer yes" and I'd be like "YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME" and my kid would die of laughter.
I also liked the IRS calls that said police are on their way, but if I just procure a few hundred dollars worth of iTunes gift cards they'll call it off. The sad part is an intern in my wife's office fell for this (wasn't IRS but was for something regarding tuition) and forked over something like $350 worth of iTunes gift cards before my wife said "so, uh, have you ever heard of the federal government accepting iTunes gift cards as legal tender before?". Sad day all around.
A couple months ago all the calls kept coming in during business hours, and while I love to troll the shit out of these people, it sounds weird and unprofessional when I do it in the office. So I got an app called RoboKiller (for iPhones) and holy shit it works. I've gotten 2, maybe 3 calls come through in the past 8 weeks. Contrast that with like 8/day sometimes.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 11:31 AM on April 10, 2019 [26 favorites]
If I was in my car I'd answer the call (hands free) and just try to string them along during my commute as long as I could. I really liked the ones who need you to say "yes" to any question (apparently they just want to record your voice saying the word "yes" for whatever nefarious reasons that will probably never work). So I'd answer "affirmative, yep, uh-huh, gotcha, you betcha, roger that, hoo boy ain't that right, totes ma goats, I can't say no to that". They'd get increasingly frustrated and would eventually say "sir, you have to answer yes" and I'd be like "YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME" and my kid would die of laughter.
I also liked the IRS calls that said police are on their way, but if I just procure a few hundred dollars worth of iTunes gift cards they'll call it off. The sad part is an intern in my wife's office fell for this (wasn't IRS but was for something regarding tuition) and forked over something like $350 worth of iTunes gift cards before my wife said "so, uh, have you ever heard of the federal government accepting iTunes gift cards as legal tender before?". Sad day all around.
A couple months ago all the calls kept coming in during business hours, and while I love to troll the shit out of these people, it sounds weird and unprofessional when I do it in the office. So I got an app called RoboKiller (for iPhones) and holy shit it works. I've gotten 2, maybe 3 calls come through in the past 8 weeks. Contrast that with like 8/day sometimes.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 11:31 AM on April 10, 2019 [26 favorites]
I am not in favor of long prison sentences for nonviolent crime. However, these people deserve a bunch of good, hard time locked up. At least that is the way I feel on a high call volume day.
posted by Midnight Skulker at 11:32 AM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
posted by Midnight Skulker at 11:32 AM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
For the current state of play with robocalls and the FCC, see Docket 17-59, In the Matter of Advanced Methods to Target and Eliminate Unlawful Robocalls.
I have great hopes for SHAKEN/STIR.
posted by zamboni at 11:34 AM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
I have great hopes for SHAKEN/STIR.
posted by zamboni at 11:34 AM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Lately I get faked-id phone calls that even when I answer them, immediately disconnect with no audio. Still puzzling over that.
I do like the ones that botch the caller ID by dropping a digit, which my phone identifies as being from China.
posted by vibratory manner of working at 11:40 AM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
I do like the ones that botch the caller ID by dropping a digit, which my phone identifies as being from China.
posted by vibratory manner of working at 11:40 AM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
My guess about the calls that immediately disconnect is that there is a malfunction with whatever software is being used to make the calls.
posted by VTX at 11:46 AM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by VTX at 11:46 AM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
Who knows how many robo-calls I received. Seriously,I have no idea, anything not in my contacts list goes right to voicemail. I could be getting 1000's of these a day, and I wouldn't know.
Seriously folks, this is practically a solved issue. You don't have to answer the phone (or even let your phone ring) for every person (or non-person) who tries to call you.
posted by sideshow at 12:02 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
Seriously folks, this is practically a solved issue. You don't have to answer the phone (or even let your phone ring) for every person (or non-person) who tries to call you.
posted by sideshow at 12:02 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
The game really changed once robocallers started spoofing numbers that are close to your own number. Gah!
I just don’t answer calls from numbers I don’t recognize or aren’t in my contacts. The hell of is, my health insurer does these occasional robo-questionnaires that come from a variety of different numbers. But, if you don’t answer them, they just keep calling you back until you do answer and complete the (often 15 minutes long) questionnaire.
posted by Thorzdad at 12:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
I just don’t answer calls from numbers I don’t recognize or aren’t in my contacts. The hell of is, my health insurer does these occasional robo-questionnaires that come from a variety of different numbers. But, if you don’t answer them, they just keep calling you back until you do answer and complete the (often 15 minutes long) questionnaire.
posted by Thorzdad at 12:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
I get tons. I have zero confidence that Congress will grasp the technology and be able to create effective legislation. Google has made my email reasonably spam-less. Phone companies could probably implement technology to do the same for phone calls.
I seldom answer my phone because of robocalls, so I never get calls from healthcare providers about bills(they don't leave messages), so stupid problems don't get resolved, and I have pretty much stopped caring.
posted by theora55 at 12:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
I seldom answer my phone because of robocalls, so I never get calls from healthcare providers about bills(they don't leave messages), so stupid problems don't get resolved, and I have pretty much stopped caring.
posted by theora55 at 12:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
I have great hopes for SHAKEN/STIR.
We in the VoIP fiber business are hopeful for this tech too. In the meantime, those who can, should try Nomorobo.
It is frustrating that so many of my rural neighbors who are only recently making the leap from DSL (and even dialup) to fiber are finding out that with VoIP they are are now being inundated with this shit. In communities where people still primarily communicate via phone it is annoying that they don't want to answer their phones anymore. They aren't used to seeing a spoofed call from their neighbor and they want to answer it, but now they don't.
posted by terrapin at 12:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
We in the VoIP fiber business are hopeful for this tech too. In the meantime, those who can, should try Nomorobo.
It is frustrating that so many of my rural neighbors who are only recently making the leap from DSL (and even dialup) to fiber are finding out that with VoIP they are are now being inundated with this shit. In communities where people still primarily communicate via phone it is annoying that they don't want to answer their phones anymore. They aren't used to seeing a spoofed call from their neighbor and they want to answer it, but now they don't.
posted by terrapin at 12:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
What app is recommended for Android? And will it stop donation calls for the DCCC?
posted by rebent at 12:04 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by rebent at 12:04 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
Seriously folks, this is practically a solved issue. You don't have to answer the phone (or even let your phone ring) for every person (or non-person) who tries to call you.
Yeah, people never get phone calls from important people at different numbers not in their phone books like doctors, hospitals, daycare, schools, job recruiters, or credit card companies ever. People also love scouring through dozens of voicemails to see which ones are real.
Come on, this is incredibly reductionist. Why put the burden on regular people when shitty scammers are breaking the (out-dated) laws?
posted by knownassociate at 12:07 PM on April 10, 2019 [81 favorites]
Yeah, people never get phone calls from important people at different numbers not in their phone books like doctors, hospitals, daycare, schools, job recruiters, or credit card companies ever. People also love scouring through dozens of voicemails to see which ones are real.
Come on, this is incredibly reductionist. Why put the burden on regular people when shitty scammers are breaking the (out-dated) laws?
posted by knownassociate at 12:07 PM on April 10, 2019 [81 favorites]
I no longer answer calls from the area code my phone is registered to, unless they are in my contacts. I'm pretty wary about answering any calls not in my contacts, really. Which is of course can be detrimental, because AAA called me to tell me my auto insurance was about to expire because I had forgot to update the expiration date for my card, and I only answered it because I happened to be on call. Granted, I'd prefer they email or text me, but they are kind of old-fashioned and don't do online stuff so well (I made them do some ID to confirm it was them, obviously.) But that is a call I actually wanted to get and I would have missed it most weeks because of asshole spammers being allowed to run wild.
posted by tavella at 12:10 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by tavella at 12:10 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
Seriously folks, this is practically a solved issue. You don't have to answer the phone (or even let your phone ring) for every person (or non-person) who tries to call you.
That’s a bad policy if you need to take calls from clients all across the country, calls from prospective clients, calls from large institutions, or calls from jails and prisons, among other things.
posted by Monochrome at 12:10 PM on April 10, 2019 [32 favorites]
That’s a bad policy if you need to take calls from clients all across the country, calls from prospective clients, calls from large institutions, or calls from jails and prisons, among other things.
posted by Monochrome at 12:10 PM on April 10, 2019 [32 favorites]
There was a roundup of different robocall bandaids in this recent AskMe. Verizon made their Call Filter app free last month - it's… better than nothing.
posted by zamboni at 12:11 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by zamboni at 12:11 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
Seriously folks, this is practically a solved issue. You don't have to answer the phone (or even let your phone ring) for every person (or non-person) who tries to call you.
The victims are to blame. It's so simple!
posted by Sangermaine at 12:13 PM on April 10, 2019 [27 favorites]
The victims are to blame. It's so simple!
posted by Sangermaine at 12:13 PM on April 10, 2019 [27 favorites]
I feel I would be remiss if I didn't link this Last Week Tonight episode on Robocalls.
posted by mephron at 12:15 PM on April 10, 2019 [6 favorites]
posted by mephron at 12:15 PM on April 10, 2019 [6 favorites]
Lately I get faked-id phone calls that even when I answer them, immediately disconnect with no audio. Still puzzling over that.
I've heard that what's going on there is that they're using the same equipment to call a bunch of people at once and then dropping all the calls other than whoever picks up first.
posted by Copronymus at 12:18 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
I've heard that what's going on there is that they're using the same equipment to call a bunch of people at once and then dropping all the calls other than whoever picks up first.
posted by Copronymus at 12:18 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
I'm in a position where I never have to answer my phone unless it's someone in my contacts or I'm expecting a call. I really want my iPhone to have a pseudo DND mode that just shunts all calls to voicemail unless they're in my contact list. As it is, DND pauses all notifications, which I don't want.
I mean, my first choice is just being able to forego having a phone number entirely because everyone knows that they should never call me, but my second choice is the above.
posted by mikesch at 12:28 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
I mean, my first choice is just being able to forego having a phone number entirely because everyone knows that they should never call me, but my second choice is the above.
posted by mikesch at 12:28 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
There's an interesting angle to all of this. I don't have a WSJ subscription, unfortunately, but behind the paywall the author describes a scheme where robocallers spoof calls from blocks of numbers that they "own" the caller ID info for. Every call that they make stimulates a lookup of the CID info that pays them some tiny fraction of a penny for the lookup. It doesn't seem like much money but when you're making millions of calls per day, apparently it can add up. That likely explains the calls that immediately hang up when you answer them.
posted by ensign_ricky at 12:33 PM on April 10, 2019 [7 favorites]
posted by ensign_ricky at 12:33 PM on April 10, 2019 [7 favorites]
> The game really changed once robocallers started spoofing numbers that are close to your own number. Gah!
For me, at least, that's the best thing the spammers could have done, short of them all dying in a fire. I moved across the country over half a dozen years ago but kept my phone number, so any calls from my old area code that aren't already in my address book are probably spammers; and if they aren't, they're still not going to be emergency calls anyway and they can leave me a message. It makes the spam call volume worse for most people though, and I sympathize about that.
posted by ardgedee at 12:37 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
For me, at least, that's the best thing the spammers could have done, short of them all dying in a fire. I moved across the country over half a dozen years ago but kept my phone number, so any calls from my old area code that aren't already in my address book are probably spammers; and if they aren't, they're still not going to be emergency calls anyway and they can leave me a message. It makes the spam call volume worse for most people though, and I sympathize about that.
posted by ardgedee at 12:37 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
To respond to comment further up, no Amit and the FCC can not just decide robocalls are bad and make them stop. The technology for caller ID spoofing is too easy
Check out this episode of Reply All on Robocalls.
posted by MiltonRandKalman at 12:39 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Check out this episode of Reply All on Robocalls.
posted by MiltonRandKalman at 12:39 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
However, these people deserve a bunch of good, hard time locked up.
In small boxes, calling everyone they have ever robocalled to appologize, ending with “please select an intensity and duration of the electric shock I am going to receive and press pound. Have a good day!”
posted by GenjiandProust at 12:42 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
In small boxes, calling everyone they have ever robocalled to appologize, ending with “please select an intensity and duration of the electric shock I am going to receive and press pound. Have a good day!”
posted by GenjiandProust at 12:42 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
I love the fact that one of TripAdvisor's anti-fraud people uses the pseudonym Fred Garvin.
posted by Halloween Jack at 12:58 PM on April 10, 2019
posted by Halloween Jack at 12:58 PM on April 10, 2019
I was thinking about this last night watching the new Fosse/Verdon when Gwen Verdon is laying on a couch and her phone rings and it's her husband calling from Germany and I thought, what a much different relationship with the phone than we have that's on display here. Like considering there wasn't a doubt in her mind that another person was on the other end and it was probably important. I really put myself in that headspace to experience it. It was different.
posted by bleep at 1:00 PM on April 10, 2019
posted by bleep at 1:00 PM on April 10, 2019
My favorite is when they start each pre-recorded message with, "Don't hang up!" And then start to deliver a message about carpet cleaning or whatever.
I did time as a receptionist, but my younger coworkers had not and so by default I was one of the ones left answering the company phone when nobody else would do it. Heard so many of these things.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 1:02 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
I did time as a receptionist, but my younger coworkers had not and so by default I was one of the ones left answering the company phone when nobody else would do it. Heard so many of these things.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 1:02 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Considering people are receiving like three of these a day and it's training people not to answer their phones I wonder what result this has on political polling
posted by The Whelk at 1:11 PM on April 10, 2019 [13 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 1:11 PM on April 10, 2019 [13 favorites]
The thing that puzzles me is that I would go out of my way to never, ever, ever use a company that advertised by robocall, or spam email, or whatever. I mean they could make the best _____ on the market and I would buy the crappy competitor's product instead. Why does anyone patronize a business which makes life hell for everyone?
posted by maxwelton at 1:13 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by maxwelton at 1:13 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
It's fun when you're dealing with a month's-long family health crisis, and you get 5 or 6 robo calls a day from the state where the sick family member lives. And you have to answer each one because what if it's about the health crisis? I'm not someone who wishes death on people, and this is no different. I wish for something far worse. Like having to live on a lemon farm after having been turned inside-out.
posted by UltraMorgnus at 1:14 PM on April 10, 2019 [21 favorites]
posted by UltraMorgnus at 1:14 PM on April 10, 2019 [21 favorites]
The thing that puzzles me is that I would go out of my way to never, ever, ever use a company that advertised by robocall, or spam email, or whatever. I mean they could make the best _____ on the market and I would buy the crappy competitor's product instead. Why does anyone patronize a business which makes life hell for everyone?
They never seem to market a product to me when they call. Either it's a message about me being sued or wanted for a crime, or it's a robo-message about it being urgant that i call back. Hilariously, the latest message they leave on my voice mail is about how they can put me on a Do Not Call list for robocalls. The Devil is not, it would seem, without a sense of humor.
posted by UltraMorgnus at 1:16 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
They never seem to market a product to me when they call. Either it's a message about me being sued or wanted for a crime, or it's a robo-message about it being urgant that i call back. Hilariously, the latest message they leave on my voice mail is about how they can put me on a Do Not Call list for robocalls. The Devil is not, it would seem, without a sense of humor.
posted by UltraMorgnus at 1:16 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
My husband gets a couple robocalls a day, always in Chinese. I get four or five a week, always Elizabeth calling with important info about my credit card.
You'd think with this volume of calls there'd be some variety.
posted by elizilla at 1:25 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
You'd think with this volume of calls there'd be some variety.
posted by elizilla at 1:25 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
And, I have run out of storage for blocked numbers.
posted by Oyéah at 1:37 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by Oyéah at 1:37 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
I kind of enjoy the ones that are from Jen about my student loan, and then the one twenty minutes later from Brian, saying that he knew I'd already heard from his colleague Jen and he just wanted to follow up. I mean, you sort of have to admire the kind of dedication it takes to set up an actual cast of characters for your robocalls. Although sometimes they mess it up and I hear from Brian before I hear from Jen, and I always feel a bit disappointed in them.
posted by holborne at 1:40 PM on April 10, 2019 [13 favorites]
posted by holborne at 1:40 PM on April 10, 2019 [13 favorites]
The thing that puzzles me is that I would go out of my way to never, ever, ever use a company that advertised by robocall, or spam email, or whatever.
It's not legitimate companies doing this. It's crooks, mostly from overseas. There's a lot of them, too, especially since a lot of the people who start by working for the scam operation learn the ropes, then go off and start their own boiler room operation. It's not that expensive to start up, and the odds of being arrested and/or fined are ridiculously low. And it's quite, quite lucrative.
posted by Lunaloon at 1:53 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
It's not legitimate companies doing this. It's crooks, mostly from overseas. There's a lot of them, too, especially since a lot of the people who start by working for the scam operation learn the ropes, then go off and start their own boiler room operation. It's not that expensive to start up, and the odds of being arrested and/or fined are ridiculously low. And it's quite, quite lucrative.
posted by Lunaloon at 1:53 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
I actually got a spoofed call from my home area code from my own company because I had to sign up for a trial of our product for work reasons. I never pick up calls from outside my actual location but something about this one intrigued me I guess because it was from a different nearby town instead of just a couple digits away from my own number. I told the guy I work for the same company as you and asked why they're spoofing caller ID; he said they do it cause it makes people pick up more often. I was thinking wow you're either profoundly mistaken or pissing in your own punch bowl.
So anyway it's not just scammers it's also legit businesses who got mislead somewhere along the line.
posted by bleep at 1:59 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
So anyway it's not just scammers it's also legit businesses who got mislead somewhere along the line.
posted by bleep at 1:59 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
"And, I have run out of storage for blocked numbers."
For the vast majority of these calls, blocking the number accomplishes nothing. They spoof random numbers each time they call. The number you blocked almost certainly belongs to some innocent party and will likely never call you again, while a different spoofed number will get the next call right past your block of the last one.
posted by Naberius at 2:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
For the vast majority of these calls, blocking the number accomplishes nothing. They spoof random numbers each time they call. The number you blocked almost certainly belongs to some innocent party and will likely never call you again, while a different spoofed number will get the next call right past your block of the last one.
posted by Naberius at 2:03 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
Much like the e-mail scams of 10-15 years ago, being obviously a scam is actually an overall boon for these operations because they want as little as possible of their time to be spent dealing with people who aren't going to give them any money. The reason all those e-mails contained typos and grammatical mistakes isn't that Nigerians are incapable of producing proofread English (also like 80% of them were actually coming from native English speakers in the US or UK), it's that they benefit from immediately filtering out anyone who would think twice when presented with, for example, what is ostensibly an official government document that nevertheless is in garbled and nonstandard English. Similarly, with robocalls, if you're the kind of person who keeps track of who is calling them and reacts poorly to being cold-called, they don't want you and any time they spend talking to you is only going to be a loss of money on their end.
posted by Copronymus at 2:08 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by Copronymus at 2:08 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
A $0.02 per outbound call excise tax would solve almost all these problems and cost normal people practically nothing, A few of the higher value scams (like Obamacare resellers) would probably survive.
posted by a robot made out of meat at 2:20 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
posted by a robot made out of meat at 2:20 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
From the calls I've been getting the last few days...
Social Security Number Suspension notices come from Nebraska these days...
posted by Windopaene at 2:25 PM on April 10, 2019
Social Security Number Suspension notices come from Nebraska these days...
posted by Windopaene at 2:25 PM on April 10, 2019
My favorite is when they start each pre-recorded message with, "Don't hang up!" And then start to deliver a message about carpet cleaning or whatever.
I’ve gotten the “Hi! Can you hear me alright?” calls. Those are evil AF.
posted by Thorzdad at 2:29 PM on April 10, 2019
I’ve gotten the “Hi! Can you hear me alright?” calls. Those are evil AF.
posted by Thorzdad at 2:29 PM on April 10, 2019
I'm in a position where I never have to answer my phone unless it's someone in my contacts or I'm expecting a call. I really want my iPhone to have a pseudo DND mode that just shunts all calls to voicemail unless they're in my contact list. As it is, DND pauses all notifications, which I don't want.
mikesch : my default ringtone is a silent one, and I assign all contacts their own ringtone, so that more-or-less accomplishes what you want.
If I know someone not in my contact list is going to call me (most recently it was a conversation I had with a lawyer), if I can, I ask what number they're going to be calling from and put it into the contacts list (most people have the spammer problem and are sympathetic), otherwise I temporarily change the default back to an audible one.
posted by telophase at 2:35 PM on April 10, 2019
mikesch : my default ringtone is a silent one, and I assign all contacts their own ringtone, so that more-or-less accomplishes what you want.
If I know someone not in my contact list is going to call me (most recently it was a conversation I had with a lawyer), if I can, I ask what number they're going to be calling from and put it into the contacts list (most people have the spammer problem and are sympathetic), otherwise I temporarily change the default back to an audible one.
posted by telophase at 2:35 PM on April 10, 2019
I recently told a "Microsoft Technical Support" rep who was calling to warn me that they had "detected a virus coming from my computer" that I no longer owned any computers because I was tired of getting phone calls about their misbehavior. They simply had no response for that.
On the "Good News! You qualify for a credit card rate reduction" calls, I ALWAYS dial 1 or whatever they tell me to do and try to speak to the call center and play them music or TV or whatever is handy when they answer. Many of them have installed what seems to be a fake call queue in what I assume is an attempt to discourage people from wasting their call center's time. I just wait them out. I have noticed that on many of these where I have gotten through to the call center a few times will still call but they will drop my call the moment I press 1. I think they have identified my number as a nuisance but have forgotten to tell the calling software about it.
posted by bz at 2:49 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
On the "Good News! You qualify for a credit card rate reduction" calls, I ALWAYS dial 1 or whatever they tell me to do and try to speak to the call center and play them music or TV or whatever is handy when they answer. Many of them have installed what seems to be a fake call queue in what I assume is an attempt to discourage people from wasting their call center's time. I just wait them out. I have noticed that on many of these where I have gotten through to the call center a few times will still call but they will drop my call the moment I press 1. I think they have identified my number as a nuisance but have forgotten to tell the calling software about it.
posted by bz at 2:49 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
When I did the cell phone thing I was asked where my phone would primarily be used. What if I had said, for instance, American Samoa. Would they have given me a 684 area phone number? And if so would that likely limit the robo calls?
posted by notreally at 3:02 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by notreally at 3:02 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
To respond to comment further up, no Amit and the FCC can not just decide robocalls are bad and make them stop. The technology for caller ID spoofing is too easy
The last week tonight segment had some concrete ideas for things the FCC could do. Plus he created a script to robocall the FCC as part of the segment, which is delightful.
posted by mosst at 3:20 PM on April 10, 2019
The last week tonight segment had some concrete ideas for things the FCC could do. Plus he created a script to robocall the FCC as part of the segment, which is delightful.
posted by mosst at 3:20 PM on April 10, 2019
One of the things I love about my new Pixel 3 is that I get a robocall and this screen will display a little red "Spam" sign next to the caller's number. Great time-saver.
posted by The Ardship of Cambry at 3:41 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by The Ardship of Cambry at 3:41 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
I'll tell you what - if I ever meet the person that voiced Katie from cardholder services, I'll know it immediately... even if she is across the room and just says Hi to someone else... she has a tone and a pause that just... just cuts through glass at this point...
posted by Nanukthedog at 4:07 PM on April 10, 2019
posted by Nanukthedog at 4:07 PM on April 10, 2019
when i’m bored i pick up, but don’t say anything. i can get them to stick around for a little while, asking “hello? hello? mr pynchon? are you there?” eventually I just hear typing and other call center noises. after a few minutes they hang up.
my dream is to get another spam call while waiting out a spam call, and then conference them together. I have not yet lived that dream, though.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 4:46 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
my dream is to get another spam call while waiting out a spam call, and then conference them together. I have not yet lived that dream, though.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 4:46 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
ps spam callers have no idea how to pronounce “pynchon”
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 4:47 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 4:47 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
I legit don't understand why the legacy phone companies aren't up in arms about this. We canceled our home phone service, for which we were paying $65/month basically in perpetuity, because the robocalls were so out of control. That is money straight out of AT&T's pocket.
posted by BlahLaLa at 4:56 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by BlahLaLa at 4:56 PM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]
Considering people are receiving like three of these a day and it's training people not to answer their phones
As someone who hasn't answered his phone in more than a decade, welcome to the new freedom.
Thanks to voice-to-text, I don't even listen to voicemail anymore, either!
posted by rokusan at 4:59 PM on April 10, 2019
As someone who hasn't answered his phone in more than a decade, welcome to the new freedom.
Thanks to voice-to-text, I don't even listen to voicemail anymore, either!
posted by rokusan at 4:59 PM on April 10, 2019
back in the day the band kraftwerk removed the bell from the phones in their studio, because the presence of any unexpected outside sounds whatsoever would ruin their creative process. they told their agents, who you know sometimes had to reach them, that they would pick up their studio’s silenced phone once a day at a particular time, exactly at that time. so if their agents wanted to talk to them, they would have to call at precisely 4:00 pm (or whatever) on the dot, not a second earlier, not a second later.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 5:10 PM on April 10, 2019 [15 favorites]
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 5:10 PM on April 10, 2019 [15 favorites]
I legit don't understand why the legacy phone companies aren't up in arms about this
i don't get that either - this is going to kill them off if they don't get it under control
by the way, my favorite gambit with the microsoft technical support people is to ask them which computer i'm running has the virus - do you know the mac number?
this never fails to frustrate them - then tell them you're running linux or an imac and they get mad and hang up
funny how i haven't heard from them for awhile
at the heat death of the universe there will be one telephone and one poor, doomed person to answer it and guess who's going to make that last call?
"this is rachel from cardholder services ..."
posted by pyramid termite at 5:52 PM on April 10, 2019
i don't get that either - this is going to kill them off if they don't get it under control
by the way, my favorite gambit with the microsoft technical support people is to ask them which computer i'm running has the virus - do you know the mac number?
this never fails to frustrate them - then tell them you're running linux or an imac and they get mad and hang up
funny how i haven't heard from them for awhile
at the heat death of the universe there will be one telephone and one poor, doomed person to answer it and guess who's going to make that last call?
"this is rachel from cardholder services ..."
posted by pyramid termite at 5:52 PM on April 10, 2019
I wouldn't give a shit about robocalls if it weren't for the number spoofing. I occasionally get calls / angry texts from people who claim I won't stop calling them even though I've never called them. It's infuriating.
posted by dobbs at 6:13 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
posted by dobbs at 6:13 PM on April 10, 2019 [4 favorites]
With technology today, i have little doubt the companies/people doing robocalls and spam emails could be caught immediately. Is it because it is not illegal to do so (and that it's good for some businesses)?
Sidebar: I get nearly a dozen robocalls or so a day (never answer) and probably a hundred spam emails, but haven't had a spam *text* message now in over a year. Why is that?
posted by CrowGoat at 6:13 PM on April 10, 2019
Sidebar: I get nearly a dozen robocalls or so a day (never answer) and probably a hundred spam emails, but haven't had a spam *text* message now in over a year. Why is that?
posted by CrowGoat at 6:13 PM on April 10, 2019
> Sidebar: I get nearly a dozen robocalls or so a day (never answer) and probably a hundred spam emails, but haven't had a spam *text* message now in over a year. Why is that?
Ask me why I know you haven’t volunteered on any political campaigns recently.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 6:14 PM on April 10, 2019 [8 favorites]
Ask me why I know you haven’t volunteered on any political campaigns recently.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 6:14 PM on April 10, 2019 [8 favorites]
I have zero confidence that Congress will grasp the technology and be able to create effective legislation.They don’t need to: this is not a technical problem but a financial one. The phone companies are paid to deliver the calls – wholesale but still profitably – and doing anything will cost more than zero. All legislators need to do is change that and the problem will rapidly shrink because the VoIP resellers who are contracting with the spammers will raise their rates and these scams are predicated on it being cheap enough to be profitable despite very low successful call rates. They don’t need to raise that much before it’s not profitable.
As a point of reference, the Europeans I know are amazed by this because it’s unknown in their experience. Guess who shifted the costs to the carriers instead of the victims?
posted by adamsc at 6:19 PM on April 10, 2019 [6 favorites]
A few months ago, I actually got a spam call from my own number. I wasn't sure if that was inspired or just lazy.
posted by the painkiller at 6:46 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
posted by the painkiller at 6:46 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
With technology today, i have little doubt the companies/people doing robocalls and spam emails could be caught immediately. Is it because it is not illegal to do so (and that it's good for some businesses)?
Yeah, if you were robocalling death threats to the president or something like that, you'd get shut down in a hurry.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:55 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Yeah, if you were robocalling death threats to the president or something like that, you'd get shut down in a hurry.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:55 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Three ringtones in an ancient tongue,
For the court of the robocall king
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:00 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
For the court of the robocall king
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:00 PM on April 10, 2019 [5 favorites]
We've all been getting these calls on average about four times a day for the past two years. That's around three thousand calls to every number. My question is this: Who's left? Is there anyone who would fall for one of these scams that hasn't already been taken by one of the other three thousand scammers before them? There has to be an incredible level of diminished returns by now.
posted by dances with hamsters at 7:18 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by dances with hamsters at 7:18 PM on April 10, 2019 [1 favorite]
Quick plug for Hiya. Free and catches a few calls a day silently.
posted by erebora at 8:25 PM on April 10, 2019
posted by erebora at 8:25 PM on April 10, 2019
My own special phone spam hell has a name -- Josie. Somewhere out there, Josie filled out a form online requesting more information about refinancing her mortgage and so there are waves where I can tell the information was sold off again and suddenly the flood comes from people persistently trying to convince "Josie" to refinance with them (not just calls -- texts, too! Multiple texts a day telling Josie she's won something or that she can get a good deal on a medical device!).
I still get the random robocalls but tbh they seem quaint compared to flood of people asking for Josie aka my nemesis.
posted by paisley sheep at 8:37 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
I still get the random robocalls but tbh they seem quaint compared to flood of people asking for Josie aka my nemesis.
posted by paisley sheep at 8:37 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
FCC "fined" robocallers $208 million since 2015 but collected only $6,790
posted by kliuless at 11:52 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by kliuless at 11:52 PM on April 10, 2019 [3 favorites]
My guess about the calls that immediately disconnect is that there is a malfunction with whatever software is being used to make the calls.
More likely the computers are constantly dialing and when someone picks up, they transfer the line to one of the people in the phone bank to read you the script about how Microsoft Windows is going out of business and wants to refund your monies because the company has been ordered to close.
But if all the script readers are busy, the computer just hangs up on you. I'm sure the system is tweaked to give those poor script readers as close to zero down time between calls as possible, which means it ends up immediately hanging up on people a lot.
posted by straight at 11:57 PM on April 10, 2019
More likely the computers are constantly dialing and when someone picks up, they transfer the line to one of the people in the phone bank to read you the script about how Microsoft Windows is going out of business and wants to refund your monies because the company has been ordered to close.
But if all the script readers are busy, the computer just hangs up on you. I'm sure the system is tweaked to give those poor script readers as close to zero down time between calls as possible, which means it ends up immediately hanging up on people a lot.
posted by straight at 11:57 PM on April 10, 2019
The auto disconnect could also be a scammer that got shut down or forced to move their call center but their older hacked phone system didn’t get the memo.
posted by aubilenon at 12:06 AM on April 11, 2019
posted by aubilenon at 12:06 AM on April 11, 2019
I have great hopes for SHAKEN/STIR.
We in the VoIP fiber business are hopeful for this tech too.
Your Phone, Your Call - Part I - Eliminating Robocalls - "Some very smart people have been working on new ways of cryptographically signing calls – a digital signature – proving ownership of a phone number before the call is initiated. One example of this is a new protocol called STIR/SHAKEN, which the communications ecosystem is working on now."
posted by kliuless at 12:21 AM on April 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
We in the VoIP fiber business are hopeful for this tech too.
Your Phone, Your Call - Part I - Eliminating Robocalls - "Some very smart people have been working on new ways of cryptographically signing calls – a digital signature – proving ownership of a phone number before the call is initiated. One example of this is a new protocol called STIR/SHAKEN, which the communications ecosystem is working on now."
posted by kliuless at 12:21 AM on April 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
While a robocall attempts to call you, your phone cannot accept another live call. This should fall under denial of service rules and punishments.
posted by filtergik at 3:07 AM on April 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by filtergik at 3:07 AM on April 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
I should have posted this earlier, but:
Last year my wife was in the hospital, and I was ill at home with food poisoning, waiting for a call from her. She had limited call times, so I was hovering on my phone. I got a call and without thinking picked it up, saying, "Hi, sweetie, how are you?"
And then the guy from the robocall thing started talking.
I interrupted him with "I am waiting for a very important call from my hospitalized wife and if I miss it because of you I will find you and I will destroy you and your supervisors and the owners of your company in ways that will make investigators sick for decades. Never call me again. PRAY." And hung up. I'd had that speech created in my head for that kind of thing and it just spooled out.
I didn't get any robocalls for a day and a half. Which is in itself sad.
posted by mephron at 5:57 AM on April 11, 2019 [7 favorites]
Last year my wife was in the hospital, and I was ill at home with food poisoning, waiting for a call from her. She had limited call times, so I was hovering on my phone. I got a call and without thinking picked it up, saying, "Hi, sweetie, how are you?"
And then the guy from the robocall thing started talking.
I interrupted him with "I am waiting for a very important call from my hospitalized wife and if I miss it because of you I will find you and I will destroy you and your supervisors and the owners of your company in ways that will make investigators sick for decades. Never call me again. PRAY." And hung up. I'd had that speech created in my head for that kind of thing and it just spooled out.
I didn't get any robocalls for a day and a half. Which is in itself sad.
posted by mephron at 5:57 AM on April 11, 2019 [7 favorites]
As someone above mentioned, it would be amazing if the 'Do Not Disturb' feature of an iPhone sent calls to voicemail. Instead, your phone rings silently.
When this happens at work, the music I'm listening to via headphones is interrupted, which interrupts the flow, which bums me out.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 6:23 AM on April 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
When this happens at work, the music I'm listening to via headphones is interrupted, which interrupts the flow, which bums me out.
posted by spikeleemajortomdickandharryconnickjrmints at 6:23 AM on April 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
If you get a ton of these, you can get a sound file of the “beee-dee-dooo! This number is no longer in service” on a loop and set your voicemail message to it.
After listening to that reply all episode and realizing that they’re likely indexing your actions during each call and incorporating it into their list (which, no doubt is recirculated thougout robo-caller-groups), I changed my voicemail to that and just didn’t answer my phone unless it was someone I knew. The call volume went down pretty quick. It still comes in waves, but it has decreased.
You can kind of tel which ones are working off the same lists this way too. I only get domestic calls now, not ones that are obviously overseas.
posted by furnace.heart at 6:54 AM on April 11, 2019
After listening to that reply all episode and realizing that they’re likely indexing your actions during each call and incorporating it into their list (which, no doubt is recirculated thougout robo-caller-groups), I changed my voicemail to that and just didn’t answer my phone unless it was someone I knew. The call volume went down pretty quick. It still comes in waves, but it has decreased.
You can kind of tel which ones are working off the same lists this way too. I only get domestic calls now, not ones that are obviously overseas.
posted by furnace.heart at 6:54 AM on April 11, 2019
So my mother passed away recently. We got a call on the landline from a number spoofing my mother's cell phone number. The house phone has a feature for older adults that reads out the caller ID while the phone is ringing, so my dad got to hear, at 8:30 one morning, the phone announcing that amusebuche's mom is calling. It was extremely creepy.
posted by amusebuche at 7:28 AM on April 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by amusebuche at 7:28 AM on April 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
A few months ago, I actually got a spam call from my own number.
The scam is coming from inside yourhouse phone!
posted by GenjiandProust at 7:41 AM on April 11, 2019 [3 favorites]
The scam is coming from inside your
posted by GenjiandProust at 7:41 AM on April 11, 2019 [3 favorites]
maxwelton, I get a lot of calls where the robot voice is using the name of some uninvolved company. Usually, it's "Congratulations! You have won a weekend's stay at a [$BIG-HOTEL-CHAIN] facility!" If you check it out, [$BIG-HOTEL-CHAIN] has nothing whatsoever to do with it and in any case doesn't market via random phone calls.
So, while I completely agree with your sentiment, I make sure to verify before implementing a revenge boycott.
posted by Weftage at 8:25 AM on April 11, 2019
So, while I completely agree with your sentiment, I make sure to verify before implementing a revenge boycott.
posted by Weftage at 8:25 AM on April 11, 2019
I'm surprised they don't just spoof your number +1, since many people have numbers close to their family members if they all got new numbers at the same time. The phone companies are trying to fight this. I work for one and company newsletters talk about how many we successfully block.
posted by soelo at 11:28 AM on April 11, 2019
posted by soelo at 11:28 AM on April 11, 2019
My old phone number peaked at 16 robocalls per day recently, coming in from 7am to 10:40pm daily. It's a dumbphone. Cannot install blocking software on it, which was fun. I'd had the number since 2005, and several friends/family members who moved overseas still had it and would occasionally call while visiting the States.
Last night I killed this number with AT&T. Sadly, I can't justify keeping it anymore. I hadn't gotten a legitimate phone call on that number since August 2018, but was still getting upwards of 300 incoming calls per month on it.
The last 27 calls were all in Chinese.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 11:59 AM on April 11, 2019
Last night I killed this number with AT&T. Sadly, I can't justify keeping it anymore. I hadn't gotten a legitimate phone call on that number since August 2018, but was still getting upwards of 300 incoming calls per month on it.
The last 27 calls were all in Chinese.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 11:59 AM on April 11, 2019
I stopped answering the phone years ago. Not sure why I need a phone number anymore.
posted by ...possums at 2:23 PM on April 11, 2019
posted by ...possums at 2:23 PM on April 11, 2019
I answer every single call that comes in. I pick up, and hit mute immediately. After exactly ten seconds, most bots hang up without playing a recording. They’re waiting for a human to say “hello”.
Humans always say something in that ten seconds, whether they’re dialing or answering. Or, if they’re patiently waiting, they’ll wait twelve seconds and you can say “hello.” The bots always give up at exactly ten seconds.
When it disconnects, I like to think the bot’s system will have just marked my number as belonging to a non-human device and moved on to the next one. My anecdotal evidence indicates I get fewer calls since I adopted this approach.
(The ten seconds of silence approach replaced my previous, which was, answer the phone and start playing patterns on the buttons. Sirens, melodies, that sort of thing. I should do that more often, it’s like a teeny music break.)
posted by bigbigdog at 7:45 PM on April 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
Humans always say something in that ten seconds, whether they’re dialing or answering. Or, if they’re patiently waiting, they’ll wait twelve seconds and you can say “hello.” The bots always give up at exactly ten seconds.
When it disconnects, I like to think the bot’s system will have just marked my number as belonging to a non-human device and moved on to the next one. My anecdotal evidence indicates I get fewer calls since I adopted this approach.
(The ten seconds of silence approach replaced my previous, which was, answer the phone and start playing patterns on the buttons. Sirens, melodies, that sort of thing. I should do that more often, it’s like a teeny music break.)
posted by bigbigdog at 7:45 PM on April 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
I wonder if changing my phone message to a fax machine noise would help...
posted by mephron at 5:45 AM on April 12, 2019
posted by mephron at 5:45 AM on April 12, 2019
I really want my iPhone to have a pseudo DND mode that just shunts all calls to voicemail unless they're in my contact list.
I went through the hassle of setting the ringtone for every single person in my contacts list to something I liked, and then changing my default ring to something almost inaudible and very different. If I'm busy, I don't even look at the phone when that ring comes in - if it rings, it can go to voicemail. If I were a bit less willing to accept random calls (y'know, pharmacy autocalls saying "your meds are here", kids' friends' calls, recruiters, etc.) I'd set my "standard" ringtone to nothing, and let all non-contact people go to voicemail.
It's a DAMNED NUISANCE that no phone service/hardware provider has an option for "default ring for non-contacts; other default ring for contacts," but the workaround is to set each contact with a non-default ringtone. It takes a long time when it's first set up, but after that, it's only a moment to assign each new contact a ringtone when they're added.
(I get several a day. The entertaining one is some guy telling me, "Something has happened, some force is moving against you; They are holding you down; the power of God can protect you; Press 2 now; press the number 2; You can lift this curse; press 2, press 2 now...")
posted by ErisLordFreedom at 11:38 PM on April 12, 2019
I went through the hassle of setting the ringtone for every single person in my contacts list to something I liked, and then changing my default ring to something almost inaudible and very different. If I'm busy, I don't even look at the phone when that ring comes in - if it rings, it can go to voicemail. If I were a bit less willing to accept random calls (y'know, pharmacy autocalls saying "your meds are here", kids' friends' calls, recruiters, etc.) I'd set my "standard" ringtone to nothing, and let all non-contact people go to voicemail.
It's a DAMNED NUISANCE that no phone service/hardware provider has an option for "default ring for non-contacts; other default ring for contacts," but the workaround is to set each contact with a non-default ringtone. It takes a long time when it's first set up, but after that, it's only a moment to assign each new contact a ringtone when they're added.
(I get several a day. The entertaining one is some guy telling me, "Something has happened, some force is moving against you; They are holding you down; the power of God can protect you; Press 2 now; press the number 2; You can lift this curse; press 2, press 2 now...")
posted by ErisLordFreedom at 11:38 PM on April 12, 2019
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posted by GoblinHoney at 11:03 AM on April 10, 2019 [2 favorites]