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The Do-Not-Call registry sucks

Discussion in 'Non-Vegas Chat' started by queuetee, Sep 19, 2014.

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  1. queuetee

    queuetee VIP Whale

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    Do you have your numbers listed as do not call, yet they continue and increase? It sems like they come in batches...like they discovered the way around the rule.

    I get the usual Credit Card Services from Rachel ( et al). I have stayed on for a live person to remind her not to call me and as soon as she knows where I am headed, she hangs up on me. LOL

    As a senior, I hear about my meds or other health supplies from the guy in the shipping department that can't be shipped until they verify my credit card.

    Windows live tech called me last week and he also hung up as soon as I called him a &%*$ scamming Sh!t head.

    The newest is a very detailed tape from a local radiology lab. The robo call doesn't call me by name but gives me all kinds of numbers pertaining to my outstanding account. The give away is when she tells me to call to see if my doctor will take my credit card.....got to give them credit for keeping it local.

    I am puzzled as to why they can't be stopped.
     
  2. ken2v

    ken2v This Space For Rent

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    Until the phone companies invest in effectively dealing with robocalls, the registry is going to offer only limited help. (We actually get very few unsolicited calls, not even one/day.)

    The best way to deal with this crap until it is effectively sorted out is simply to not answer the phone if you don't have caller ID. Most of the time it won't go to voice mail -- the answering machine, do they still make those? -- because it is bogus. And if it is your doctor truly calling with life-altering information, when you pick up the message a few seconds later life won't have been altered.

    Just a different way of functioning as we do a million other ways daily as we adapted to life and the economy evolving so rapidly around us.
     
  3. gguerra

    gguerra High-Roller

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    If you are using a smartphone/cell phone you can block the calls. If you are on a land-line I would suggest using caller ID. If you are on an old style cell phone that should have caller ID as well. I too have been frustrated with the do not call thing. The only thing you can do is report the number if your are still getting calls more than 30 days after reporting the number. I use an android phone and use a call blocker app. Problem solved. Be very careful where you post your number on the internet. That is how they get it in the first place.
     
  4. ken2v

    ken2v This Space For Rent

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    After x calls that go unanswered/drop, that number automatically goes to banned camp on our system. Of course, with robo that's only a partial solution.
     
  5. JosieCat

    JosieCat VIP Whale

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    Yes, now that my BF has retired, it has gotten far worse. Now we get calls from states, Florida, New York, etc. I don't know how many times we have gotten a call telling him he is now eligible for a medical alert necklace thingy - because apparently, once you retire, you need one. I don't know what we would do without caller ID.

    The latest is that I got a call from myself on the caller ID the other day :). I'm pretty clever.
     
  6. bigdogmom

    bigdogmom VIP Whale

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    Sometime I cannot believe how many unsolicited calls I get! Of course, a lot are "legitimate" (at least, in their eyes :rolleyes2:); i.e. political or charity calls, but it drives me nuts. I actually answered a call a couple of nights ago - at 9:20PM! - turned out to be some kind of survey. I hung up on them. So f'ing annoying!
     
  7. Rodent Pack

    Rodent Pack S.S. Minnow

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    Occasionally I'll answer and if they ask for me by name I'll tell them to hold on while I go get him and set the phone down. Sometimes they'll stay on the line for a couple of minutes before they hang up. Mildly entertaining and at least it keeps them from bugging someone else for a few minutes.
     
  8. queuetee

    queuetee VIP Whale

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    We had Caller ID on our landline for many years, but we noticed that a great many calls--even from friends were registering as Private or just a blank--so we had it taken off.
     
  9. ken2v

    ken2v This Space For Rent

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    Color me naive, but is this more of a landline phenom? We haven't had a landline for quite a while. I mean, we have one, I'm told, even have a number because the bundle was cheaper that way. But I don't know the number and ain't nothin' plugged into that jack.
     
  10. C0usineddie

    C0usineddie VIP Whale

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    Caller id has been around for years. If this is an issue that bothers you then the way to fix it not to hope for the government to change national policy but to pay a couple bucks for a phone with caller id.

    Dont recognize the number, dont answer.
     
  11. Piggylane

    Piggylane Well-Known Member

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    Just hold the line until you get a real person on the phone. Tell them that all financial decisions have to be approved by the bankruptcy court. They won't call back I bet.
     
  12. FXT

    FXT VIP Whale

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    I've had pretty good luck just staying on the line and pressing the number it states at end to take me off their calling list. Used to get 1 to 2 a day on my cellphone but now maybe 1 every 3 months.
     
  13. dmr

    dmr Registered Abuser

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    Yes, my home phone is on the DNC list but I get semi-frequent spam calls. I'm starting to get them on the cell as well.
     
  14. gpenguins67

    gpenguins67 High-Roller

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    I think the worst one by far recently has been the calls to purchase extended warranty for cars. They are absolutely obnoxious. They will call 2 or 3 times back to back if you don't answer then call back several times later in that day. I did a little research and several people said it was XM/Sirius radio selling your info to that company. The worst thing is they kept calling for a truck that I traded in almost 2 years ago.
    The second worst is DirectTV. If you ever had them and cancelled service, every few months the continuously call you to try to resubscribe.
     
  15. makikiboy

    makikiboy VIP Whale

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    The robocalls started out only on the land lines but have branched out to all numbers, including cel phone numbers. I have gotten robo call and junk mail calls on my cel phone but if I don't know the number I won't answer it.

    No problem for me, I never answer my home phone (land line) and use an answering machine. I think that over 80% of junk mail calls don't leave a message. The rest I can listen to them and delete them. I got the IRS call in May, they called me by name and said that my tax return was incorrect and I had to send them $$ or face penalties. I googled the number and found about the scam and just ignored it (besides, I don't think the IRS would call me about a problem, they would send an official notification by mail).

    The problem with the DNC registry is that the robocalls and tele people change numbers regularly to avoid the DNC ban. We report the number but it is offline and on with another number shortly after. Lately I hate the charitable organizations, those people are exempt from the DNC list but again I don't pick up or just delete the message from my answering machine. This year is also bad, election year, so I expect to get a lot of calls or surveys on the election or to vote for someone. Again it goes to my answering machine.

    After my dad died (over 13 years ago) my mom started getting lots of calls, telemarketers, charitable organizations, etc. asking for handouts from her or just sales calls. Not sure if they use the obits to target the elderly but somehow she got put on the "please call me, I'm gullible" list. When she donated all of a sudden it seemed like every charitable organization in town was calling her for a hand out. Luckily she cancelled her charge card (only writes checks now) so can't do things over the phone (that requires her to give her cc).
     
  16. bardolator

    bardolator Lifelong Low Roller

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    Ooma, $14 per month plus the modem (which lists around $200 but is often deeply discounted), first rate sound, includes caller ID, makes it easy to ban an annoying caller permanently. After six months of Ooma, we dropped our land line. Even an alarm system doesn't require a land line these days. We have the original modem after four years. Ooma requires an internet connection, but if you didn't have that, you would not be reading this thread.
     
  17. RedRiverRose

    RedRiverRose VIP Whale

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    Do Not Call has not worked well for me. I get tons of calls on my landline which I never use and can't remember the number and also on my cell phone. I block the numbers on the cell but my list is filling up. It holds up to 100 numbers. I usually google numbers and find out who is calling. I found one site on google that provides a list of numbers that some companies use in several states and area codes. Basically I just don't answer toll free numbers or any telephone numbers I don't recognize. I disabled the voice mail on my cell so no one can leave a message. I just check missed calls and call back anyone that I know. If I recognize a number to a local cell phone, I text and ask how may I help you or who are you trying to reach. If they identify themselves and I want to talk to them I call back. If they don't respond by text or don't say who they are and who they are calling I ignore the number.

    I also found out that if you pay for an unlisted number thru the phone company your number is still not safe. Someone always ends up with the info. The unlisted fee where I live is $6.00+ per month. I don't have the ringer turned on the phone but it has caller ID and shows 60+ calls from many different numbers. I have never called anyone from this line or used this number on anything so it's weired that so many calls are coming in on this number. If the ringer was on I would be going nuts. I erase the numbers every month or so.

    I don't know how I lived without all the high tech things we have now.
     
  18. bigdogmom

    bigdogmom VIP Whale

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    Oh yeah, another annoyance - I still get a ton of calls for my ex-husband, who hasn't lived here in 16 years. Or they'll call and say, "Mrs. Goodman?" (His last name; isn't mine, never was.)
     
  19. SW

    SW Well-Known Member

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    Do Not Call did not work well for me either. Dropped our landline some time ago. Still get the occasional spam call to my cellphone but I can deal with it. Similar to people worrying about their older parents, I worry about my three kids. Although my youngest is 20 now, I still worry that one of them will fall for a scam. So far, so good.
     
  20. Julie888

    Julie888 VIP Whale

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    Our landline has the option of blocking any unknown number. The caller has the option to enter the number so their name shows up. This works well.

    With our cell phones, they've gotten sneaky and it shows a local prefix. My husband gets a lot more calls in his phone than I do. He doesn't have a LD plan so this is a pain when we're travelling. He had to quit answering it unless he knows the number.

    What app do folks use to block unknowns on their android cell?

    The other thing that annoys me are the companies that want your cell number. Now I say I don't have one, because they call it rather than my landline. I have no idea why they do this. If I'm out in my car, I won't be answering. It's against the law here.

    A while back I gave my bank the cell number with clear instructions that it was for emergency use only. The day a staff member decided to just give me a friendly sales call on it, I made it pretty clear and they won't be doing that again.
     
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