C RY D E R
P O I N T
OCTOBER 14
Robocalls: Sorry, Wrong Number
BY JILL DAVIS
Following is an edited reprint of an article that I was recently commissioned to research
and write. I hope it provides some helpful information for Cryder Point residents.
You may have been hearing about the
surge in robocalls in the news recently.
CNBC aired a story about it in June, and
this past April, the New York Times published
an article on the subject. Th e Times’
article included data received from You-
Mail, a tech developer that produces robocall
blocking soft ware, which stated that
approximately 3.4 billion robocalls (yes,
that’s billion with a ‘b’) were made in April
2018. Th at was an increase of nearly 35%
in just one year. At that rate, by 2020 the
number of robocalls made could number
over 6 billion per month!
While some of these calls are kosher,
many of them are scams. Th e following is
intended to try to help you get a handle on
what’s going on and tips for how to manage
the onslaught so that you’re not caught
off -guard by a con.
First, why is this getting so bad? One
of the reasons for this “robo-boom” is
that technology has advanced so rapidly.
“Spoofi ng,” where the caller changes the
phone number that appears on your caller
I.D., has been in practice for a number of
years.
However, a relatively new trick is
“neighborhood spoofing,” which takes
robocalling a step further, and it’s becoming
increasingly common on both cell
and landline phones. In this scam, spoofers
match the area code and the exchange
number to those of their target’s (i.e.,
yours). Th e idea is that people are more
likely to pick up a call from a number that
looks familiar and might be from a person
they know.
Case in point: One day recently, I received
four or fi ve calls from a name and
number I know quite well: my own! Yes,
my phone rang and there on my Caller
I.D. was my own name and phone number.
Of course I did not answer (I talk to
myself enough already, thank you.). Seriously,
it was a little creepy, but I resisted
the urge to pick up and scream at the offending
caller. It only happened that one
day and the calls stopped.
Like having a good screen in a window,
the best way to keep pests out is to keep
them from getting in in the fi rst place.
Here are a few tactics you can use:
DO NOT ANSWER
I know it’s tempting…the phone rings
and you want to pick it up. If the number
is “unknown” or you don’t recognize
it, don’t answer the phone, period. Even if
the number looks familiar but you’re not
sure about it, let voice mail take it. Most
anyone legit will leave a message, and
the odds are good that if they don’t, it’s a
scam. Be consistent about not answering
14 CRYDER POINT COURIER | OCTOBER 2018 | WWW.QUEENSCOURIER.COM
the phone and realize it will take a while
before they give up, but eventually they’ll
stop calling you and move on to another
target. Th is is probably one of the most effective
methods to get a robocaller to stop;
more important, it ensures that you won’t
get snagged into a potentially risky phone
conversation.
LEVERAGE YOUR CALL
DIRECTORY
You may not be able to recognize all of
your friends’ numbers, but if you keep
your nearest and dearest’s names and
numbers in your phone’s Call Directory,
you’ll see that it’s them when they call. Be
sure to add new contacts right away (well,
just the ones you want to hear from!).
YES, DO NOT CALL IS
STILL WORTH IT
Do Not Call was started by the Federal
Trade Commission to help people minimize
the number of calls they receive
from marketers. Obviously, that’s become
a bigger challenge. Still, legitimate organizations
will abide by the registry—but
scammers won’t. So if you receive a call
from a marketer aft er you’re registered,
you know it’s probably a scammer. One
important note: donotcall.gov has warned
that there’s a fake email going out telling
consumers their Do Not Call registration
is about to expire. Per the site, “Registrations
never expire.” Visit the site or call
1-888-1222 for more information.
BLOCK IT OUT
Your phone service provider probably
off ers some level of call-blocking service
from anonymous callers for free, and
sometimes warns you automatically. I’ve
noticed recently that some calls will come
in with a “Spam” warning in the Caller
I.D. (in fact one came in just now as I
was writing this!). Check with your provider
to see what the options are. If that
isn’t suffi cient, you can also consider a
call-blocking app for your mobile phone
or an optional call-blocking service for
your landline. Some of these may incur a
fee, but it may be worth the relief.
AND FINALLY…
You can fi nd out more info and tips
from Consumers Union. Th e organization
has been active in helping to end
illegitimate telemarketing; visit consumersunion.
org. AARP also has some good
tips and information as well; go to aarp.
org. You can also do your bit to help by
reporting illegal robocalls to the Federal
Trade Commission at consumercomplaints.
ft c.gov or calling 888-225-5322.