FCC Proposes Allowing Phone Companies to Block Scammers
The Federal Communications Commission has proposed letting phone companies block scammers and more spam and is hoping to deter scammers with big fines. Over the past year, prodded by the government, cellphones have added new tools to counteract unwanted “robocalls.” Experts say these steps are not a cure-all, but they’re a good start.
Why is this happening?
The federal and state “Do Not Call” lists are supposed to protect people from unwanted calls from telemarketers. But scammers don’t care about breaking the law.
Scammers reach people cheaply and easily using “autodialers,” which spew out a large number of calls automatically. It’s estimated that Americans receive tens of millions of robocalls every day. Not all of them are fraudsters, of course. Pharmacies send automated messages about prescriptions being filled. But too often, it’s this: you owe the IRS money; it’s Microsoft calling to fix your computer; free cruises!
And spam callers have tricky technology that makes a phone’s caller ID display a local or important-looking caller, like the IRS. Cracking down on “spoofed” numbers would make running a scam more difficult and save U.S. consumers millions of dollars, a group of state attorneys general said in an FCC filing.
What phone companies are doing?
Phone companies and independent apps can screen or block unwanted calls by checking them against databases of known problem numbers and analyzing suspicious behavior, like a number that’s calling lots of people on Do Not Call lists.
Wireless carriers also have tools that flag incoming calls with warnings like “scam likely,” but they aren’t available on all phones, or to many prepaid customers. The versions from Verizon and Sprint cost extra. A few Android phones, including Google’s Pixel, screen spam calls for free.
Apps including YouMail and Nomorobo offer relief on home phones for free, with limitations. With YouMail, your carrier must allow “conditional call forwarding,” which forwards calls if a line is unanswered or busy. Nomorobo isn’t available through all home phone providers and won’t work with older, copperbased landlines. You can also buy gadgets, some pretty clunky, that block calls on home phones. Verizon is also testing warnings about suspicious calls on a home phone’s caller ID display.
Help from the government
Phone companies can already block some calls that are being faked. The FCC has proposed rules to formalize that practice and permit them to block other calls they suspect are scams. That means Verizon can block a toll-free number that accepts calls for a bank but never initiates a call. Carriers would also be able to block calls they know aren’t legitimate, like a number with a 911 area code. The rules still need to be finalized. (TA/AP)
