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Remember when phone calls meant that people wanted to talk to you about something other than lowering your interest rates? These days, the phone rings so often with recorded messages Robocall-You qualify! You must! You have won! -answering feels like a danger.
I hit my own robocall break point a month ago. I took a quick shower before catching a flight. My phone rang. Fearing to miss a call from my boss, who had tried to reach me, I jumped. But no, it was rather a recording.
I resisted the urge to throw my phone through the bathroom and I went looking for answers. Why can not anyone stop this madness? First, the bad news: almost all the people I talked to about robocalls used the phrase: "There is no quick fix."
But the developments in the works should better control the problem of the robot.
Where does this evil come from?
At the time when phone calls were transmitted by copper wires, companies paid a lot of money for telephone systems that allowed 1,000 calls. employees make calls without the need of 1,000 phone lines. These systems inserted the caller ID so that, for example, customers would all see the same company number, regardless of the employee who called them.
With the Internet, companies do not need expensive equipment. Anyone can start a mini call center with software that automatically dials numbers and impersonates the caller. They also need a provider to "initiate" the call, ie connect the Internet call to the telephone network.
Some automated calls are legitimate – your pharmacy, your bank – but not those who constantly change numbers to appear to avoid being spotted. Robocallers even spoof numbers held by ordinary phone customers like you and me (so do not call them to shout at them.)
A real solution happens?
With the caller ID broken, the developers have proposed a certification protocol call (known as STIR) and guidelines for its implementation (known as SHAKEN ). The names behind these acronyms are long and confusing.
With this, an original telephone operator could verify that a caller has the right to use a number and create a digital fingerprint for the call. The carrier at the receiving end could verify that nothing was messy during the transportation.
"In reality, they do not say that the call comes from the phone number. What they say is that this user has the right to use this phone number, "says
Jim McEachern,
a senior technologist from the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions, a technical working group that helped develop guidelines for this certification protocol call.
If a perpetrator attempts to impersonate the appellant, the appeal would pass. t be verified. Finally, users will see a checkmark or other indicator for verified calls.
McEachern compares the current status of automated calls to the days before the junk mail filters. "I think something similar is going to happen with that," he says. "Suddenly, people will say," Remember how bad it was? "
McEachern estimates that it could take two to five years, Verizon plans to launch the system later this year and other carriers are expected to follow.
" We are optimistic that this will have an impact but again, this will not solve the problem, "he says.
Matthew Berry,
the Chief of Staff of the Federal Communications Commission, which sets rules for the industry, imposes fines on individuals and businesses, and develops public policy initiatives.
The list "Do Not Originate"
appearing. Last November, the FCC adopted rules that allow telephone companies to block calls from non-existent area codes, numbers that are not assigned to anyone, and entries from a "Do Not Originate" list. Composed of unused numbers. for outgoing calls.
Berry says the rules have been effective in stopping IRS scam calls. Scammers had usurped an IRS hotline number that is now on the Do Not Originate list.
But IRS scam calls can come from a variety of numbers.
Aaron Foss,
founder of the application Nomorobo call blocking, said his app identified 75 different numbers hawking IRS scams in one day.
What You Can Do Now
When you get a robocall, hang up. Do not say anything, do not press the buttons and do not call back. Once scammers know that a number is working, they can sell it and your call volume could increase.
It may seem pointless to block the numbers in your phone-I have blocked a peddling of chronic pain management and got the same record of another 48 hours. But do it anyway, because there are a lot of recidivists there. Here's how to do it on iOS and Android.
Also, add yourself to the Federal Trade Commission's Excluded Telephone Number Register. Just be aware that you will always receive unwanted phone calls because crooks do not follow the rules. Also, continue to file robocall complaints. It helps FTC point malfeasers.
Operator Protection
Service providers have recently increased their automation automation protection offerings, so check with your carrier. They include features to identify possible scam calls (and even assess the likelihood of a scam) and block them or send them to voicemail.
T-Mobile provides a retrieval ID and automatic blocking. ]
AT & T
The call protection services are also free and include blocking the alleged fraud. It also offers a $ 4 per month service that allows you to block certain categories of calls, including reverse lookup of phone numbers.
Verizon's recently enhanced $ 3 per month Caller ID service now allows you to send spam. Voice Messaging.
The recently updated Premium Caller ID of Sprint, also $ 3 per month, allows iOS users to automatically reject calls based on the likelihood that they will be fraudulent. Android users will benefit from this feature later this summer.
Call-blocking apps
You can also try applications created by external developers.
Nomorobo, $ 2 a month, identifies probable fraudulent calls and can send them directly to the voice mail. Unlike other services, you do not need to share your contact list.
His algorithm uses several data sources, including FTC and FCC complaints and real-time data from his fixed customers. The company also has about 250,000 phone numbers and monitors incoming calls for fraudsters.
Hiya is a free app that blocks calls by analyzing the complaint data sent to the FTC and the FCC, as well as the information it collects from its Android users. Hiya is the technology behind the call identification function that powers AT & T's Call Protect service.
Whether it's iOS or Android, you need to share your contact list with Hiya but the service does not download it or store it. He also says that he will not sell any data from your phone to third parties.
Write to Katherine Bindley at [email protected]
