How can these crooks continue operating in the open in broad daylight and keep getting away with it?
The number of robocalls being made to unsuspecting consumers will not abate, no matter what we do. YouMail, one of the online apps that have been created to block robocalls, says there are around 3.4 billion calls being placed in the U.S. every month, up 900 million from last year’s monthly average, and there is no sign of them slowing down any time soon.
Why? Because enough people are answering and responding to make it profitable for crooks to apply the low-cost autodial technology. The most frequent advice given to consumers is to not answer the call, and if you do, do not push any buttons. It only encourages them to call you more.
Complaints can be filed with the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission, and Leah Napoliello, senior director of Investigative Services for the better Business Bureau of Houston and South Texas says they’ll take your complaint by phone. “You can also file online with us, too. We have a service call Scam Tracker where you can report these types of issues to us,” she tells NewsRadio 740 KTRH.
Not all robocalls are criminal enterprises; legitimate businesses use the auto-dialers as well. But Napoliello says more often than not, it’s a crook calling. “The vast majority is going to be illegal,” she says. “If they’re trying to sell you something over the phone, and you haven’t given your written consent to speak with them in the past, then most likely it’s going to be illegal.”