Stop Unwanted Phone Calls - Comments Page 3

I have a windows phone. What I do is never answer a call that I don't know. This means if your number is not listed in my 'people' file, I won't answer. Realize that if you are on the list the call will announce the name of the caller. Sooo after I call back all the mysterious numbers, I make a list. Then I set up a 'person' & enter the numbers. Of course the 'person' is a name like Asshole or Idiot. It's great when your phone rings like it has down here in the Dominican Republic & it announces 'Call from moron!' You will need a few 'people' like this to accommodate all the calls you get. It's really fun. CAUTION: shut your phone off at business meetings & church services. Tee, hee.

I find that many calls with 800,866 and so on calls are automated calls. The technique I have used is to pick up my land line handset and say nothing. Just listen. This causes the automated machine to not detect a voice and will eventually go to a fast busy signal without the recording coming on. It seems that if you say anything -- that is what activates the machine making the call.

When I get annoyed by these calls, I pick up but don't answer an then hang up.

Bob! I have found this website to be very useful:

http://800notes.com/

We have something called a "Do Not Call List" in Canada, too...but, alas, things only got worse since I signed up for it. Seems the government made the list available to...you guessed it: telemarketers. U.S.-based numbers are not covered by Canadian law, so there has been a *huge* increase in telemarketing calls from South of the border. I do not answer any numbers I do not recognize. And I use 800notes to find out who is on the other end. And my Panasonic cordless telephone allows me to block up to 30 numbers, freeing me from the worst of the repeat offenders.

But that is just a stopgap measure. I will not be satisfied until telemarketing calls to people *who do not want to receive them* are banned, and harshly penalized. On both sides of the border.

Thanks for the article! I never knew that "affiliates" could only call for 30 days.

For years we have had a gizmo between our phone and the wall jack that makes the sound of a disconnected number when the phone is answered.

If it is a robo call, it will hang up then call back to check, then it deletes our number from their records.

Occasionally we'll get some calls, but after a week or so it stops again.

People we want to hear from know they'll hear the sound and to wait for us to greet them.

This "Tele Zapper" is still available on eBay, it takes a button battery which lasts a long time.

I highly recommend it if all those tele marketing calls bother you, dinner will be uninterrupted.

Another trick that works for cell phones - put your pest's number in your contacts list and assign it the ring tone "no ring". The calls will go straight to voicemail without disturbing you.

With our CallerID, we don't answer unknown callers.
A few weeks ago, annoyed, I called a telemarketing caller back and an automated system began ".. to stop calls from us ... press 1.." I did.
AND I've been doing that on 5-6 telemarketer calls since - every one had a similar automated response to allow you to remove your number from their list..

I don't know if it'll work, but no harm in trying - as entering complaints in the donotcall.gov website is a waste of time (they kept calling)..

Fortunately I've had no problems with any of our cell phones, which we now use exclusively instead of land lines. However, I still get a heavy volume of telemarketing calls on our home phone, which used to be a land line. As I detailed on a previous topic, back on January 14th I transferred our land line phone number (which we've had for three decades and didn't want to lose) to Google Voice in a two-step process. All calls to that number now go to voice mail, and Google Voice emails me a notification that a call was received (along with a transcript if a message was left).

Google Voice has fielded 830 calls over the last 284 days, for an average of 2.9 calls per day. Only 39 out of the 830 (i.e., less than 5%) resulted in valid non-sales-type messages that I wanted to hear. It was easy to filter out all of the unwanted calls because they either didn't leave a message or I could tell from a glance at the transcript that I wasn't interested.

For the first month or two I tried Googling the numbers that called and didn't leave messages, and invariably discovered that they were telemarketers. I then blocked their phone numbers, assuming that the frequency of such calls would quickly decrease. That didn't happen. Many of the big-time telemarketing firms have banks of numbers they call from, so blocking one had no effect on their others.

After awhile my curiosity abated and I stopped bothering to Google the calling numbers or block them. Now I don't care how many telemarketing calls I get. Google Voice effectively screens them out, without my having to answer the telephone. If the email from Google Voice shows that the caller didn't bother to leave any message, then I'm certainly not going to bother calling that number back. If a message was left, I quickly scan the transcript to see if follow-up action is needed.

For all practical purposes I am now telemarketer-free, without losing any phone calls which are important.

If the person is not in my address book on my iPhone, I don't answer. If someone really wants to get a hold of me, the'll leave a message.
Thank you for all your timely and clear information.

I also have a Panasonic Cordless telephone that allows me to block up to 30 numbers. I like it very much. Another option that worked for me is to annoy them by playing dumb and waist their time. I don't know if it's a coincidence but I don't receive unwanted calls anymore. And it's not because I have blocked numbers. When I receive a call from a blocked number the telephone ring once and the number appear in the call display. So I would know. I like to belive they have a blacklist number and that I'm on it.

The EBR period exemption (established business relationship) is 18 months from your last business transaction or 3 months from your last inquiry or application. Thus, your dentist can call you to tell you it's time for your annual checkup, and if your periodical subscription runs out, you can be called up to 18 months after you received the last issue. Also, surveys are exempt from the DNC list.

If I don't recognize the number I'll answer it by saying "Pizza Hut, can I take your order?" They hang up and never call again :)

With iOS7, take the call, hang up and go to "recent calls." Tap the "I" for information on the right and scroll down. It allows you to block that number forever. You have to have them call you once, but never again.

Particularly with the various scam companies out there who want to "help you reduce your credit card debt", I have taken to seeing how long I can keep them on the line, providing false information with whatever accent I seem to spit out at the time. Other times I prefer to play my recording of Liam Neeson's speech from "Taken"; you know " I don't know who you are, I don't know what you want.....I will find you, and I will kill you" !

These are both really helpful ideas! I'll definitely use them when I next get the chance.

But the best stories for dealing with telemarketers I've ever heard weren't tech solutions.
Google is full of results for funny things to tell them so they stop calling. Like unloading a lifetime of fiction troubles when they ask how you are.

That being said, I know people who work in call centres here in Sydney. It's easy to forget that they also need jobs. Sure they chose it but they don't always have that many options. That's why I always try to politely but firmly tell them I'm not interested, when I don't make a game out of it.

I am also annoyed by those exceptions to the Do Not Call list, charities and politicians. I think I have managed to keep these down a little. Whenever, a real person in these groups call, I give a quiet but true speech that "I do not donate to(or vote for) anyone who phone solicits". AND I don't! If it's an automated call, I will make one attempt to email the offender to inform them I will never donate/vote for them because of their phone solicitation policy. Just like regular spam, if everyone did this, these people would go away.

Like some other readers, I get the best results by using caller ID and not picking up unless I know the caller. Comcast has a pretty good free blocking system that lets you block 12 numbers - and you can reuse the slots. They will also block 800 numbers unlike AT&T. The key: NEVER pick up the phone unless you know the caller. Let it go to Voice Mail. Sooner or later the calls will stop because endless failed calls cost them money. I stopped a VERY persistent scammer who called from many different numbers (but always at the same time of day) by always picking up, but immediately breaking the connection, after the 3rd ring. Once you speak they know you're a live one, so keep your mouth shut!

Good email. Very helpful information.

I have Ooma for my phone service. I can go to my dashboard online and review all incoming calls, and block any that I do not want to receive. On my cell phone I have an app called Mr Number, which lets me do the same thing. Works great for me.