- b.c.,
Of late there have been an increasing frequency of articles involving nuisance "robocallers" including one today that warned of a coming new avalanche of political text messages.
For years, Consumer Union (the policy and advocacy arm of Consumer Reports Magazine and consumerreports.com) have been working on behalf of legislative reforms concerning the issue:
Mad About Robocalls? - Consumer Reports
CR Letter to Senate Commerce Committee on S. 151, TRACED Act
TRACED-Act-S.-151-joint-letter-to-Committee-4-2-19-FINAL.pdf
In the meantime there are various things one might try to at least minimize the frequency of these harassing calls, and various articles can be found online.
For my cellphone I use caller id and call blocking aps (for example Mr. Number, Caller Id etc.) that allow you options to block calls from unknown numbers, texts, and even set up to receive calls from your contact list only.
For landlines, hardwired and wireless (may vary depending on service, and you must have caller id) the problem is robocallers who can generate random numbers, so that as soon as you block an identified number, they call from another.
You can usually tell because when you call them back (ONLY do this with YOUR number blocked) you get a "number not in service" message.
But SENTRY makes a nifty little call blocker (in several models) that screens all calls with a message, requiring the called to enter a certain number or code, in order to send the ring through. If they don't you only hear one ring.
And as an ADDED bonus, you can white list your family and friends, allowing their calls to go straight through without the screening.
For years, Consumer Union (the policy and advocacy arm of Consumer Reports Magazine and consumerreports.com) have been working on behalf of legislative reforms concerning the issue:
Mad About Robocalls? - Consumer Reports
CR Letter to Senate Commerce Committee on S. 151, TRACED Act
TRACED-Act-S.-151-joint-letter-to-Committee-4-2-19-FINAL.pdf
In the meantime there are various things one might try to at least minimize the frequency of these harassing calls, and various articles can be found online.
For my cellphone I use caller id and call blocking aps (for example Mr. Number, Caller Id etc.) that allow you options to block calls from unknown numbers, texts, and even set up to receive calls from your contact list only.
For landlines, hardwired and wireless (may vary depending on service, and you must have caller id) the problem is robocallers who can generate random numbers, so that as soon as you block an identified number, they call from another.
You can usually tell because when you call them back (ONLY do this with YOUR number blocked) you get a "number not in service" message.
But SENTRY makes a nifty little call blocker (in several models) that screens all calls with a message, requiring the called to enter a certain number or code, in order to send the ring through. If they don't you only hear one ring.
And as an ADDED bonus, you can white list your family and friends, allowing their calls to go straight through without the screening.