Dealing with obscene callers

Unless the person is falling-down drunk, heavily drugged, or in an insane rage--in which case I would simply hang up--the best way to deal with an obscene caller is:
Speak slightly away from the handset, and say something like:
"Lt. Sloan, I think it's HIM again.
When I did this the obscene caller hung up!!

Great Idea. When we were being bugged with annoying calls. I had a friend with the right voice record a short thing on my answering machine message box. With some clicks and taps she said in a spaced out monotone " Phone trace com plete " calls stopped after three times.

How many obscene calls do you get? I do not believe I have ever gotten any. Plenty of wrong numbers or hang-ups but no obscene calls.

Jeffery

I don't get many!! I am big and burly with a voice to match! Besides we are a telephone-company family and even we kids have picked up, by osmosis, a considerable amount of telephone lore and 'tricks of the trade.'

If you'll post your phone numbers, major credit card and mother's maiden name, I'll be happy to oblige you for a small fee.

[StrTrkr777]

I am glad to know that you are big and burly with a voice to match. You are such a manly man. I was not trying to imply anything about you receiving obscene calls, I was just wondering how many you receive as I do not recall ever receiving any.

Jeffery

Want to get hard-core? Get some tech.

Call up Ma Bell or Ma Sprint or Ma MCI or whatever you got and demand caller ID. Wait for Captain Stupid to bug you. There, on a nifty little readout, is the caller's phone number.

Now you have 2 options:
1)Never answer for that number again. Even dimwits get bored after a while, and you should lose your troublemaker.
2)Phone up the fuzz and file a complaint about illegal phone calls.

Hope this helps. Does cost some money, but you cain't get chicken noodle soup without killin' a chicken and usin' yer noodle.

don Jaime
Free the Water Tower 3!

[mr john]

Caller Id is great. It isn't very expensive. But a caller can punch in a code 6 something * and your read out will say "anonymous" which of course you don't answer. But that is not much comfort when you are getting calls at 3 am, which we were.Also caller Id is not available in all areas. Not so important for us who have it but a call from those areas will read out 'not available' or 'out of area' and it just might be aunt hilda . Guess where a lot of telemarketers have their calls routed thru? More importantly, the phone company USED to put a trace/recorder on your line if you requested.If you got an obnoxious call you noted the time and called ma bell and they would notify the cops. NOW if you call, they tell you how to block calls from a specified number for a 'slight additional fee'. Unfortunatly they can't block anonymous calls. So you gotta call the cops and file a complaint, telling them what number you are receiving the call from and they will contact the phone company.!!!! Answering machine works good , let it screen your calls. And when we did pop a guy for calling us we had the phone co. records and our recordings.

[OpalCat]

First off, Shane, most people don't do obscene phone calls to males. Some do, but it's pretty rare. Most will hang up if a guy answers the phone.

Now for the answer:
I think the code is *57 in most areas, contact your local police department for details, but you dial that and then somehow if you get 3 calls from the same number (and it doesn't matter if they're blocking it) a report is sent to the local police dept. of the originating call.

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>^,,^<
"Cluemobile? You've got a pickup..."
OpalCat's site: http://fathom.org/opalcat
The Teeming Millions Homepage: fathom.org/teemingmillions (http://fathom.org/teemingmillions)

[Harmonious Discord]

*67 Caller I.D. block
*69 Call back last caller

[AuntiePam]

I've had one obscene phone call in my whole life (I'm old) -- guy calls (I'm at work) and says (can I say this on the board?) "Do you suck c***?" Flabbergasted, I respond "What?" He must have used up all his courage, cuz he just sputtered and hung up. Got a chuckle recalling that -- thanks!

Now flashers, they really tick me off!

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<insert something clever>

[Born2Read]

This used to be a hassle for me, too. I bought a REALLY loud whistle. When that little perv called me back, I let him have it. I bet his ear fell off. Never called back.

[dougie_monty]

I'm sorry; to answer your question, I have had VERY few obscene calls in the last 30 years. Maybe people sense from my voice that I could come over and do something to them. It never gets that far, but, hey, whatev er works...

[B. G. Kimball]

My daughter was getting them. We dialed *57. That traced the call for the phone company. Then we called the police. They came over and filled out a report. The detective got the traced number from the phone company and payed the caller a visit. The calls stopped. The phone company and the cops would not tell us who the caller was, but they did tell the caller that if he ever did it again, he would have his phone disconnected for a year, on top of being arrested.

[Shirley Ujest]

"Do you suck c***?"

My answer would have been, no, I prefer my chicken sliced and diced. :)

[Lumpy]

Obscene phone calls from random "pranksters" are the least of people's worries these days. The real headache is when some obsessive stalker decides to phone you day and night for months.

[dougie_monty]

Now that's a good reply, Shirley. Better you should defuse a potentially volatile situation than allow it to detonate. :)

The last time I was bothered by an obscene repeat caller was before caller-id was available. Nothing since. I have caller-id, and I'm undecided whether I consider it something of a ripoff or not. As someone pointed out, you can hit *## (whatever) to block display of your number on a receiving unit; however,the phone company (at least my local one does) should also offer (no fee) 'anonymous call reject' which will not allow such blocked calls to ring through. It should even work cross-country, because when my brother calls from Seattle, it displays his number and name. However, as someone else also noted, most solicitors route their calls in such a way that "out of area" is displayed (which of course the phone company didn't tell you about when they advertised caller-id everywhere); however, although I know there have been some cases of long-distance obscene callers, most are local, and should show up.

However, my girlfriend informs me that, if you're receiving obscene phone calls, you can call the operator even in the middle of the night and they can activate the call-trace option for your line within minutes.

If you just hate solicitors, though, you can try some other options: some answering machines have a feature which requires the caller to enter a three digit code after the regular number, or the machine will not pass the call onto the phone. This is called a 'breakthrough code'. For about $15-$20, several mail order catalog places offer a device you can clip into your phone line which will detect any unidentifiable number and keep it from ringing through; in addition, it plays a digital message telling the caller to remove your number from their call list.

[Joey P]

After playing that message to remove you from there call list, it also makes it illegal for them (or just about all soliciters, because they are mostly based off the same list) within the next three years.

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Formerly known as Nec3f on the AOL SDMB

[dougie_monty]

I used to be a security guard, working a graveyard shift. One time another guard (from another building in the same agency!) called me and spouted off obscenities at me for five minutes!! I bet the guy was on something. I didn't waste time. I contacted the dispatcher, who had the supervisor called me. They must have fired that garbage-mouth immediately!!

[Shane]

Originally posted by OpalCat:
First off, Shane, most people don't do obscene phone calls to males. Some do, but it's pretty rare. Most will hang up if a guy answers the phone.::::snip::::

Opal, that isn't me you are replying to (StrTrkr777), His name is Jeffery. That is who you are replying to. I don't use Star Trek in my usernames anymore, that was over a year ago.

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~Shane (Formerly StrTrekNut)
AIM/AOL screen name: Shane0630
My Homepage: http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/sandringham/241/

[handy]

I never got an obscene phone call! I want one! Maybe some lady here could call me?

[dougie_monty]

Just post your phone number, Handy, and your wish will come true. ;)

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"If you drive an automobile, please drive carefully--because I walk in my sleep."--Victor Borge

[mellonhead]

I've only had one obscene phone call and it was because my name and the fact I was a freshman at the University of Minnesota was listed in some stupid "student directory" (you'd think that the liberal "privacy police" on campus would have put a stop to that kind of thing).

I wanted to relay this story because I wanted to know if anyone else has got one of these at work:

A co-worker of mine got a call pretty recently during the business day. The man on the line said he was taking a marketing survey on pantyhose...and proceded to ask her a number of question about the brands she buys, the style (controll-top, sheer, stockings, etc). During the course of the Q&A session the man stops and says "I'm sorry, but I think we may have a bad phone connection. Would you please rip a piece of paper into the phone." My co-worker obliged (like 10 times or something). It wasn't until a few moments later that she realized that the call was one of "those" calls. Needless to say she hung up the phone.

Now I've heard of a lot of wierd fettish things before but pantyhose and the sound of ripping paper is WAY OVER THE TOP :)

I used to receive the occasional obscene call, but not in about 8-9 years. A couple of times, it was done by women. The last few were evidently done by a male homosexual who, I suspect, was being put up to it by a mutual acquaintance I could never figure out. But the calls stopped after (as the phone company security office suggested) I started recording the calls and logging the times (sometimes as late/early as 3 a.m.).

I got Caller-ID a couple of years ago, just to see who was calling for the sake of convenience, and because the phone company sells it to you with the "anonymous call reject" feature (ACR). Only thing, folks, is what the phone company doesn't tell you is that they "milk" both ends of the line. You get the "assurance" that no one can call you anonymously; however, I've learned that the phone companies also make available an option to phone solicitors that causes their "number" to come up as "Out of Area" on the CallerID unit. Not "No Data Sent". I see no real reason why this should be an excuse, though; when my brother calls from Seattle (pretty much 'out of the area' of central Kentucky), his number is displayed nonetheless.

What I think may be going on is that the boiler rooms from which the solicitors work may, in some cases, be situated in prisons and the parent companies aren't eager to have a prison number/name appear on somebody's id unit.

Unfortunately, some of the personal calls I get are occasionally from someone who actually lives "outside the area" in a place where the system doesn't generate the data to send. But most aren't. I finally took to just letting the answering machine pick up on the "Out of Area" calls.

So, bottom line -- don't get CallerId expecting that it will be an answer to getting obscene calls. If you use anonymous call reject, and the creep is seriously trying to get to you, he/she will just try from a pay phone. (Admittedly, there are some creeps stupid enough to actually call from their home phones.) The only way that could help is if the police agree to stand by to respond at a moment's notice to get to the pay phone # displayed, and you know how they love to do that.

[Markxxx]

Radio Shack sells a device that if the call comes thru as private(*67)
or out of area that will tell the caller "You are calling from an unidentfied phone. Pls hang up and allow youself to be identified."

[Melatonin]

Caller ID bites ass.
For some reason, all of the phone numbers I've had in the past few years are unidentifiable according to some phone system or another, and I show up as "Unknown Name," when placing calls to different area codes.
I'm not a telemarketer, but if the friend/family member I'm calling isn't aware of the drawbacks of their caller ID system, they often won't pick up.

[fuzzy-wuzzy]

I've never gotten an obscene call in my life...geeessh I guess southern men just haven't figured out how to do make them yet

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"Do or do not, there is no try" - Yoda

Originally posted by Melatonin:
Caller ID bites ass.
For some reason, all of the phone numbers I've had in the past few years are unidentifiable according to some phone system or another, and I show up as "Unknown Name," when placing calls to different area codes.


Seriously, Mel, have you called the phone company to ask them about it? Are you positive that your number-block function has not accidentally been turned on by a child or family pet?

Markxxx, thanks for the news. I know I've seen things similar to what you describe in mail-order catalogs, that even tell the caller to remove the called number from their calling list; one of these days, I really must quit my bitchin' and get one . . .


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If you knew what I know, everything would make sense; and if it didn't, you'd know enough to know not to worry about it -- The God of Somebody Else

[handy]

If you are calling someone with caller ID rejection & need to identify yourself right then to get thru, you hit *82, right? I forgot what the number was but you can do it & then your nbr shows & the call goes thru.

[handy]

Sure, dougie_monty, it's 831-555-8774.

If it's busy it's cause there are a lot of women calling.

[Lord Jim]

From Mel:
...and the pets aren't allowed to use the phone until they are at least 13.

Most of my pets would never live long enough to get to use the phone, much less be bothered about obscene callers.

Originally posted by Melatonin:

I suspect Ameritech would have very little to say if I were to ask them why someone else's (out of state, Southern Bell) caller ID declares me "unknown."

And I suspect you have not given them a call. If a Southern Bell caller's number shows up on your CallerID, then yours should show up on theirs, since I likewise suspect Ameritech and Southern Bell must mutually honor the calling protocols of each company with which they network.

. . . pets aren't allowed to use the phone until they are at least 13.

Yeah, right. Like you know what your pets are doing when you're not at home! And I bet you thought the housekeeper was to blame for the change in the level of your liquor.

Poor housekeeper, falsely accused by the heartless Melatoni! :)


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If you knew what I know, everything would make sense; and if it didn't, you'd know enough to know not to worry about it -- The God of Somebody Else

[Melatonin]

Teeheehee, "housekeeper."
Teeheehee, "caller ID."

First off, I really don't believe pets should be allowed to use the phone at all. It's too hard for them to resist chewing on the receiver. SO the age limit was rather arbitrary.

Okay, I was trying to figure out where the lines of communication were severed. Now I understand that someone made an assumption. I was talking about *other* people's Caller ID.

I do not have Caller ID, Sam I am.
I do not have it in a box,
I do not have it with a fox.
I do not, do not have a dog.
In my dorm I could not even keep a frog.
I do not, do not have a housekeeper.
Tho at my last apt I *did* have a peeper.
I do not, do not have a house.
I do not, do not have a spouse.
Sam I Am, I have an answering machine,
Which tops the IDwhatsit- you know what I mean.
I shall not, shall not call the Phone Company and be a bore
As that would give them an excuse to bother me more.
I do not, do not have Caller ID,
Not on a ship or in a tree.
I don't have any of these things, Sam I am.
Read the post more carefully next time, god- damn.

[Melatonin]

Of course, when I refer back to the topic that is supposedly addressed in this thread, I realize that I, apparently, have failed to take advantage of a *fabulous* opportunity.

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"There is nothing you ought to do, for the simple reason that you know nothing, nothing whatever- make a mental note of that, if you please."
-V. Nabokov

We used to get "The listener" on our phone at any hour of the day or night.
We got caller ID and activated the private caller reject feature. Next time the nitwit called, I did a quick reverse lookup of the number that came up, using the internet and got an adress for the number.
When nitwit called the next time, I informed him/her that I was about to proceed over to <insert address> and make some changes to his dental record. The calls stopped.
Any calls that show "unknown caller" or "out of area" may speak to my answering machine. If I hear anything worth answering, I pick up.


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FixedBack

"Misers get up early in the morning; and burglars, I am informed, get up the night before."~~G.K.Chesterton

[Melatonin]

Originally posted by George Papoon:
Seriously, Mel, have you called the phone company to ask them about it? Are you positive that your number-block function has not accidentally been turned on by a child or family pet?




I suspect Ameritech would have very little to say if I were to ask them why someone else's (out of state, Southern Bell) caller ID declares me "unknown."

None of the parties involved have children and the pets aren't allowed to use the phone until they are at least 13.

[Chef Troy]

I remember reading about a doohickey that helps correct some of the deficiencies of Caller ID. When someone calls your number, before the phone rings, they get a recorded message that says something to the effect of, "you've reached the home of Joe Blow. Please state your name and business at the tone." If the caller does this, you get a voice announcement saying "Call from (recorded name)" and you can decide whether to pick up or not. If they won't leave their name (and what telemarketer would?), the call is terminated.

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Live a Lush Life
Da Chef

[Padeye]

The only obscene call I ever got was at work. Someone was waiting at my desk and a guy called and started hemming and hawing about having what I needed. I thought it was some kind of half-assed sales call, and a not very good salesman. After a couple of minutes I blew my stack and yelled at him to get to the point. He then offered to perform a service on me, a job of sorts. I did not see that coming and just stared into the reciever before hanging up.

[melanietarrant]

i was a consultant for Bell Atlantic.

ok first of all, NEVER dial *69 to call back a harrasing or obscene caller.
if you do, you will be guilty of the same crime.
call your local phone company. they have several options available.
i know Bell Atlantic will change your phone number for you one time free
there are other services available, like call block which blocks all calls from certain numbers, you don't even have to know the number that is harrassing you

OpalCat suggested you dial *57
it's a good sugestion, but that should really only be used if the phone calls are threatening. if they're just annoying, then call your local telephone company

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I'm pink therefore I'm Spam

[Minxsmom]

I've always found that an airhorn works well. Not only do they stop bugging you at all hours, but I bet they'll think twice about harassing someone else.

[Max Torque]

When I lived in the dorms, we had every service the phone company offered, free of charge. Most of these services were pretty new. Once, late at night, I was awakened by a call from someone who hung up right after I said "Hello". I *69ed it, and some fratboy answered. I told him I'd used callback and to stop calling me.

Sure enough, a minute later my phone rang again. Apparently this dude had decided to play phone games. So, I *69ed him again. This time he was apparently intent on not answering. But, he'd left his answering machine on. "Hi, you have reached 785...." At that point I heard the phone get picked up and hung up hastily, with a faint, "oh shit" in the background. What a maroon. Never heard from him again.

I can recall one other obscene call in the dorms. A guy called and, in a faggy voice, said, "Do you wanna jack off?" It was about 3 AM, and I was awake anyway, so I just said, "You're lucky I was awake, dude. Go to bed." He meekly said "ok" and hung up.

[TVeblen]

I really like Ayesha's trick. I haven't been plagued with obscene calls for quite a while, about the same time as I got an unlisted number, in fact. But when I got the calls it was usually late at night and I was too groggy to remember * whatsis.

My tactis probably wasn't the smartest in the world, but hey, I'm cranky when awakened and it worked: critiquing the call for style, vocabulary and content.

(obscene suggestion)
"Well, that isn't very original." "You call this an obscene phone call? Pathetic, just pathetic..."

It usually got them off the line, pronto.

Veb

[phouka]

I have received *one* obscene phonecall in my life. At seven a.m. on a Saturday morning.

I was practically asleep when I answered the phone, and a panting man asked me what color panties I was wearing. My answer was "Oh, you have got to be fucking kidding me. Get a life, idiot."

Original, no. But he did hang up and never bothered me again.

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The lovely woman-child Kaa was mercilessly chained to the cruel post of the warrior-chief Beast, with his barbarous tribe now stacking wood at her nubile feet, when the strong, clear voice of the poetic and heroic Handsomas roared, "Flick your Bic, crisp that chick, and you'll feel my steel through your last meal."

[Ayesha]

My favorite way to deal with obscene callers is to say, you know Jesus loves you and He died for you.

Works like a charm. I usually don't get any further than loves before they hang up.

I refuse to let them upset me, IMHO that is what they want.

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Ayesha

[Kat]

Originally posted by melanietarrant:
i was a consultant for Bell Atlantic.

ok first of all, NEVER dial *69 to call back a harrasing or obscene caller.
if you do, you will be guilty of the same crime.

I've never used *69, but according to the latest flurry of commercials, it no longer just calls the person back--supposedly it now gives you the phone number of the last caller and gives you the option of calling the number or not.

Oddly enough, I've never gotten an obscene call. I have gotten "no-talkers", though.


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Your Official Cat Goddess since 10/20/99.

"[A]gainst stupidity the very gods themselves contend in vain." --J.C.F.S. as quoted by H.M.