# 800 number calls frequenty, apparently auto-hangs up when answered, what is it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 14, 2018, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521 "2018-11-14T20:33:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/1 "2018-11-14T20:33:48Z")
I’m getting a call that my caller ID says “Probably a chk Processor” from an 800 number about every other day. I’ve been prone to not answering it lately, but every time I do the call immediately ends. I’m thinking maybe something automated (chk Processer, whatever that is, is a good clue) is dial me up or something, and can tell immediately I’m not a modem and hangs up. I don’t think a human would react that fast, and why would a human hang up if they called me? It’s a cell phone, not like they could use it to determine if I was home or not. Anybody else have this happen to them? Safe to block. ETA: Ugh. This was meant for General Questions. Please move. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/2 "2018-11-14T20:49:44Z")
I think this is more MPSIMS than GQ. Moving from GD to MPSIMS. [/moderating] ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/3 "2018-11-14T20:53:24Z")
A spammer is going to want to maximize the efficiency of his human operators. So he doesn’t want the human operator waiting around until someone answers the phone. So the computer is systematically dialing people and if a human operator is not available when someone answers it just hangs up. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/4 "2018-11-14T20:59:08Z")
There are also phone insider scams where dialers just place massive numbers of calls to collect the caller ID fees just for completing a call. The fees are small but they place millions of calls. The number you see displayed could be spoofed. Why don’t you just try calling the number and see who it is? Dial \*67 first to suppress your own called ID info. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/5 "2018-11-14T21:03:16Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Dial \*67 first to suppress your own called ID info. That is truly evile! ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/6 "2018-11-14T22:03:39Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > There are also phone insider scams where dialers just place massive numbers of calls to collect the caller ID fees just for completing a call. The fees are small but they place millions of calls. The number you see displayed could be spoofed. > > Why don’t you just try calling the number and see who it is? Dial \*67 first to suppress your own called ID info. Just FYI, when calling an 800 number, you cannot hide your phone number by dialing \*67. 800-numbers get your number from Automatic Number Identification (ANI) rather than Caller ID. ANI is not affected by dialing \*67. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2018, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/7 "2018-11-14T22:17:56Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > A spammer is going to want to maximize the efficiency of his human operators. So he doesn’t want the human operator waiting around until someone answers the phone. So the computer is systematically dialing people and if a human operator is not available when someone answers it just hangs up. This. Autodialer is faster than the [del]scammer[/del] human on the other end; it disconnects if there’s no one available to talk to you. I’m betting caller ID is abbreviation for “check processor”. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2018, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/8 "2018-11-15T15:13:57Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > A spammer is going to want to maximize the efficiency of his human operators. So he doesn’t want the human operator waiting around until someone answers the phone. So the computer is systematically dialing people and if a human operator is not available when someone answers it just hangs up. What is a “human operator”, (assuming you don’t mean 411) and is that supposed to be me? ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2018, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/9 "2018-11-15T15:17:43Z")
Have you googled the phone number? ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2018, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/10 "2018-11-15T15:22:38Z")
One strategy that spammers use is to blast out calls when a spammer is available, but then hang up on them all once one of the calls is answered. It would be like if you could call 100 people at once. Once one of them answered, you would talk to them and hang up on the other 99. So what could be happening with you is that someone else answered the phone so they hung up on all the other calls in progress. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2018, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/800-number-calls-frequenty-apparently-auto-hangs-up-when-answered-what-is-it/824521/11 "2018-11-15T15:45:11Z")
> [@Ashtura](#): > > What is a “human operator”, (assuming you don’t mean 411) and is that supposed to be me? The “[del]sub-[/del]human operator” is the person working at the call center. Management want them talking non-stop; therefore, their computer make many robocalls in the hopes that one is answered. If a real, live person picks up their phone a split second before you of if the “[del]sub-[/del]human operator” hasn’t hung up from their previous call yet then there’s no one available to talk to you so the phone hangs up on you.