# Confirm or debunk: Telemarketers calling our cell phones on our dime **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 22, 2007, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045 "2007-06-22T19:54:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/1 "2007-06-22T19:54:43Z")
This email is floating thru out system at work at present. I’ve been unable to confirm or debunk it, as I’ve had to deal with actual patient care instead of searching. So I ask my fellow dopers for help. True? Not? > [@](#): > > REMINDER…9 days from today, all cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sales calls. > > …YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS > > To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone:1-888-382-1222. > > It is the National DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of your time. > It blocks your number for five (5) years. > You must call from the cell phone number you want to have blocked. > You cannot call from a different phone number. > > HELP OTHERS BY PASSING THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS. > It take about 30 seconds. Thanks in advance for your help. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/2 "2007-06-22T20:01:00Z")
[Snopes is all over it](http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/cell411.asp). ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/3 "2007-06-22T20:01:50Z")
googling it gives 2 results (which do indicate that it is what you say it is). Calling it gives me a busy tone. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/4 "2007-06-22T20:15:47Z")
Thanks, **friedo**. I’ll inform the PTB to get this scurrious rumor out of our system. ---
**Author:** ![Julius\_Henry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8797f3/32.png) [@Julius\_Henry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Julius_Henry)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2007, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/5 "2007-06-22T21:41:17Z")
Not exactly on topic, but I did get a text message the other day offering me a FREE (their capitalization) ringtone. Since I’m on a prepaid plan the message cost me $1.05. The dollar is the daily usage fee and the nickel is the message fee. I haven’t had time to track down the spammer and complain, though. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/6 "2007-06-23T07:07:48Z")
[QUOTE=Julius Henry] Not exactly on topic, but I did get a text message the other day offering me a FREE (their capitalization) ringtone. Since I’m on a prepaid plan the message cost me $1.05. The dollar is the daily usage fee and the nickel is the message fee. I haven’t had time to track down the spammer and complain, though. [/QUOTE] I actually got my first piece of text spam about two weeks ago–it was one of those stupid penny stock “tips.” Luckily, it was only one, but any more and I’m really going to get pissed in a hurry. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/7 "2007-06-23T08:03:32Z")
From the horse’s mouth: [National Do Not Call Registry](https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx) ---
**Author:** ![essell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/34f0e0/32.png) [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/8 "2007-06-23T08:42:43Z")
[QUOTE=Julius Henry] Not exactly on topic, but I did get a text message the other day offering me a FREE (their capitalization) ringtone. Since I’m on a prepaid plan the message cost me $1.05. The dollar is the daily usage fee and the nickel is the message fee. I haven’t had time to track down the spammer and complain, though. [/QUOTE] Not sure if it might be differant in your area, but here you can’t get charged for the spam message, you have to reply to the spam message and then you’re ‘subscribed’. Costs then vary from 50p to £2.50 per message, coming through at a rate of one to four per week, in my experience. This has resulted in some ingenious ways to get people to reply, far beyond the usual offers and advertising. The best one I saw was a message that said “Thanks you for subsribing. You will automatically be charged £1.50 per week for our service, text back to unsubscribe” or something to that effect. Of course everyone who replied was then in my shop asking who these bastards were for a week and a half. Entertaining sometimes but when you’ve got an upset eight year old who’s lost the last of her pocket money thanks to some ruthless spam-heads, I don’t laugh so much. ---
**Author:** ![Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4da419/32.png) [@Gala\_Matrix\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gala_Matrix_Fire)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2007, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/9 "2007-06-23T12:42:06Z")
I’ve had a couple of telemarketer calls on my cell phone recently where the caller wouldn’t stop talking when I tried to say something, just kept talking over me at a rapid pace. Is this some kind of weird scam? I don’t see how it could possibly benefit them to call me up and then make it impossible for me to interact with them. The only possible reason would be to use up my cell minutes?? Or maybe it’s just a telemarketer who really, truly believes that her entire purpose as a telemarketer is to annoy, not to sell anything. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2007, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confirm-or-debunk-telemarketers-calling-our-cell-phones-on-our-dime/409045/10 "2007-06-24T00:05:02Z")
I have a business cell, but I registered it on the do-not-call list anyway. But what takes precedence legally anyway? Is the fact that I’m on a cell – even a business cell – enough to prevent spam calls? I’ve never gotten any yet, by the way.