# Phone number spoofing **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 19, 2018, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707 "2018-04-19T14:24:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707/61 "2018-04-20T19:38:49Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > They have a limited number of people to pick up when someone answers. If no one is available you get dead air. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > Autocaller going down a list of numbers in a row, and checking off those that pick up. List is then sold to telemarketers as valid phone numbers. Regarding these two post extracts…I think the name of the game now is volume, not pinpointing numbers or creating sucker lists. I have been receiving hundreds of these unwanted calls for several years. None of the callers has made a single cent off of me. You might even say every call to me was a guaranteed loss, especially if I toy with them for a while. If they wanted to concentrate on the more profitable numbers, they would have eliminated me long ago. The fact that they keep calling even with a 100% rejection rate is quite meaningful, and that means to me that it is a volume business. > [@ftg](#): > > With the current level of telemarketer spoofing this [reporting robocalls] won’t help and might possibly hurt. > > E.g., telemarketers have used _my_ number in caller ID. (I know this because someone called me asking WTF I was up to.) If people complained about my number then I might get blocked making my ordinary calls. > > Forget any of the stuff that helped a little bit a couple years ago. They’ve moved on. This. The market has changed in the last decade. Calls are cheap, automated, and the scammers are insulated from the law because most are in India or Bangladesh. RE loopholes in the DNC list. Political callers and charities were exempted from using the list from the start. Political, of course :rolleyes: but there are many fake “charities” out there who hide behind their fake identity. The fake survey ploy is another one. You are asked to take part in a short survey, like “do you prefer electric or gas cars?” If you supply any answer at all, that constitutes a “business relationship” and they can now ignore the DNC list. Whether that would work as a defense in court, I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707/62 "2018-04-20T23:11:21Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > I’m pretty sure that caller ID only supplies the number. It is your phone (or computer) that is linking the number to a name, so yes if they happen to spoof a number stored in your phone, the call will be identified as from that person. Not necessarily. Today, when I was out, I received a call that looked like a local one from the prefix (only two are in local use, so it’s pretty obvious). The CID display showed both name and number. Since this was not a cellphone, the name could not have come from my smartphone; this was a dumb landline. Just for kicks, I called back the number. The lady who answered verified that the name I saw on the display was her name, and no, she didn’t call or even know me. (Skeptic that I am, I must allow for the possibility of a “wrong number” call, who isn’t likely to leave a message. It might not have been a spoofed number after all.) However…not long ago, I was getting many calls from numbers identical to my own except for the last digit. In some of these (obviously spoofed), the name was shown, and it matched the true phone number, as I checked. Again, not on a smartphone. So I think the crook callers have a database of true numbers and names that they can access. I think they also access the same database to generate local-looking numbers that are NOT in use (and won’t have a name attached in that case). That explains why my callbacks for those never reach an active number. > [@gnoitall](#): > > Caller identification is provided by the phone company directly if the phone is directly serviced by the company’s own circuits; the telco can determine authoritatively what circuit or device a call originates from and therefore its number… And how does this apply if a call originates in India? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2018, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707/63 "2018-04-21T00:54:05Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Regarding these two post extracts…I think the name of the game now is volume, not pinpointing numbers or creating sucker lists. You might have misinterpreted my post. I meant people at the scammer’s hq picking up, not the callees. I doubt they care to build lists of “good” numbers since it would be expensive to keep up, inaccurate, and not worth it, since making calls is so cheap. Since you should be able to program the system to recognize a NoMoRobo number, you’d think mine would fall off after two years or so. It hasn’t. NoMoRobo by default blocks calls from “legitimate” callers who could call even if you are on the DNC list. Another plus. But I agree that given the volume of calls from India etc the DNC list is not all that useful. BTW I’d day a half to 3/4 of the calls blocked are from my area code or the next one, with quite a few from my exchange. Supposedly. Considering the economy around here, Silicon Valley, I’d doubt anyone would set up a phone bank here - more evidence that the supposed number calling you means nothing. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2018, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707/64 "2018-04-21T16:56:44Z")
The FCC and FTC are hosting a “Stop Illegal Robocalls Expo” in Washington DC on April 23, featuring technologies to reduce robocalls. The link has a list of exhibitor companies. > **[Stop Illegal Robocalls Expo](https://www.fcc.gov/news-events/events/2018/04/stop-illegal-robocalls-expo)** > > The Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission hosted a Stop Illegal Robocalls Expo on April 23, 2018 from 10:00 a.m. to noon in the Pepco Edison Place Gallery at 702 8th St NW, Washington, D.C. 20068. The Stop Illegal... ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707/65 "2018-05-11T16:13:19Z")
Earlier in this thread, I scoffed at the value of the law prohibiting phone number spoofing by spammers. The basis of my disdain is that (I thought) the spoofing was happening outside the reach of the FCC’s jurisdiction. Apparently, at least one bigtime scammer scum was dumb enough to remain in the US while breaking the law. The investigation tracked down Adrian Abramovich and hit him with a [$120 million fine.](https://www.engadget.com/2018/05/10/fcc-fines-robocall-spammer-120-million/) So, my skepticism was not entirely founded, because it was predicated on criminals being smart enough to avoid jurisdiction. I guess dumb but successful spammers would be a valid target for the law. Good job, FCC. Now stop trying to [hand the Internet over to the megacorps.](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-internet/us-net-neutrality-rules-will-expire-on-june-11-fcc-idUSKBN1IB1UN) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/phone-number-spoofing/812707.md?page=3)