# Suggestions on how to handle this telemarketer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 7, 2012, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785 "2012-08-07T21:41:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/21 "2012-08-08T05:14:49Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > If you _do_ get a person on the line, say very quickly and emphatically, “Do not call here again,” and hang up. Do not engage with them in any other way. You’re far better off if you just don’t answer. That’s fine if the company is trying to comply with the law. Unfortunately there are no magic words to make criminals go away. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I just want to check. This won’t stop regular calls from coming through, will it? It shouldn’t. As far as a human is concerned, it will just be funny noises on your answering machine. If you have easily confused callers, you might have to explain it to them. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/22 "2012-08-08T05:34:14Z")
> [@echoreply](#): > > That’s fine if the company is trying to comply with the law. Unfortunately there are no magic words to make criminals go away. I probably should have meticulously delineated that I was addressing the OP’s comment about the humans disconnecting as soon as they figured out their potential victim was telling them not to call. We _all_ know these callers have no intention of complying with the law, but the OP wished to get the message across that their calls are unwelcome. Additionally, having made that statement can also carry some weight in the unlikely event that this company is prosecuted for misconduct. [For instance](http://www.ag.state.mn.us/Consumer/Publications/UnWantedTeleMarketCalls.asp): [QUOTE=Office of Minnesota Attorney General] Some companies, such as those with whom you’ve had a business relationship, or those calling on behalf of nonprofits or political entities, are not required to follow the Do Not Call Registry. Under the law, however, these organizations must maintain their own “in-house” do not call list. If you ask each organization to put you on their individual in-house do not call list, the organization must stop calling you. Organizations that violate this law and continue to call you may be subject to a fine. [/QUOTE] This may not apply in states other than Minnesota, of course. ---
**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:** [August 8, 2012, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/23 "2012-08-08T05:35:48Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I just want to check. This won’t stop regular calls from coming through, will it? If by “regular call” you mean your elderly aunt dialing from her home, then no. But there is no such thing as an “illegal telemarketer call origination system that responds to SIT tones.” The telemarketers use the same equipment that any other business that might need to make a lot of phone calls uses. So it might block some legitimate business phone calls. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/24 "2012-08-08T05:43:19Z")
> [@echoreply](#): > > That’s fine if the company is trying to comply with the law. Unfortunately there are no magic words to make criminals go away. “You’re under arrest” seems to work. I realize that criminals don’t follow the laws. But we have a legal system that enforces the laws. (I should know; I made a living off of this.) I’m perfectly willing to use that legal system if this company doesn’t comply with my request. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/25 "2012-08-08T14:19:42Z")
I am perplexed as to why these people would continue to waste their time and resources calling you after you’ve made it clear that you’re not interested in purchasing their product/falling for their scam. They may be crooks, but they’re stupid ones. Anyhow, given your current technological limitations, I don’t have any better advice than “screen your calls.” But this is in fact an effective way to avoid talking to people you don’t wish to talk to. I assume they’ll eventually give up on you. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/26 "2012-08-08T14:45:04Z")
I haven’t had a land-line for ten years, but back when I did I once blew a whistle at a telemarketer. It was a [Fox 40 whistle](http://www.tideridersports.com/html/fox_40_whistles.html), and what I did was probably illegal, but the calls stopped. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/27 "2012-08-08T14:47:10Z")
There’s a product called a telezapper that will sense the slight delay of a robocall and send back an electronic signal indicating that the phone has been disconnected. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/28 "2012-08-08T15:11:27Z")
Little Nemo, if you have a phone that has caller ID, you will get the number they are calling from. They you call the phone company, tell them you want the ability to block that number from calling you, and it’s done. I had to do that with an ex who was stalking me. Worked like a charm! ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/29 "2012-08-08T16:09:03Z")
If you find out what to do, post it here so I can do it too. The assholes at Credit Account Services have been harassing me for months. They kept hanging up the instant I started telling them to put me on their DNC list. The only time I got the whole phrase out, the jackhole at the other end informed me that, because I pressed 1 “to speak to a representative about lowering my credit card rates”, that meant that I wanted them to keep calling. Now I just scream abuse at them. It doesn’t do any good about making them call less, but it makes me feel better, and it makes the job of violating the law that much worse for the depraved idiot at the other end. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/30 "2012-08-08T16:19:55Z")
> [@Missy2U](#): > > Little Nemo, if you have a phone that has caller ID, you will get the number they are calling from. They you call the phone company, tell them you want the ability to block that number from calling you, and it’s done. I had to do that with an ex who was stalking me. Worked like a charm! Blocking one number from an obsessive ex can work very well. However, telemarketers sell numbers to each other, and they also spoof their ID phone numbers, so it doesn’t work nearly so well on them. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/31 "2012-08-08T16:44:15Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Blocking one number from an obsessive ex can work very well. However, telemarketers sell numbers to each other, and they also spoof their ID phone numbers, so it doesn’t work nearly so well on them. But he’s only complaining about one. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/32 "2012-08-08T18:40:42Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > … which means you need caller ID. However, a number of scammers _spoof_ their caller ID (something I personally think should be illegal as hell) - so you’d be reporting a nonworking number or worse yet, the number of an innocent party. Heather from Account Services is one of the ones that’s famous for this. Oh yeah, Heather’s been fired and someone else is doing her dirty work but the rest of the call is identical. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/33 "2012-08-08T19:13:55Z")
“That sounds awesome! Yeah, I’m really interested! Oh, hang on, I gotta take the roast out of the oven.” Then, set the phone down, and go about your business. Check it a suitable period of time later, like half an hour, to see if they’ve hung up yet. If the idiot is still there, set the phone down for another half hour. Or, if you don’t want to do that, just talk about whatever comes to mind. There’s no rule that you have to talk about what the telemarketer wants you to talk about. Ramble on about your day, your weird neighbor, that strange pain in your shoulder, how runny the cat’s bowel movements are lately, whatever. Telemarketing will not stop until it becomes unprofitable. Every minute an actual human being is on the line with you is time wasted that they could spend selling to someone else. Therefore, the best thing you can do is waste as much of their employees’ time as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/34 "2012-08-08T19:26:09Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > If you find out what to do, post it here so I can do it too. The assholes at Credit Account Services have been harassing me for months. > > They kept hanging up the instant I started telling them to put me on their DNC list. The only time I got the whole phrase out, the jackhole at the other end informed me that, because I pressed 1 “to speak to a representative about lowering my credit card rates”, that meant that I wanted them to keep calling. I think it’s the same outfit. It’s Credit Something Something and they sound like the operate the same way. Do they keep telling you this will be your final notice? I wish that was true. ---
**Author:** ![norvalnormal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f19dbf/32.png) [@norvalnormal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norvalnormal)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/35 "2012-08-08T19:48:22Z")
& recently, there’s a new one, something something “Google” (I assume no connection whatsoever with the real Google). As with years ago with “Cardholder Services,” I actually pressed a key as instructed, to be “removed”–and then got 4-5 more calls over the next 2 days. Have actually phoned the FCC, and they can’t do bupkus. Always spoofed phone numbers, sometimes all that shows up on my Caller ID is “0.” Get at least a dozen of these calls on my landline a week, including Rachel, and have had only a single occurrence of them repeatedly calling me back after I wished on the live person that he undergo a service entry acquaintance with a hot lead poker. Unfortunately, cursing them out provides next to no satisfaction and, yeah, they are doubtless bottom of the telephone pole minions. Not to be confused w/getting 3 dozen RNC robocalls during the last presidential election and, this year, ones from the NRA (I assume both of these, 'cause I made the mistake of subscribing to a Rupert Murdoch newspaper and providing them with the number of my landline)–to put it mildly, not remotely my political persuasion … ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/36 "2012-08-08T19:59:28Z")
[PhoneTray Free](http://www.phonetray.com/phonetrayfree.htm) Nothing more satisfying than having your phone hang up automatically after one ring. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/37 "2012-08-08T20:11:15Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > Then, set the phone down, and go about your business. Check it a suitable period of time later, like half an hour, to see if they’ve hung up yet. If the idiot is still there, set the phone down for another half hour. I used to work for a guy in a body shop that did this. It’s the first time I’d seen anyone do it and it was funny as hell. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/38 "2012-08-08T20:21:57Z")
I switched to a VOIP service from [Ooma](http://www.ooma.com). In addition to saving $200/year on phone bills, the “premier” service has a very neat feature called _community blacklist_. Since getting the system, my Spam calls have dropped about 90%. I still get maybe 1/week, but unless I recognize the Caller ID, I always let the Ooma box answer it, and they just hang up. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/39 "2012-08-08T20:25:10Z")
Hanging up before you can tell them to put you on the “Do Not Call” list? Bullhorn the bastard. It may be only a lowly peon calling you…but that lowly peon _knows_ it is wrong to do that. Bullhorn the bastard. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2012, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785/40 "2012-08-08T20:39:32Z")
Unfortunately, I was informed in one of my previous threads on the same subject that the lower life forms who do this kind of thing have noise suppressors on their end, and a bullhorn would not affect them as it should. If Romney or Obama want to break this race wide open, just come out in favor of the death penalty for telemarketers. Then anyone who has been called by Heather, or Rachel, or Anne at Cardholder Services would knock down the election judges to go vote for him, and that’s gotta be half the country. Fuck nuking the Iranians or killing Osama bin Laden - play some video of Navy SEALs slapping the shit out of Heather, and get ready for a landslide. Regards, Shodan [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/suggestions-on-how-to-handle-this-telemarketer/630785.md?page=3)