# Telephone Harassment of the Elderly **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 9, 2025, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713 "2025-11-09T19:34:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2025, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/83 "2025-11-13T11:40:17Z")
I don’t really get that many spam calls and I find the best option is just to never answer unknown numbers. Every once in a long, long while this will result in an important call going to voicemail, but then I just call back. Of course if I’m expecting such a call, like from a doctor’s office, I keep an eye on the Caller ID. Back in my younger days I’d sometimes pick up likely spam calls just to have fun with them and waste their time. The _persona_ I would adopt was that of a gullible moron who was definitely interested in whatever crap or service they were selling, but was so stupid as to be unable to supply, for example, my date of birth. “I don’t remember”, would be my response. One time the patient sales agent or scammer or whatever they were, frustrated as hell but unwilling to give up, asked if there was someone else there that they could speak to (presumably someone not quite so dim). My response was that up until yesterday that would have been my wife, but yesterday the bitch packed a suitcase and walked out on me, and good riddance. They said they would call back later but, strangely, they never did! 😁 ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2025, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/84 "2025-11-13T12:02:46Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > If she answers the phone, usually no one is there on the other end of the line but sometimes there is snickering or personal comments. What personal comments are they making? Have you ever heard the snickering or comments yourself? There’s a chance there’s noise on the line that she’s interpreting as a person talking. You could hook up a telephone recorder to record the calls. That way you could hear for yourself. However, check to see if she is in a state which allows one-party recording. Otherwise, she’d have to inform the callers that they are on a recorded line. ---
**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:** [November 13, 2025, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/85 "2025-11-13T17:16:42Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > We are, AFAIK, but those who spoof numbers don’t care. Like I said in my post. I believe there are severe penalties for legit companies who violate the list. Obviously overseas spammers don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![moes\_lotion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@moes\_lotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moes_lotion)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2025, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/86 "2025-11-13T18:01:27Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > I don’t really get that many spam calls and I find the best option is just to never answer unknown numbers. Every once in a long, long while this will result in an important call going to voicemail, but then I just call back. Wandering off-topic, but I wanted to set our voicemail greeting to “If this call is important to you, please leave a message. If the call is important to us, we’ll call you back” but my wife vetoed the idea. We did for awhile have one of us ringing a roundel style song to the tune of “Frere Jacques” with lyrics “Thanks for calling, thanks for calling, We’re not home, we’re not home. Kindly leave a message, kindly leave a message, At the tone, at the tone” ---
**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:** [November 13, 2025, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/87 "2025-11-13T18:14:18Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > But somewhere in me there’s the belief if you’ve ever answered these calls your goose is cooked, so to speak. You’re now on some giant list of live bodies who actually answer their phones. > > Nothing will fix it except changing your number and changing a lifetime habit of answering ringing phones. The problem is that an answering machine picking up will seem identical in terms of it looking like a person picking up. Plus, if it rings, it is a live number. Maybe someone can invent an answering machine which broadcasts a “this number is not in service” message to potential spam calls. But I doubt it will work, since the incremental cost of calling a dead number is tiny as compared to maintaining any kind of database of live numbers. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2025, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/88 "2025-11-17T19:16:05Z")
Part of my job is to call elderly people, and the deluge of spam calls and their steps taken to avoid the makes getting through difficult. (I work for the local area agency for aging. I have to confirm they received whatever equipment in about to pay for - everything from personal wipes to lift chairs.) Personally, I use the “don’t answer anything” method. But I also have the advantage of an area code not local to where I live. Any caller with my area code is spam; I’ve yet to get a spam call from a local area code. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2025, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713/89 "2025-11-18T20:49:54Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > (I work for the local area agency for aging. I have to confirm they received whatever equipment in about to pay for - everything from personal wipes to lift chairs.) If you left me a message and enunciated your number clearly, i would call you back. You are exactly the sort of “caller from a number i don’t know” for whom “let it go to voicemail” usually works well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telephone-harassment-of-the-elderly/1024713.md?page=4)