What new telemarketing hell is this? And how do I get rid of them?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I am so done with this. Make. Them. Go. Away. Please.

It started about 2 months ago. We began receiving these voicemail “messages” that would go something like this:

“Um, oh hi, yes, this is [okay, fine, I won’t use that language in IMHO] from blah blah blah. I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for a while, but I guess I’ll just go ahead and leave you a message.” <Insert telemarketing scam for refinancing the home, getting satellite TV, “winning” a “cruise,” going to an auto auction, etc, so forth, so on, ad nauseum UGH!>

We were getting two a day at one point (it’s slowed down to about 1 every 2 days or so). So–first I tried blocking the numbers that came up on caller ID (something in the 419 area code). We were told that number couldn’t be blocked. Fine. We’re on to them: Now that we’re home during working hours (we’re teachers on summer break), we’ll answer the pox and tell them to take our name off their list.

What do we get when we answer?? “Oh hi, uh, is Alejandro there?” (That’s the last name used.) “No one here by that name-- what number are you calling?” “<insert numbers that bear NO resemblance to our number.>” “Sorry, way wrong number.” That may just by chance be a wrong number, but even they are suddenly on the increase.

Sometimes we answer and get nothing at all; the line disconnects. Now, BTW, caller ID just says “unknown name/unknown number.”

Then today. SUNDAY for crap’s sake, SUNDAY these evolutionarily stunted folk call us–this time they just start straight up with a message to call Pig Porker at this number for the scam of choice. DeathLlama, sick of this, calls the number to ask to be removed from the list. Some woman answers, claims there’s no record of them calling us, there’s no one named Pig Porker there, they work for Sears as a collection agency, they only send out messages for people who owe Sears $$, blah blah blah. He repeated (and repeated) regardless of who they hell they are, TAKE US OFF THEIR LIST. NOW.

(And yes, we have registered with the Do Not Call registry. But–we did that just a month ago. It used to be we’d get one telemarketing call a week; we didn’t see a need. Now we have to wait 3 months to get in the system. UGH. UGH again, I say!)

So…WTF is going on and how do we rid ourselves of these parasites?

2

Well there’s the Nationwide “Do Not Call” List.

You can not answer the phone when it says “Unknown”.

Lastly that blank silence you hear is do to a dialing machine. The machine dials as many numbers as possible routing potential suckers/marks/lonely old folks to available telemarleters, since it making more calls than connections, the result is a “dropped call” or the silence you hear

3

I just don’t answer calls marked “unknown name” or whatever. The extra $5.95 for caller ID is so worth it.

/slight hijack/ A few years ago I bought a car from a small used car dealer. That night I got a call (before I had call waiting) and this man says “Hi. This is Rob.” Rob was the name of the man I bought the car from. I say “Oh, yeah, hi.” He says, “I have a big problem here.” I’m like, “Oh no! What is it?” Thinking maybe there’s some problem with my check or something. Then I hear “I opened my own carpetcleaning service a few months back, blah blah blah” and I realize it was a recorded message telemarketing a small business. :smack:/hijack

4

Well, yes, um…duh, we don’t answer the “unknown caller” calls. But lately, when we don’t, our voicemail gets loaded with crap sales pitches. I think we’ve answered 3-4 calls in the last few weeks to try, futilely, the “put us on your do not call list.”

And, as I mentioned in the OP, we signed up with the national Do Not Call registry–but it takes 3 months to take effect.

I’m just looking for insight to otherwise get around these aggravating VMs, or if we’re stuck waiting for our numbers to be registered on the national list.

5

Oh, yes, well, if you have voice mail, you hit “3” which ff’s 10 seconds, until it’s over. You then delete it. Ta-da.

6

Oooh, I hate answering machine telemarketers-- even more than the usual type of calls, since you can politely ask a real person not to call again and take care of the situation quickly and simply. I think that’s why they avoid speaking to you if you answer: that way you can’t ask to be removed from The List.

I’ve been getting ones lately in which a ominous voice says that they’re trying to reach me with an “important message”, and would I please call this 1-800 number?

I actually did call it at one point because I wanted to ask to be taken off The List, but a recording answered and put me on hold for so long that I eventually gave up. The calls have finally tapered off, but for a while I was getting up to three a day!

7

The thing about not answering unknown calls is that you don’t know who they are from. We have a major problem at our business getting hold of people because of not accepting unknown callers. All calls that go through a switchboard usually (in the U.K anyway) don’t register a number so people who don’t accept these calls, while missing telemarketers, may also be missing legitamate calls as well.

8

Um…, that’s one reason most people still use answering machines. If the call it really legit, it would seem that you should leave a message. Maybe all calls are being screened, maybe no ones home.

Also if your business really needs to reach these people, perhaps they should work with the telco to display an actual number on the CID’s.

As for the OP, it is possiable that someone added you to some telemarketing ‘Do Call’ list. you could try the telezapper.

9

It’s not a question of being able to leave a message as it won’t even allow it to ring, I am talking about calls from a switch board to a mobile phone that has put a block on unknown callers. It isn’t a massive problem and we can always ring from a mobile, I was simply pointing out a possible downside to ignoring unknown callers. I am sure missing a couple of useful calls is small worry when you consider the hundreds of annoying calls you can recieve.

Is the problem of cold callers that largescale in the States? We get them over here but it doesn’t seem to be so widespread as you guys - I have never recieved one on my mobile.

10

Well, the scale of the problem is large enough that we had to enact legislation to institute the Do Not Call list, and to provide penalties for violators.

I’ve had two hang-up calls on my mobile phone. I frequently forward my land line to the mobile, so I don’t know what number the caller was calling. The number is not listed when I google it, but the area code is in Pennsylvania. I called it back the last time and got a poor-quality recording. I think it was some sort of collections agency. Since there is no reason for a collections agency to be calling me, it was obviously a wrong number. I also get the occasional call from someone trying to reach the Semiahmoo Resort. I don’t know their number, but one caller recited a number and it was the same as mine except for a seven instead of a three.

One telemarketer called about a year ago to try to sell me a mattress. I kept trying to tell him to put me on their Do Not Call list (different from the national one), but he wouldn’t let me talk. Every time he asked a question, I’d utter a sound and he’d start talking again. I hate people wasting my mobile minutes! I called Ortho and complained about their telemarketer, and was put on their Do Not Call list.

But those are just isolated occurances. What really bugged me was coming home to find the “beep” of a fax machine on my answerphone. I don’t have a fax machine, and the answerphone requires that the entire message be played before it can be deleted. So I had 30 seconds or a minute of “Beep… Beep… Beep…” I finally forwarded the land line to my office fax so that I could see who was sending. I called their phone number and the problem was resolved. But man was it annoying for a while!

I have yet to receive a phone-spam message, but it sounds as if it’s just a matter of time. :mad:

Incidentally, I’ve been told it’s not that common to have an unlisted number here in Whatcom County. Coming from L.A., I couldn’t imagine not having an unlisted number!

11

It’s illegal to spam a mobile phone in the US and it’s rare that it happens here.

12

That’s why God gave us pay phones. Bunches of pay phones all in a row.

13

Telemarketing with prerecorded messages has been illegal for years in the US.

14

Really? Hmm. I’ll be exploring that site you linked a bit and see if there’s an action that can be taken…

15

What if you just act obnoxiously? When you’re 100% sure that the other person is a telemarketer, just hold down one of the keys on your touch-tone phone until they become confused or annoyed and hang up. :smiley: Maybe they’ll think you’re insane and put your name down on their own Do Not Call list.

Another related tip: If you also receive waaaayyy too many of those credit card applications in the mail, put a load of junk mail in the enclosed postage paid envelopes and send those to the credit card companies at their expense. Even if they don’t stop mailing you, you’d still get some fun out of it.

16

It’s also illegal in Canada (and I just got one – they will be crucified, I taped it as proof.)

The exception being that the government can use pre-recorded messages for emegencies – e.g./ to say “please evacuate the area, a forest fire is coming your way.”

Solicitation by pre-recorded message is NOT allowed.

That said, apparently the telemarketing scum are trying to use a loophole and broadcast directly into your voice mail so that your phone never rings. So presently you may get bastards filling up your voice-mail with crappr recordings. The CRTC is still working on that one, I think.

17

I keep getting those fucking pre-recorded politicians calling my house! My new fav: “Hi, I"m Joe Raving Lunatic, and I’m running for some stupid office or another. I want your vote because I’m in favor of enacting a Constitutional ammendmemet to ban GAY MARRIAGE (said with complete disgust).”

Hey, nothing like a little bigoted fundie freak leaving hate messages on your voice mail to make your day. And I get several every single day here in NC. And I’m on the "“Do Not Call” list, which apparently doesn’t apply.

18

A friend of mine has the little 3 note sequence that a disconnected number plays…you’d recognize it if you heard it…“Doo do DOO. The number you have reached…123-4567…has been disconnected”…as the opening of his answering machine message. The little sequence is immediately followed by his regular message, but he says that the telemarketer machines hear it and A)take your number out of the system since it is “dead” and B)hang up. He works for MCI so he should know whereof he speaks.

Apparently you can download the sequence from the web somewhere, but I’m too lazy to google it for you.
The only problem is the occasional legitimate caller may hang up without waiting for the rest of the message, but mostly they hang on, just in hope of hearing a new number for you.