President Trump Has Signed a Law to Reduce Robocalls. What Does It Mean For Your Phone?
(NEW YORK) — An anti-robocalls
The new law gives authorities more enforcement powers and could speed up measures the industry is already taking to identify robocalls robocalls
“American families deserve control over their communications, and this legislation will update our laws and regulations to stiffen penalties, increase transparency, and enhance government collaboration to stop unwanted solicitation,” White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said.
The law is a “big victory,” said Consumer Reports’ Maureen Mahoney. “The key is requiring these phone companies to help stop the calls before they reach the consumer and do it at no additional charge.”
The robocall robocalls
Under federal law, it’s already illegal to fake numbers on Caller ID to defraud or cause harm. Scams are also prohibited, as are automated telemarketing calls from legitimate companies that don’t already have written permission. YouMail’s robocall robocalls
But enforcement has been tough. Federal agencies have fined scammers hundreds of millions of dollars, but it’s been difficult to collect. Many of the callers are overseas. It’s hard to throw the fraudsters in jail.
The new law builds on steps taken by the country’s communications regulator, the Federal Communications Commission, as well as state attorneys general and industry groups.
The FCC has clarified that phone companies can block unwanted calls without first asking customers, paving the way to broaden the rollout of call-blocking services. The law says phone companies cannot charge for these services.
Another important step is getting rid of “spoofed” numbers, or when a scammer fakes Caller ID to look like it’s coming from the same area code or an important government agency like the IRS. The industry is developing a system to tell people when the Caller ID number is real.
The new law requires all phone companies to put this system in place, which Mahoney said will mean phone companies have to try to stop these calls before they reach the consumer. This technology doesn’t work for home phones connected to an old-school copper landline; the law calls on the FCC and phone companies to come up with an alternative for those customers.
The FCC also gets more time to fine robocallers
Nonetheless, determined scammers and telemarketers the big
“They’ll always find ways around this,” said Paul Florack, vice president of product management for Transaction Network Services, which runs robocall
And not every robocall robocalls
The law says phone companies can’t charge extra for blockingrobocalls
The law says phone companies can’t charge extra for blocking
The law also does nothing about telemarketing calls that aren’t automated. A human can still pester you unless you sign up for the Do Not Call registry, which scammers often ignore anyway.
But ideally, Mahoney said, a consumer wouldn’t have to take any action by downloading an app — as the carrier would be able to block calls automatically.
