We desperately need some kind of “Freedom from tele[phonic Harassment” federal legislation. Many of us are getting many unwanted scam calls, misrepresentations, sales calls, solicitations for purported charities, and calls with no one answering. Many of these calls have the telephone number from which the call is being made masked changed from the true number. It is truly troublesome for the average person.
I would suggest federal legislation stating that
• It is illegal to sell or use equipment, programs or apps which mask the true telephone number from which calls are being made. Any person or company found guilty of selling such devices will be fined a minimum of$100,000 for each sale. Any person or company found quality of using such equipment will be fined $50,000 plus $1.000 per call made with the equipment.
• Equipment or programs through which multiple numbers are called at the same time is illegal. All calls must b purposeful calls to a single telephone number at a time. Again sales of such equipment will be fined $100,000 plus $1,000 per unit sold.
• All telephone calls to anyone other than a friend, relatives, or associates of he caller which are made for business or sale reasons must begin using the proper telephone etiquette. That is, the caller must begin the call by identifying himself or herself, he company or agency the caller is representing, and the purpose of the call.
Unmaking of telephone numbers would enable identification of fraudulent callers and the location of such callers. This alone should drastically reduce such fraud attempts. Similarly, the equation of multiple number dialing would stop such nuisance hang-up calls. Finally requiring callers from businesses and other organizations to use the proper introductory etiquette would allow the person called to make a quick decision as to whether or not to continue the call. These three actions would benefit all telephone customers.
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7 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.If the callar isn't in my index I don't answer the phone. Let them leave a message.
If the caller's ID is blocked my phone doesn't even ring.
BitFlipper
Level 8
Jan 5, 2024
0
That all sounds good, as I remember getting robo-called multiple times per day, when I had a land line and also on my previous cell phones. For some strange miracle, whatever call filter I have on my current phone has alleviated all that. 
When I do receive a call, if it's a number not in my contacts, or from someone who I'm expecting to call me, I don't answer. So, far I'm rarely bothered by my phone ringing unnecessarily. My phone is for my convenience, calling out and for use when I'm away from my computer. For the most part, it's just my "clock" and "camera" since I don't communicate through it all that often, preferring my computer for email, texts, and the viewing of websites, including this one. 
Julie808
Level 8
Jan 4, 2024
1
Tho some do not believe it, I have no phone. For me the phone means stranger intrusion . Why would I permit unwanted people from entering my own house? When I was a kid it was different as I wanted to engage with friends. I prefer the computer. It is much less invasive.
Mooolah
Level 8
Jan 4, 2024
3
In the meantime, the absolutely Only safe words to answer the phone with are "Who's this?"
NEVER say "yes", especially when answering...serious scammers will hang up immediately and use that recorded "yes" to claim you okayed ordering stuff!!!!
annewimsey1
Level 7
Jan 3, 2024
4
That's a good start, particularly the identification at the beginning of a call, although part of the problem is people who aren't who they say they are. Perhaps we should make telephone companies responsible for the calls they put through to us, and then they get penalized if it's a scammer? If they're invested in the game, they're more likely to enforce it.
The ability to mask telephone numbers stems from a legitimate purpose: companies that have multiple employees don't need to pay for a dedicated line for each employee, so they pay for five lines for 10+ employees, but the outgoing caller ID is for the same main business number.
My landline allows me to block all calls except 30 numbers that I've allowed on my list. Every once in a while I need to receive calls from numbers I don't know (such as when I'm having surgery) so I turn off the blocker and I instantly remember why I love it. I have a similar system on my mobile.
Lauren
Level 8
Jan 3, 2024
4
Either the phone companies get a handle on this or nationalize them. They do not have the right to make money off of our inconvenience, as they currently do.
That is a splendid idea Lauren to make the carrier responsible.
I block caller that I don't want to deal with. I don't have a land line, cell phone only, and it's really pretty simple.
HippieChick58
Level 9
Jan 3, 2024
4
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