<p>I apologize if this has already had a thread. If so, I missed it. I have been getting a spam phone call about every day from sites all over the country. This is just in the last three weeks or month.</p>
<p>Is anyone seeing this? What is going on?</p>
<p>I don’t get any junk phone calls. Once in a while H gets a weird text.
You may want to register your number.
<a href=“https://www.donotcall.gov/[/url]”>https://www.donotcall.gov/</a></p>
<p>Telemarketers violate the law all the time, so it is expected.</p>
<p>[Unwanted</a> Telephone Marketing Calls | FCC.gov](<a href=“http://www.fcc.gov/guides/unwanted-telephone-marketing-calls]Unwanted”>http://www.fcc.gov/guides/unwanted-telephone-marketing-calls)
[EPIC</a> - Telemarketing and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)](<a href=“http://epic.org/privacy/telemarketing/]EPIC”>http://epic.org/privacy/telemarketing/)</p>
<p>If you have the time, you can sue them for $500 to $1,500 per call and win. But collecting may be difficult in some cases.</p>
<p>[How</a> To Make A Telemarketer Cry (or, Suing Bozos for Fun & Profit)](<a href=“http://www.panix.com/~eck/telemarket.html]How”>How To Make A Telemarketer Cry (or, Suing Bozos for Fun & Profit))</p>
<p>Thanks, Emerald, our phones are all registered at Do Not Call.</p>
<p>I don’t answer calls I don’t recognize, but I googled the phone number (except for one that had the number blocked). Turns out these phone numbers have long histories of making spam calls. From the people who reported they DID answer, the callers said they were doing a survey (which is legal under Do No Call). After a while, however, the “survey” degenerates into a sales pitch of some kind.</p>
<p>I have gotten those texts too in the past. With those, I think if you text back “STOP” they must stop. If they’re legal, of course. If they’re not, I guess they do whatever they want.</p>
<p>I’m going to read those sites you pointed to, Ucbalumnus, thanks.</p>
<p>I’ve gotten random texts 3 times in the last week - all spam.</p>
<p>I have been noticing that sometimes, when I call my wife from my cell phone, that the number that shows up on her caller ID is a completely different phone number than my phone number.</p>
<p>Yes - calls and texts, and it’s really irritating. I only use my cell phone for family, so when I get a call or text it’s important to me. I’ve registered all our phone with do not call but it doesn’t seem to help.</p>
<p>I now just turn off the ringer when I receive those calls. Seems to work the best, the calls died down significantly I am afraid that if I text back “stop” I will be put on the “valid” number list. I have been on the do not call list, it does not solve the problem. I called AT&T and would have to change number or buy a service to block numbers. Someone mentioned an app, I didn’t use it</p>
<p>I also have been innundated recently with spam text messages and phone calls. I get those at least once a day, but it surprisingly stops on the weekends. I registered on Do Not Call, but to no avail.</p>
<p>Like you, lamom, I worry that if I responded --regardless of what I say – they’d simply continue. I heard my phone service (AT&T) could do something, but you saved me the trouble to learn that it’s useless asking for their help. I also stopped checking everytime the phone rings, but then DH then said I must think the phone is a paperweight and vows never to get an iPhone for me.</p>
<p>My H got a TON of them a few weeks ago. Since we so rarely text we have the 5 a month plan. So he got Verizon re refund the $$ (10¢ a text after 5) and blocked texts for two weeks. When he turned texts back on, he hasn’t been getting the spam. Don’t know if you all can live without text for a week, but that might be worth a try.</p>
<p>Kids know to call, not text us. But often texting them is the only way to get their attention.</p>
<p>I once had a similar problem. Strange text messages and phone calls from people I don’t know. I would block the phone number every time this happened, but they just kept coming from different numbers. </p>
<p>Then, one day I realized that my number was tied to my Google Voice account. For some reason people were spamming that account, and all of these messages were then getting forwarded to my number. I closed my account, and the problem disappeared. </p>
<p>This may not happen to everyone, but if you’re out of ideas this may be a place to check.</p>
<p>Yes…in the last couple of weeks I have gotten several solicitations on my cell…and it IS registered with the do not call registry. I find it annoying. I don’t need windows, a home security system, refinancing on my house, or credit card refinancing.</p>
<p>Me, too. The number just says “private number” so I have no idea who is calling, and they don’t leave a message. I don’t answer – I only answer numbers that I recognize – but the calls come three or more times a day.</p>
<p>I’ve had this number for around ten years and have never had a problem until the last month.</p>
<p>The pace has picked up the the past week or so. I’ve gotten both calls and texts. If I do not recognize the number, I do not open it. I have no on-line accounts, and it is a trakfone so no aps.</p>
<p>“Private number” is almost always a telemarketer. And almost all telemarketers are knowingly violating the law (calling cell phones, calling numbers on the do-not-call list, calling with pre-recorded messages, etc.).</p>
<p>I called Verizon and asked them to prevent me from getting texts sent by computer and only allow texts from other phones. This has eliminated by spam texts. Originally, I was told by the person on the phone that they couldn’t put in the block I was requesting but I said that I read it could be done, so she suddenly learned how to do it & applied the block to me. I can still get texts from other cell phones but no more from computers who are sending spam texts. YIPPEE!</p>
<p>I just answered a call with “OH, I can’t talk NOW!!! OH! You will have to call back!!”
It was actually innocent on my part as I was receiving an important message on another phone…but this caller has been calling often and now not at all!</p>
<p>I sounded like someone was dying…LOL</p>
<p>When I have gotten really obnoxious calls, I ask for their mailing address and whom to have served on behalf of their company because a complaint will be filed against their organization for harrassment, invasion of privacy and violating “do not call list.” They tend to call back after muttering that they’ll take us off of their list. Generally that reduces their phone calls. If I’m really annoyed, I ask belligerently to speak with their supervisor and their agent for serving the lawsuit.</p>
<p>I’ve been getting spam texts telling me I’ve been selected to receive a free iPad.</p>