Do Not Call Registry

[Johanna]

National Do Not Call Registry is available for cell phones and landlines either online at www.donotcall.gov or by calling toll-free 1-888-382-1222 from the telephone number they wish to register. (Remember all sales calls from companies who do not have established sales with you or any family member who uses the phone will be affected) Registrations become effective within 31 days of signing up and are active for five years. There is no cut-off date or deadline for registrations. This a FREE service.

Business-to-business calls are not covered under the Registry.

For More Information

To learn more about the National Do Not Call Registry and the rules that enforce it, visit the FTC at www.ftc.gov or the FCC at www.fcc.gov.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish (bilingual counselors are available to take complaints), or to get free information on any of 150 consumer topics, call toll-free,

1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357), or use the complaint form at www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

Thanks, Rick for sharing the info with us. Check it out at Snopes.

Johanna

[dsenette]

also...don't forget to register with the DNC list for your state (and some places city) government as well...some states have different rules and signing up on both the state and federal lists will help overlap those rules to cut down on more calls

[barra]

Aren't they the scum of the earth. The way I stop them can not be printed in this forum of good folks but it works. Use your vocabulary imaginations.

Barra

[dsenette]

i used to act like i was a telemarketer for a different company when they called me...like...they called me right at the second that i was calling them....before they could get a word out i'd start with "hello this is bob from teleweird mega corp, how's your long distance situation?"...uh wait...i'm calling you to see if you want to buy X product.. "oh well perfect then...you must make alot of long distance calls then?"....worked pretty well most of the time...they'd get frustrated and hang up

[freak]

I always hand the phone to my daughter. She's six now, it worked alot better when she was 3. After about 5 min of her asking them questions they would hang up.

[whinewine]

Before I retired from the Department of Corrections, I used to say " Ah, gee, I just got outta jail a coupla hours ago & I did some stuff & I think I'm gonna hafta go back maybe tomorrow. But whatcha offerin' me? I'm innerested, fer sure!"

Tended to stop the conversation pretty quickly...

[Regis]

There was a great audio email going around a year or so ago. when telemarkerer called and asked for Mr XYZ, the guy said......this is detective Jim and you have called into a crime scene. We believe Mr xyz has been murdered. Just what dealings have you had with Mr. xyz? Don't hang up, we already have your number. Where were you at 3am this morning? Can anyone verify? I'm affraid we're just going to bring you in for some questioing. Just would not let the caller off the phone and...........

It went on and on and was halarious. Hope someone saved it and can post it.

[dsenette]

i've heard that one regis...it's hillarious

[Johanna]

My dad speaks several languages fluently, and will speak Polish or Hungarian to telemarketers for as long as it takes them to hang up in desperation. He will say "Visa" a few times, just to keep them on the line. If he's bored, the conversations are hysterical- he'll be asking them about marrying off his ugly daughter and how many goats do they have to trade...but I understand enough Polish to get the jokes. The typical telemarketer does not.

I know these folks have to make a living, too, but I think Caller ID was one of the best inventions the phone company ever came up with. If I wanted a home security system, new siding for the house, or to give a charitable gift, I would initiate the call, thank you.

Johanna

[dsenette]

I know these folks have to make a living, too

well i guess that's the one good thing about it...they get paid whether you hang up in their face, listen to them patiently, or mess with their heads....so i don't feel as bad about being a little bit of a jerk

[Johanna]

Remember the audio recording of the guy who tried to cancel his AOL account? I'm trying to find it. Now, that is worse than a telemarketer!

I can just imagine what you do with stupid phone calls when you're bored, Monkey...

Johanna