do not call

[alocispepraluger102]

Subject: Cell phone numbers go public tomorrow!

Cell phone numbers go public tomorrow!

REMINDER....all cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies tomorrow and you will start to receive sale calls. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS. To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone: 888-382-1222. It is the National DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of your time. It blocks your number for five (5) years. You must call from the cell phone number you want to have blocked. You cannot call from a different phone number... OR you can log on to www.donotcall.gov and register on line.

HELP OTHERS BY PASSING THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS. It takes about 20 seconds.

[Free For All]

Thank you for the reminder, aloc! I just took care of it, it's easy.

[connoisseur series500]

Great! Now we'll get so many junk calls that nobody will answer their cell phones just as they don't answer their home phones anymore.

The National Do Not Call Registry will weed out some but not all of the calls.

[Aggie87]

Isn't this one of those urban legends that's been floating around for years? I checked snopes and there's older versions of this issue, but nothing current.

[Dan Gould]

Isn't this one of those urban legends that's been floating around for years? I checked snopes and there's older versions of this issue, but nothing current.

I don't know but I added our cell phones just in case. Like it said, it doesn't take long to do.

[Christiern]

Thanks for the reminder, my original 5 years were up and the pesky calls were coming in again. This thing really works and it does cover mobile phones, so I highly recommend it. If you are unable to use the phone in question, opt for the online solution—they will ask for your e-mail address and send you a verification link.

[robviti]

I think what aloc is doing is admirable, but from what i've read, it might be based on misinformation. When I googled "888-382-1222", I got this information the FTC website: You may have received an email telling you that your cell phone is about to be assaulted by telemarketing calls as a result of a new cell phone number database; however, that is not the case. Federal Communications Commission regulations prohibit telemarketers from using automated dialers to call cell phone numbers.

And: There is only ONE DNC Registry. There is no separate registry for cell phones.

And I saved the best for last: Telephone numbers placed on the National Do Not Call Registry will remain on it permanently due to the Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007, which became law in February 2008.

I'm not sure what kind of unsolicited calls Chris is getting, but remember: charities and political calls are exempt from no-call restrictions.

[Christiern]

I was getting a lot of automated calls or calls that start out automated. They were often about credit cards that I don't own and such scams as police support, veterans support.

That there is only one DNC registry makes perfect sense. One can register either or both numbers. There is also a renewal option, so I assume the "will remain on it permanently" pertains only to pre-February 2008 registry.

[robviti]

I was getting a lot of automated calls or calls that start out automated. They were often about credit cards that I don't own and such scams as police support, veterans support.

That there is only one DNC registry makes perfect sense. One can register either or both numbers. There is also a renewal option, so I assume the "will remain on it permanently" pertains only to pre-February 2008 registry.

unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about the police- and veterans-related calls. don't know that they're really "scams," but instead charities that some of us choose not to support. the other type of calls are indeed illegal scams. i get these auto-dialed intrusions at the same time everyday for a week or two, then they stop. i never answer them because once you do, the computer that's dialing randomly identifies your number as a real entity. i'm guessing this information is then passed on to telemarketing companies who check the number against the no-call list. if it's not listed, then they'll descend on you like a flock of buzzards.

p.s. my apologies to all the real buzzards out there, who at least wait until you're dead to start picking at your carcass.

[Christiern]

The police periodically warns that they do not make phone calls for the purpose of soliciting donations. We live in a largely artificially created climate of compulsory patriotism, and this is something these scam artists exploit to the hilt. When my mother passed, I went through her papers and checkbooks and it was amazing how many of these scumbags are out there: Wounded veterans, animals and just about any "cause" that brings out the Kleenex bombarded her with solicitations (mostly from Florida, I might add—she lived in Seattle) and I'm afraid she fell for these things. Even the Reader's Digest was scamming her.