I am trying a different approach with phone calls.
@GardenGerty (158131)
United States
November 3, 2012 9:55pm CST
We have caller ID and most of the calls we get come up Unknown name or blocked name or things like that. If we do not know the number and the name is unknown or blocked we do not answer. There is at least one number that has been calling us six or eight times a day. If it was important, they would talk to our answering machine, and they never do. Hubby answered once, and they asked for me by my first name, but when he asked who was calling they hung up. When I do a reverse search I do not learn anything. So we started just hitting talk and sitting here. They always hang up. Out of curiosity I typed the whole phone number in as a search. I learned something. There are a ton of forums and websites out there and some of them talk about these numbers. I really like a site called 800notes. They actually recommend the strategy I use of answering but not talking. They tell more about the phone numbers, and quite a few of them are scams. I do not know if all countries have issues like this with telemarketing and scams and charities and politicians, but this is what we are doing with these sites for now. I actually am interested in seeing what kind of scams and harassment come from these numbers. Do you know anything else that is effective with them? One poster in a forum says he turns the tables and messes with their heads. He pretends he called them and begins asking them questions. The number I have been giving the silent treatment to has greatly reduced its calls to my number.
11 people like this
26 responses
@katsmeow1213 (28717)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Sounds like a good idea, I'll try it!
4 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
It is obvious from some of these forums that I am not alone. I used to feel guilty, like maybe I was ducking some legitimate debts, but I know better. We are paying the only debts we have left.
3 people like this
@riyauro (6421)
• India
4 Nov 12
oh wow i had no idea on this one. Actually I don not have a land line, i have mobile and that is all. I did no know that there was a site 800notes. I am gonna look at it in my spare time maybe when i am eating and will have something great to read. very well done that the silent treatment worked in your favor. Thanks for sharing and have a wonderful day ahead..
3 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
I get this kind of call on my cell phone as well. I am not talking to people I do not know.
3 people like this
@riyauro (6421)
• India
4 Nov 12
okay..I too do not talk to unknown numbers. people sometimes call and ask whose phone is this? and all other questions. I just disconnect the phone when i hear such things. They must know whom they are calling first of all. it better to avoid unknown calls.
3 people like this
@bagarad (14283)
• Paso Robles, California
4 Nov 12
Sometimes people, maybe even you, will dial a wrong number accidentally. I normally answer with my business and name. If they are calling about a rental (my husband's domain) they sometimes think they got a wrong number so I then ask if they want him and if they do, I take the message or hand them over. If it is a wrong number, I try to find out what number they were trying to reach before I tell them what number they reached. If you don't let them know they dialed a wrong number and that's the number they have, they will just keep calling to try to reach that number. It just so happens our 800 number is one digit off from the VA Hospital, so we get a lot of wrong numbers.
2 people like this
@AmbiePam (86266)
• United States
4 Nov 12
I was watching a video of a Christain comedien who talked about getting fed up with the telemarketing calls. So once when one called and they started asking him questions he fake cried. The person was startled and asked what was wrong. He told them he thought it was cruel they'd call and ask all these questions when his house had just burned down. The caller apologized and hung up. If you are like him, and like me, you wonder, at one point did the telemarketer realize if the house had burned down he wouldn't be able to talk on the phone?
3 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Unless, of course, it is a cell phone. I think it is scrumptious though that he was able to get to the caller. That must be an awful job.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
23 Nov 12
I am sure it could be that old. I do get unknown callers on my cell as well. If people are not in my call list I do not see any reason for me to answer.
@carmelanirel (20942)
• United States
4 Nov 12
I had a number like that recently, they asked for my daughter who hasn't lived here in years. they finally stopped calling when I told them that and I also searched the number online and saw it was one of those annoying telemarketers or something. I also am frustrated that I get these calls and I am on the "Do Not Call" list, yet when I try to complain about a number, the .gov site makes it very difficult.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Do not call lists seem to be worthless. The only good thing that happens is that when I search them sometimes I earn swagbucks.
1 person likes this
@carmelanirel (20942)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Hahahaha, yep that is a great benefit, especially if you search on Fridays...
2 people like this
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
4 Nov 12
hi Gardengerty oh my started to type Garden Grove how dumb. I do not have caller ID as I am on Cal.AT and t lifeline for poor elderly people and it only charges me from 6 to 7 dollars a month as long as I do not use any operator help I am
on the do not call list on the net but this one finance company keeps calling here at my number f or Pauline,Rhea, toby, Jenny and on and on. All these people
evidently owe them money but why my phone number? four of them are names that are here in Gold C rest but my phone is a private line in my room. and is not the gold Crest number. they always tell me to hang up if I am not so and so or call then they rattle off a phone number so fast I anm still reaching for my pencil. loll
I just hang up but would love to get that phone number and ask them to erase my phone number from their files completely. I did talk t the operator who thinks my phone n mber may have been at a boarding house before it was issued to me,. this seems likely too.
3 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
On these forums I found they said that the government actually was selling the do not call list and that legitimate companies respected it, but that scammers and spammers like to buy them because it guarantees they have legitimate numbers.2 people like this
@bjc66bjc (6730)
• United States
4 Nov 12
This is want I do, when I continue to get call from either
800 numbers or unknown numbers,,,I answer the phone like a
sick old old person with a very weak voice and they hang up or
I answer like a crazy man talking really really fast and
loud and they hang up....and believe me if you heard me you
would not want to talk to me either, on either call...LOL...
3 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
23 Nov 12
This is what the forums are suggesting when they say to mess with their head.
@wolfie34 (26771)
• United Kingdom
5 Nov 12
It's an invasion of privacy as well, I hate these type of callers, as well as the silent ones from call centres, that automatically dial your number whether there is an agent or not, so you pick the phone up and keep saying hello, until they answer, it's a damn cheek, we have tried blocking these calls by registering but they still come through. What possesses someone to harrass you in this way I do not know, it's not funny, it's not clever, it's downright vindictive.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
5 Nov 12
Those are the ones I am talking about. I just punch a button and let them sit there. I used to have a home phone that would put people on hold. It played muzak as well. I wish I still had it.
@Fishmomma (11377)
• United States
4 Nov 12
I'm hoping it stops after the elections, as getting many calls right now. Its so bad and it starts so early in the morning that its hard to get enough sleep. I would turn off the telephone, but don't want to miss calls from my daughter. She calls when she needs a ride.
Glad to hear some people have found ways to reduce the number of these calls. Its so important to vote that I just hope the number goes down after the election is over.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
5 Nov 12
I have gotten some political calls, but not too many. They always identify themselves as well. Hubby answered one of these once and they hung up when he asked who was calling. They keep calling, but we do not answer it.
@drannhh (15219)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Well, in addition to caller ID I have call blocking and a longstanding habit of not answering calls from people who have not first texted or emailed me. When someone (or something) calls and does not leave a message then I do look them up online to see who else they have been pestering and why, and if the culprits are on the pest list, I block future calls by them. I do not answer the door bell, either, unless someone has an appointment, unless I see as they come up the drive that is one of several neighbors who habitually do "odd jobs" for me.
"Cold callers" are not paying me anything, so I don't let them waste my time.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
That is a lot of how I feel. I am not talking to people I do not know. I do not know how to block a call other than to pay a fee to have it done. I do look at these pest lists, probably have seen some of the same ones you have.
2 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50973)
• Holiday, Florida
4 Nov 12
maybe it will stop after the election GG, because we been getting those every day 3 to 4 times a day here last couple of weeks.
@dragon54u (31636)
• United States
4 Nov 12
I don't get too many calls aside from political crap and hopefully, that will stop very soon! But I guess everyone will be getting a lot of unwanted calls because of Hurricane Sandy because scum will see an opportunity to steal from people--it happens every time there's a prominent disaster.
When I'm watching TV I can see the number calling on my screen but my phone is old and the LCD display no longer works. So I have to take my chances because it might be one of my children, or my ex with a problem. I think next time it is a personal invasion of my privacy rather than a robocall I'll just set the phone down and let them waste their time. I've toyed with the idea of taking it near the sink and turning on the garbage disposal so the sound might confuse them or freak them out. 
2 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50973)
• Holiday, Florida
4 Nov 12
i know and it seems i can wait for the phone to ring all day, then go to take a nap and they ring just as im dozing off. worst of all is it doesnt do a lot of good to yell at a automated call. once or twice i even thought it was really a person calling only to find out it was a recording
once or twice i even thought it was really a person calling only to find out it was a recording2 people like this
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
4 Nov 12
i DON'T GET ALL THOSE AGGRAVATING PHONE CALLS, THANK HEAVENS. I don't even have caller id. Did have an ansering machine on my old phone that quit working. My son went & got me a new phone but failed to get one w/an ansering machine on it. I do miss that but i'm here most of the time anyway. Sorry u are bothered w/them.
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
5 Nov 12
Yeah, it is really bothersome if I am asleep because it does wake me up and then I cannot go back to sleep.
@wilsongoddard (7291)
• United States
4 Nov 12
First, you need to inform whomever calls that you wish to be taken off their list--that they do not have your permission to continue calling, and that any further calls will be in violation of the law.
Second, you need to get on the Do Not Call registry. That should decrease such calls. At the very least, it gives you more leverage.
Third, report to the proper authorities anyone who continues calling despite you being on the DNC list and having told them not to call you.
I do think that the idea of turning the tables and messing with their heads sounds like fun, though.
A legitimate company that is seeking to collect survey data will be polite, provide as much identity as possible (sometimes, clients do not wish to be identified, since it could skew results) and cease to call if they are told not to call again. The person on the phone will not be seeking to sell you anything, and they will make that clear.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Exactly. These are not law abiding citizens in the first place.
@inertia4 (27961)
• United States
5 Nov 12
I think everyone here in america deals with these kinds of calls. I get real aggravated over them. I put myself on those do not call lists but they do not seem to work. Most of these calls are scams. I have also screwed around with them before. Sometimes I talk in a strange voice. But most of the time I just do not answer any of them.
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
5 Nov 12
Looking at some of these responses I would say they get them around the world. I know one responder is from China, one lives in Mexico, and one is in the UK just for starters. Yes, they are scams. I do not feel that I have the time or breath to waste on them. That is why often I just hit the talk button and let them listen to me typing away while they are on the other end.
1 person likes this
@inertia4 (27961)
• United States
6 Nov 12
I know the frustration with these calls. As a matter of fact, just a few minutes ago I got one of those calls and when I looked at my phone it said unknown. So I did not bother answering the phone. I know some people in my girl friends family block their number and some of them come up as unknown. I still do not answer those calls. If they want to contact me they can unblock their number.
2 people like this
@changjiangzhibin89 (16578)
• China
4 Nov 12
My fixed-line telephone got a couple of calls from unknown phone number ,said that a court summoned me.I sniffed at it .As for my mobil phone,I get calls from unknown names nearly every day.I always turn my back on them,so far I I don't know what they want to do.I guess they ten to one want to fox me.I have been wondering where they get my phone number.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Your response shows us that this is not just a problem in the US. I know some places use automatic random dialers that go through a progression of numbers calling each one. It is a computer. So you could be dialed randomly and automatically. I love the picture in your icon today.
@changjiangzhibin89 (16578)
• China
6 Nov 12
They rack their brains so as to do what they want to do.It is quite a bother to me.Thank you! The kid in the picture is my granddaughter who is 7 and is playing the "erhu”- a kind of Chinese musical instrument with two strings.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
23 Nov 12
There are always people who will persist. Thanks for telling me about your granddaughter.
@finlander60 (1804)
• United States
4 Nov 12
I have toyed with the idea of introducing a way to put the caller on hold and saying that "Your call is important to us, please hold for the next available representative." I would like to see just how long they would wait. Does anyone have any ideas on how I could do something like this? I am anxiously awaiting a reply. Thank you.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Yeah, I think that has happened here a time or two as well. Actually that is probably a real business, unlike these scams. It is funny in a weird sort of way.
@bunnybon7 (50973)
• Holiday, Florida
4 Nov 12
believe it or not ive answered the phone and got this recording from them. as tho im going to wait for them to answer me when i didnt call them
2 people like this
@Eskimo (2315)
•
4 Nov 12
In the UK they have something called the Telephone Preference Service where if you join then legally no one is allowed to call you to sell you anything. There is a fine of £5,000 if they do, however there are many way round this including calling from abroad, or phoning to tell you that you have won something or that they are just doing a survey. I don't think anyone has ever been fined for these calls.
I do not want these calls (can't understand anyone who would), so I think they should all be banned.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
That is kind of like our do not call list. Reputable companies follow that list and try to avoid the fines and so forth. Companies that are using robot dialers and computers to hide their true identity do not care, and they are probably beyond the reach of your laws or ours. Those are the ones that come at inconvenient times and are hard to understand and often are doing some type of phishing for your information.
@writersedge (22563)
• United States
4 Nov 12
We're on a Federal and a State Do not Call list.
I also type the numbers in online and find that most of them come from California or Canada and the timing is usually after I buy something online. If you're on the Do Not Call lists and they call anyway, they must be associated with a bank, credit card, charity or political party that you actually gave your number to. If not, then you can report them if they're from the USA
Often we find that it's the credit card companies and banks are the major culprits. The Do Not Call lists don't apply to Canada, so I wonder if there is a similar thing to do not call lists up there. Even our mail scams tend to come from there.
So I type repeated irritating numbers online, too.
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
One site said the government actually sells the do not call list. Hmmmmmm. It is only reputable companies that abide by them. If it is a scam site anyway then they do not care. Some of them are foreign companies that seem to use electronic devices to look like they are using a US number. We get Florida, Nevada, California, Colorado and even local calls here. You can call them back and get a busy signal or a recorded message that says it is not in service. I did not like that GMAC tried to call me once. I paid them off over 15 years ago.
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
5 Nov 12
I never take calls from unknown or blocked callers, on land line or cell. But in my part of the U.S., more and more politicians, telemarketers and scammers are putting in numbers with the local area code, and since our phones are business phones, we have to answer. They also use different numbers every time (especially the democratic party) for their computer calls, which I hate. The latest rash of political calls is all computers, and they break the law because they don't have an option on the end of the call to be taken off the list. I have used the answer and don't talk on people for a while, and it does help. I also let them start talking when they do, and then I tell them not to contact me by phone. There is also a national don't call registry in the U.S. that you can use twice a year to remove your phone numbers from everyone's lists, except bill collectors and computer dialing programs. That helps alot, and you can do it online now. I'd be happy if the Democrats stopped calling, because I'm not a Democrat-- I have already called their party 3 times in the last week and told them to get my number out of their system, and it hasn't worked yet.
1 person likes this
@finlander60 (1804)
• United States
7 Nov 12
Maybe they are hoping that you will change and become a DEMONCRAT.
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
8 Nov 12
ROFL-- They had their chance for decades-- I grew up in Massachusetts. For some crazy reason (gee, I wonder why..) this election cycle I logged, in 2 weeks, 71 calls from the Democrats and 9 from the Republicans. That's an all time high, actually for the Domocrats. It might have something to do with my changing my party affiliation last time around, but I don't think so-- since LAST election cycle, I logged 49 calls from the Democrats and 14 from the republicans. I think it would have been more if I had changed my affitiation earlier than 2 weeks before the election. The funniest part is all the Democrat calls were coming from Arizona, where my Area code on my cell phone is, and my previous state of residence. I am now living in Washington State, and never got a call from a local politician, even though this is my official residence and where I am registered to vote. If companies and political parties are going to waste money on illegal computer calls, they should at least buy an updated phone list! I like to keep track of odd facts like this, since they allow me to predict elections. I told the other half 2 months ago what the outcome would be this time-- and as usual, he didn't believe me LOL.
@bunnybon7 (50973)
• Holiday, Florida
4 Nov 12
you know the sad part about this is that most people are just doing a job they were hired for and its not a very profitable job. sometimes its all they can get. my daughter used to do telemarketing and the horror stories she told me at times. its annoying to us but sad for someone to have to do this job also. and you know she has told me the same thing you said on another post. she has said i would never be able to do that job because of my sensitive nature i know id end up crying half the time. some people have said awful things to her. thank goodness she finally got a better job.2 people like this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
4 Nov 12
Real telemarketers and real bill collectors are not like these scam artists.They are just doing their job. You can get rid of them, or talk to them. Yes, it is a job I would not enjoy, but it is a real job. I am more concerned with these serial callers who have accents too thick to decipher and who try to sell you help you do not need, like a patch from Windows because your computer is behaving strangely.
@bounce58 (17387)
• Canada
5 Jan 13
Like you, we get these calls all the time too.
I remember last year getting so frustrated with the same number calling over and over again that I answered the phone and put it in front of the TV. The person on the other line kept on talking to the commercial on TV.
But that's a good idea about messing with their head and pretending that I was the one calling them. I will try that next time.
But that's a good idea about messing with their head and pretending that I was the one calling them. I will try that next time.1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (158131)
• United States
5 Jan 13
I think that is neat. I guess they are not smart enough to figure out that it is a commercial, either that or it was a recording.
