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Over the last few years the FCC rules on carriers were relaxed so that they can discriminate against calls originating from domestic networks. Previously they c

Over the last few years the FCC rules on carriers were relaxed so that they can discriminate against calls originating from domestic networks. Previously they could not block calls even if it was obvious it was a scam call. However, it's not always obvious which robo calls are legitimate and which aren't. The bigger issue though is not about domestic origin calls, it's about foreign originated calls that the FCC has no power over. The domestic carriers had to forward these calls. There is traction gaining to require that calls that originate overseas verify their identity to US based networks. Domestic carriers can reject calls that don't verify (spoofed numbers that originate offshore). That still may not stop all the spam calls but it will slow it down. The problem here is really that telephony became extremely cheap and accessible to the whole world.

kabdib 4y ago
I never, ever get legitimate calls from overseas. Just turn those calls off for my phone. Well, perhaps callbacks from helpdesks located in other countries, in which case give me time-boxed control over foreign calls, and perhaps a passcode that I can communicate along with my callback number. There are billions of dollars at stake, of course. This is a solvable problem, and the FCC doesn't even need to get involved. The carriers care more about the money than their customers (so what else is new?)
- bluGill 4y ago
  The problem is someone from overseas can claim to be from a US number. The number you see on your phone can be anything the caller wants it to be. A fair number of robocalls are from overseas but looks to you like they come from your country.
  - kabdib 4y ago
    That's precisely what the carriers need to solve. They're not interested.
- cuteboy19 4y ago
  Can't all of this be done locally on the phone? Why does the phone app not have an option to simply ignore all garbage calls
  - MiddleEndian 4y ago
    The phone company doesn't give you the originator information. This is what they need to be forced to do. Then users could block calls and texts from international numbers to politicians to voips to anything from the state of Wisconsin, adblock-style.
- MichaelCollins 4y ago
  I want the ability to block all overseas calls, and I want that ability in a way that is easy enough to opt into that most people choose to. This would resolve the overseas helpdesk problem by forcing domestic companies to use domestic call centers to succeed in reaching people. I have never received a legitimate phonecall from overseas, and I don't expect I ever will. In every case that I've had a legitimate reason to talk to somebody overseas, we used voip-to-voip, never telephones.
lamontcg 4y ago
> However, it's not always obvious which robo calls are legitimate and which aren't. I can make this real simple. I don't want any robocalls.
- karagenit 4y ago
  I feel you. Still, there are legitimate uses for robocalls. My doctor’s office uses robocalls for lab test results, so that patients can get their lab results as soon as the lab tech puts it in the computer instead of having to wait for a person to make the call. Sure, you can email/text these results for most people, but there are still some older folks who don’t know how to email/text.
  - munk-a 4y ago
    That's cool - we can wait two extra days for a call from our doctor if it's warranted. I don't need instantaneous feedback on my bloodwork.
    - kube-system 4y ago
      Well, grandma does need her bloodwork results. And she's the one most likely to fall for a robocall scam anyway. And do you think illicit callers are going to follow the law? They're already committing wire fraud, and the software already exists.
      - munk-a 4y ago
        Yea - I think illicit callers are going to follow laws whenever possible. "Criminals always be crime-ing" is an argument that can be used to counter having any laws but it has a fatal flaw - criminals generally don't want unnecessary attention. The more agencies they piss off by violating regulations the more likely it is that their activities will be suspended. A lot of the crime you see on TV comes from highly irrational and unpredictable people, but scamming is usually a pretty rational decision if you live somewhere where repercussions are unlikely and the expected income is high.

kabdib 4y ago

I never, ever get legitimate calls from overseas. Just turn those calls off for my phone. Well, perhaps callbacks from helpdesks located in other countries, in which case give me time-boxed control over foreign calls, and perhaps a passcode that I can communicate along with my callback number. There are billions of dollars at stake, of course. This is a solvable problem, and the FCC doesn't even need to get involved. The carriers care more about the money than their customers (so what else is new?)

bluGill 4y ago
The problem is someone from overseas can claim to be from a US number. The number you see on your phone can be anything the caller wants it to be. A fair number of robocalls are from overseas but looks to you like they come from your country.
- kabdib 4y ago
  That's precisely what the carriers need to solve. They're not interested.
cuteboy19 4y ago
Can't all of this be done locally on the phone? Why does the phone app not have an option to simply ignore all garbage calls
- MiddleEndian 4y ago
  The phone company doesn't give you the originator information. This is what they need to be forced to do. Then users could block calls and texts from international numbers to politicians to voips to anything from the state of Wisconsin, adblock-style.
MichaelCollins 4y ago
I want the ability to block all overseas calls, and I want that ability in a way that is easy enough to opt into that most people choose to. This would resolve the overseas helpdesk problem by forcing domestic companies to use domestic call centers to succeed in reaching people. I have never received a legitimate phonecall from overseas, and I don't expect I ever will. In every case that I've had a legitimate reason to talk to somebody overseas, we used voip-to-voip, never telephones.

lamontcg 4y ago

> However, it's not always obvious which robo calls are legitimate and which aren't. I can make this real simple. I don't want any robocalls.

karagenit 4y ago
I feel you. Still, there are legitimate uses for robocalls. My doctor’s office uses robocalls for lab test results, so that patients can get their lab results as soon as the lab tech puts it in the computer instead of having to wait for a person to make the call. Sure, you can email/text these results for most people, but there are still some older folks who don’t know how to email/text.
- munk-a 4y ago
  That's cool - we can wait two extra days for a call from our doctor if it's warranted. I don't need instantaneous feedback on my bloodwork.
  - kube-system 4y ago
    Well, grandma does need her bloodwork results. And she's the one most likely to fall for a robocall scam anyway. And do you think illicit callers are going to follow the law? They're already committing wire fraud, and the software already exists.
    - munk-a 4y ago
      Yea - I think illicit callers are going to follow laws whenever possible. "Criminals always be crime-ing" is an argument that can be used to counter having any laws but it has a fatal flaw - criminals generally don't want unnecessary attention. The more agencies they piss off by violating regulations the more likely it is that their activities will be suspended. A lot of the crime you see on TV comes from highly irrational and unpredictable people, but scamming is usually a pretty rational decision if you live somewhere where repercussions are unlikely and the expected income is high.