India's Do Not Call List Now Covers SMS Spam, Too

from the would-you-like-to-extend-your-size-to-160-characters? dept

The problem of spam text messages sent to mobile phones has been a significant one in many countries, though it hasn't reached epidemic proportions (yet) in the US. Operators have done a pretty good job of stopping the messages from getting delivered, while the cost and difficulty of sending them has also been a useful obstacle. Some, however, still manage to get through. Over in India, the government has extended its do not call list to cover commercial text messages as well, and has mandated that operators must add some tracking information to the messages so regulators can track down their senders. In the US, it's illegal for telemarketers to call cell phones, while the not-particularly-effective CAN-SPAM act makes it illegal to send spam email to phones. At least one court has ruled that SMS spam is covered by the law banning telemarketing calls to mobiles, but it would be nice to see cell phones get some extra protection from spam -- especially since it often brings some financial pain as well as annoyance.

Carlo Longino is an expert at the Insight Community. To get insight and analysis from Carlo Longino and other experts on challenges your company faces, click here.

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Canadians Getting More Telemarketing Calls After Putting Names On Do Not Call List

from the whoops dept

When the US first instituted its Do Not Call list, there was some fear that unscrupulous telemarketers would actually use the list as a "good list" of people to call. In fact, many people were nervous to use the list at the beginning for just that reason. However, for the most part, there haven't been that many abuses of the list (there have certainly been some, but it's not nearly as widespread as many expected). Unfortunately, it appears the same is not true in Canada. The Canadian list works by allowing anyone to buy it -- supposedly so they can cleanse their own lists of any DNC numbers. But, it can also be used by unscrupulous scammers -- such as those offshore -- who apparently are buying the DNC list in order to have a "verified" list of people to call with scams. It's reached the point that many claim they're getting more telemarketing calls (for much more scammy reasons) than before.

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Canadian Telemarketers Play The FUD Card On Do Not Call List

from the look-south,-people dept

Michael Geist points us to the news that telemarketing firms are coming up with bogus reasons why a Canadian Do Not Call List is dangerous. The latest is particularly ridiculous. They're afraid (no, seriously) that people will upload other people's phone numbers to the list -- and those people might actually want to hear from telemarketers, but will not be able to get their daily dose of dinner-time interruptions thanks to the nefarious uploaders. Seriously. Of course, there's an easy response to these claims by telemarketers. Just point out that telemarketers made similarly ridiculous claims prior to the US implementing a Do Not Call list a few years back, and nothing horrible happened then.

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Politicians Realize That Politicians Are Abusing 'Do Not Call' Politician Exemption

from the dilemmas dept

Back when the national "Do Not Call" list was first put in place, the politicians writing the law made sure to exempt themselves from it. Political calls were not covered by the Do Not Call list, and politicians could call people who were on the list as much as they wanted. And, in fact, it appears that's what some politicians are doing. Even worse, they're using automated dialers that keep calling and calling and calling and calling. Just as with political spam, it appears that a few politicians are finally willing to recognize that inundating people with unwanted communications isn't helping their campaigns. Some Senators have proposed some new rules that would limit those political robocalls. Note that it won't stop them or make them subject to the Do Not Call list. Instead, it would merely limit them: only 2 calls per day, no calls before 8am or after 9pm and no hiding the caller ID info. Of course, can someone explain why you would need to hear a recording of a politician calling you even twice a day? It's nice that some are recognizing what a nuisance these calls are, but it doesn't seem like these limits are likely to lessen the annoyance factor by very much.

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Can Legislation Let People Opt-Out Of Having Their Info Show Up Online?

from the seems-like-a-long-shot dept

The "Do Not Call" list has been something of a success over the past five years, but the various attempts at similar "do not X" lists always seem a bit ridiculous. The latest, coming from the state of Connecticut, would institute an impossible to enforce and most likely unconstitutional universal opt-out list for your info online. The idea is that there are so many directory sites/people search engines/list sites online, many of which have your name, address and potentially other information such as where you work. The law proposed by Connecticut's governor would allow you to "opt-out" and require all of these sites to take your info offline. Of course, as the article notes, much of that info is already public info and there's nothing illegal about compiling a list of public information. Where would the line be drawn? If your info shows up in a Google search, is Google suddenly liable? It's also unclear how you could possibly enforce a requirement that someone's name and address never get posted online. If anything, it sounds like more grandstanding legislation designed to make a politician look good rather than deal with the very real issues at hand concerning privacy.

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Telemarketers Finding Loopholes In The Do Not Call List

from the because-pissing-off-people-is-so-good-for-business dept

Back when the federal "do not call" list law passed in 2003 there was some fear that there were enough loopholes in the law that telemarketers would quickly sneak their way through. Surprisingly, it appears that many didn't immediately do so. However, in the last few years, it seems that a new crop of companies are filling in that space, exploiting loopholes to start calling people again, even if they're on the DNC list. The big loophole, of course, is the "previous business relationship" loophole. Apparently, it's now big business for companies to set up various contests and sweepstakes whose sole purpose is to get you to sign away your DNC protection from the company and its "dozen or so marketing affiliates." These companies set up shops in malls and shopping center and try to entice people to sign up for their contests. The fact that it's all a scam to get you on their "call away!" lists is hidden way down in the fine print that most people never bother to read. Another scammy move is to pretend that the calls are really surveys, when they're really designed to sell you something. Of course, now that these firms are starting to get away with it, expect bigger, more well known companies to start doing similar things as well. The depressing thing about all of this is that these companies should recognize that the people who are on the Do Not Call list are more likely than not to be pissed off, rather than prospective customers. You would think that telemarketers would be happy to know who doesn't want to hear from them, so they can focus on those who are more receptive to calls.

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