Do you keep getting calls from telemarketers?

Telemarketing is a huge industry and can be a huge interruption to you. If you've ever been bothered by a troublesome telemarketer, well... you're probably reading this right now.

A telemarketer is anyone who engages in direct marketing where a salesperson or automated voice uses the telephone to solicit prospective customers to buy products or services. Telemarketers may call landlines or cell phones, but are limited in their use of cell phones because they cannot lawfully use auto-dialers to call cell phones.

The good news is that there are ways to prevent telemarketers from calling you. The best tool is the Do Not Call Registry.

Solutions

• The single most useful tool to prevent telemarketers from calling you is placing your number on the Do Not Call Registry. You can place your cell phone and/or landline number on the list in one of two ways:
  
  1) visit https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx and be sure to acknowledge the confirmation email
  
  2) call (888) 382-1222 and follow their directions
  
  All persons with a U.S. phone account are allowed to have their phone numbers placed on the Do Not Call Registry. Please allow 31 days from registration confirmation before telemarketers to cease calling. Registry enrollment is valid for 5 years.
   
• Did you know?: the Do Not Call Registry applies to telemarketers but not to pollsters, politicians, and nonprofit organizations.
   
• What if I only want to limit calls from some companies?
  If you generally want to receive telemarketing calls, but not from some specific companies, you can write those companies or verbally indicate when they call that you do not wish to hear from them. They must respect your request.
  
  The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) requires a person or entity placing voice telephone solicitations to your home to maintain a record of your direct request not to receive future telephone solicitations from that person or entity. A record of your do-not-call request must be maintained for 5 years at the calling company.
   
• What if I only want calls from a handful of companies?
  You can add yourself to the registry, and then specifically write the companies that you wish to hear from. They will be able to call with product opportunities legally.
   
• To make a complaint: If your number has been on the National Do Not Call Registry for at least 31 days and you receive a call from a telemarketer, you can file a complaint at the registry's website or by calling the registry's toll-free number at 1-888-382-1222 (for TTY, call 1-866-290-4236).
  
  Remember: To file a complaint, you must know either the name or telephone number of the company that called you, and the date the company called you.
  
  Did you know?: If you are on the Do Not Call Registry, and purchase something from a company, their telemarketers can call you...
   
• One last very helpful option: Get a caller ID. Don't pick up calls from anonymous callers.

Know your rights

The Do Not Call Registry is run by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). To read more about it as well as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA), please visit:

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/tcpa.html

Related articles

• Who has access to my phone records?
• Is somone eavesdropping on your conversations?
• Telephone and cell phone privacy index page
• Privacy Alerts™ homepage

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