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Why do I keep getting robocalls if I'm on the Do Not Call list?
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Many of you may have added your phone number to the Do Not Call registry thinking it will put those annoying robocalls to an end. But one Valley man says his phone is still ringing and he wants to know what is being done to prosecute the people dialing his number.
"The same recording comes from a number of different phone numbers, different area codes," said Richard.
The recording says, "Hi, this is Rachel at cardholder services calling in reference to your current credit card account. There are no problems currently with your account. It is urgent that you contact us concerning your eligibility for lowering your interest rate."
Richard Greenblatt is a man with few credit cards but not few words when it comes to the robocalls he keeps getting.
"I'd like to have them stopped," said Richard.
But now matter what number he pushes, the woman on the phone, Rachel, keeps calling back.
The recording says, "Press the number one on your phone now to speak with a live operator and lower your interest rate or press the number two to discontinue further notices."
Richard isn't just annoyed he's tracking the calls what time they come in and the numbers that show up on caller ID. He's filed a complaint with the Do Not Call registry but was surprised by the response he got back.
"It says we do not prosecute or go after or investigate individual complaints," said Richard.
So Richard emailed Action News wondering why he should even make a complaint in the first place. That's a good question. We reached out to the Federal Trade Commission and they are very familiar with Rachel that woman in the message. They call Rachel from cardholder services public enemy number one.
"We were receiving approximately 200,000 complaints a month about cardholder services robocalls," explained Todd Kossow, Assistant Director of the Federal Trade Commission Midwest Region.
After investigating, the FTC found the companies who collected an upfront fee from people who got the robocall did little if anything to fulfill their promises.
"We've now sued a total of 10 complaints that have used that or a similar robocall to offer credit card interest rate reduction," said Todd.
Lawsuits that came about as a result of consumers filing complaints. Remember how Richard kept pressing numbers to try and talk to someone?
"Pressing a number is likely to lead to more robocalls because it tells the caller that this is a live number and they'll keep calling," said Todd.
Instead, the FTC says hang up, go to your computer and file a complaint with them. Richard hopes people will listen to that advice fearing that someone's personal information could be given to the wrong person.
"They wouldn't keep doing it unless people would be gullible enough to take advantage of it," said Richard.
The FTC says another option to consider is to contact your phone carrier and try to have the number blocked. Although they say a lot of times those numbers are spoofed, meaning it may show up on caller ID as being a 702 number but they could really being calling from Asia.
To learn more about the Do Not Call registry, click here.





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