Do Not Call Registry

[tenaya]

I'm hopeless behind...so just replay some of my earlier whining.

Of interest, we suddenly started getting at least a dozen telemarketing calls a day starting a few days ago. Annoyed, I went to:
https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx

There, I found out that when you register you phone numbers, it is only good for five years. I guess my five years was up. So, to all my American amigos who registered when the Do Not Call list first came out, do yourself a favor and register before your time runs out. It takes 30 days before they'll stop calling. And calling. And calling....

Comments

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this warning! I checked, and I don't expire for another year (wow, did it really take me that long to sign up?), but I've put it in my iCal to do on that date!

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

Good choice. These telemarketers are a lot more agressive than they were 5 years ago. I made the mistake of answering the phone and being civil but I was confused as to how I could even be getting the call. The phone reception started to break up badly so I said that I have no money to buy whatever it is you're selling and because the connection was bad, good bye. Would you believed they called back four times, back to back? As soon as the answering machine clicked on, they hung up and redialed. Why on Earth would they think I'd pick up the phone when they were being so pushy and hostile? It was bordering a little on frightening. I renewed my cell number a year early to avoid a repeat of this.

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

Creepy!

So you can renew for five more years even if it hasn't expired? I might do that. Because I'm halfway expecting the expiration to happen at 5 a.m., or something, and a bunch of companies downloading my number and taking advantage of the 30-day "grace period" during the few hours my number's off the list.

(The worst caller I got was someone trying to take advantage of the "existing customer" loophole to try to sell me air conditioner servicing. I insisted they were not allowed to call me as I was on the Do Not Call list, and I would report them. They lied and said they had serviced my AC before, which I told them was impossible. I don't have AC! That flummoxed them -- someone in Arizona who doesn't have AC. But I have an evaporative cooler, and I know exactly who's been out to service it before, and it wasn't them. Icky sales slimeballs!)

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

It didn't say we could, but it didn't say we couldn't either. I assume my cell number is there twice and one will drop off in a year.

With the way my phone started ringing from multiple vendors on the same day, I'm betting they harvest those fresh numbers on the first day they are available so you'd have to re register them before they expire to avoid being harassed. So, unless they have DON'T SEND IN DUPLICATE NUMBERS is red font in really large letters, I figure it's okay. *eg*

[moonchildetoo.livejournal.com]

Well, that totally sucks! Thanks for the tip!

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

You're welcome. I feel like a prisoner with an obnoxious cellmate. The phone is ringing about once every 30 minutes.