Did I Hang Up On You?

jnmeade

jnmeade

Cleared for Takeoff
Joined
Sep 25, 2005
Messages
1,229
Location
Eastern Iowa
Display Name
Display name:
Jim Meade
Telephone calls from a local city and phone code using names that are local but are a front for a telemarketer are getting so frequent that I simply hang up the phone if I get a call from someone local I don't know.
I know you didn't call me so I didn't hang up on you.
What do you do if you are in business? Do you take each of these calls and then disconnect? How do you screen calls if you are a small firm like the cement contractor, independent plumber, dress maker or mom and pop grocery? It must drive you nuts.
Do I miss any important calls? I don't know. I hang up on them unless I know them or have reason to expect a call that could be from this number.
They can text me. (Yes, we are also starting to get advertising texts).
And to think - when I was a kid and our ring was two shorts and a long (yes, that does date me) we used to race to see who could answer the phone. Now its, don't answer, let it go to voicemail.
 
I'm not in business so I have no reason to answer spam calls. I ignore them. I tell friends who are not on my list to leave a message and I will get back to them.
 
I think it's becoming a national security issue.
 
I don't even bother to answer the land line at home. Anybody that needs to get in touch with me knows to call my cell phone. Even so I've gotten a few solicitation phone calls recently on my cell. I just hang up on them.
 
We have that problem. And since we're not just local we have to answer the out of state calls too. I just answer and give the caller about three seconds to start sounding normal, then I hang up.
 
I pretty much don't answer my phone anymore.
It's never anyone I know.

My phone has basically turned into an answering machine. If there's a voicemail I'll get back in touch with you.
 
That's one good thing with having an area code on my phone different from where I currently live... anytime I get a call from that area code (at least once a day now, btw), I know it's scammers or spammers or whatever you want to call them. It's gotten completely out of hand the last few months.

SixPapaCharlie said:
My phone has basically turned into an answering machine. If there's a voicemail I'll get back in touch with you.
Click to expand...

Basically, yeah.
 
I always tell them that my number is on the Federal do not call registry and that their call could constitute a felony. If they persist I ask them for the name of their supervisor and the address from which the call is being made. If they don't immediately cough up the intel I let them know that failure to do so could constitute obstruction of justice, punishable by two years in Federal prison and a 250,000 fine. Any more and I let the, know I already have their phone number and can easily work my way back to them.

This has worked spectacularly every time, and has the benefit of being utterly true.
 
Haven't had a land line in years.

Anyone I know gets added to address book.

Public phone number is Google Voice pointed at cell.

Cell number isn't given to anyone not worthy of it. Haha.

Office desk phone rings office phone and cell. Even if called by extension. Not even more than five co-workers / bosses have/need my cell number. Call my desk. If the office phone system is down, call my boss. He knows how to find me to fix it.

Any number not recognized goes to one of three voice mails.

Very few unknown numbers get answered and usually only during business hours.

If anyone leaves a message, I call back and ask for all their numbers to put them in address book so phone tells me who they are.

Wash rise repeat.
 
Cajun_Flyer said:
That's one good thing with having an area code on my phone different from where I currently live... anytime I get a call from that area code (at least once a day now, btw), I know it's scammers or spammers or whatever you want to call them.
Click to expand...

Same here. And if it happened to be someone I actually knew, they would leave a voicemail.
 
Most robo calls even to cell phone are recordings. Good luck with the threat of the do not call registry.

My cell stays in the truck while at work. It's a security thing. When I get off work there are one or two messages from unknown numbers. But I need to check, could be a semi business flying club inquiry.

Home phone all go to the machine, we can hear the message and can chose to pick up or ignore.
 
I have been getting a lot of those lately as well, ans oddly enough the numbers are all of a series usually assigned to sprint cell phones. As soon as the marketing BS recording starts I just punch the call of and two quick taps blocks the number. I have quite an impressive collection of blocked numbers now. Like 32 or so...

Sent from my LG-LS997 using Tapatalk
 
This business of spoofing the number originating the call is a pain in the rear. We got one yesterday that caller ID said was from the Evergreen State College. Now, what a bunch of hippies from that "school" would want with me, I don't know, but we answered the call (Norobo hadn't blocked it). The usual recorded message about "You stayed in one of our resorts...". My wife hung up. The next time I get one of those I'm going to wait through the pre-recorded nonsense and when a live person comes on I'm going to ask "What resort?" Then read them the riot act about calls of this nature and demand that they put me on their do not call list. If I hear from them again, they will hear from the FCC (and I have professional contacts there). Norobo stops most garbage, but not all.
 
MickYoumans said:
I don't even bother to answer the land line at home. Anybody that needs to get in touch with me knows to call my cell phone. Even so I've gotten a few solicitation phone calls recently on my cell. I just hang up on them.
Click to expand...
This is why I dumped the landline years ago.
 
I do own a small business....

If nothing is really going on, it's a live person, and I don't have other phone calls in my queue (love my VOIP system that shows me this), then I will play with them.

Then I try to do a Tom Mabe schtick with them....

If I get a "how are you doing today?" question, then I answer, "Well, not so good. I have misplaced my medication that helps with my short term memory, so I didn't take. So I have trouble remembering things....". Then let them go on with their spiel and be silent. When they get the point in the script where I am supposed to respond, "Hello, this is Mike with Denton Truck and Auto Parts, can I have your name and how I can help you again?" "Oh, hello _______. I appreciate you being patient with me, I have misplaced my medication that helps with my short term memory, so I didn't take. So I have trouble remembering things.... but go on with what you want to tell me..." Rinse, repeat.

My record so far is 4 rounds.

If I get asked, "Can I speak with the person who handles ______", then my response is, "Oh, that's not me, but if you have a pen/paper handy, I'll provide you with the phone number and the name." Which gets them excited. Then I provide one of the following:

(940) 349-1600, ask for Tracy (current Denton County Sherrif)
(512) 463-2000, ask for Greg (current Texas Governor)
(512) 463-2100, ask for Ken (current Texas Attorney General)
(817) 989-8259, anyone can help (regional office of FBI)
(202) 456-1111, ask for Donald​


Essentially, I try to be as annoying to them as they are to me. This way my number will get noted in their system as a complete waste of their time. And hopefully that note will spread throughout the telemarketer databases.
 
Ghery said:
Norobo stops most garbage, but not all.
Click to expand...

Do you mean Nomorobo, for a cell phone?

I started using it this year, and it has flagged only a handful of calls. Most of the robocalls get right through it. I'm disappointed.
 
Check out the Hiya app to filter out spam calls, really works.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Did I Hang Up On You?

Yes, and I cried myself to sleep last night....:lol::lol::lol:

I remember party lines, everyone would answer the phone no matter who it was for.
 
NoHeat said:
Do you mean Nomorobo, for a cell phone?

I started using it this year, and it has flagged only a handful of calls. Most of the robocalls get right through it. I'm disappointed.
Click to expand...

Perhaps. Whatever the app is for the home phone, it stops a lot of the annoying calls. Not all, but many.
 
The latest spam is they have some recording of a perky girl talking to you like she's live and then when you say something she continues her pitch. They had me going there for a second.
 
flyingron said:
The latest spam is they have some recording of a perky girl talking to you like she's live and then when you say something she continues her pitch. They had me going there for a second.
Click to expand...

That would be "Emily". LOL.
 
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