Caller Information 

Can I use Caller ID to stop unwanted calls?

With Caller ID, customers who pay a monthly fee and purchase a display device can see the number and name of the person calling before picking up the phone. Some people believe Caller ID will help reduce harassing or unwelcome calls. Others, however, raise privacy concerns about the technology since subscribers to the service can capture callers' phone numbers without their consent.

To help consumers protect the privacy of their phone numbers, state public utilities regulators (for example, the California Public Utilities Commission) require local phone companies to offer number blocking options to their customers.

There are two blocking options to choose from. If the customer chooses Per Line Blocking (called Complete Blocking in California), their phone number will automatically be blocked for each call made from that number. If the customer chooses Per Call Blocking (called Selective Blocking in California), the phone number is sent to the party being called unless *67 is entered before the number is dialed. When the number is blocked by either of these methods, the Caller ID subscriber sees the word "private" or "anonymous" on the Caller ID display device.

Because of these blocking options, Caller ID is not likely to allow you to capture the phone number of the determined harasser. Most harassers will block their phone numbers or will call from payphones. However, Caller ID can be used by people receiving harassing calls to decide whether to answer. They can choose not to pick up calls marked "private" or numbers they don't recognize.

A companion service to Caller ID, called Anonymous Call Rejection (ACR), requires an incoming call from a blocked number to be unblocked before the call will ring through. Use of this feature forces the harasser to disclose the number - by entering *82 - or to choose to not complete the call. But a determined harasser can get around this feature by using a payphone. This service can be added to a consumer's local phone service for a fee or at no charge depending on the carrier. It is activated and deactivated with the touchtone code *77.

Comments

0 Votes
12th Aug, 2010 by foxylady
I HAVE BEEN GETTING PHONE CALLS FROM 1-267-407-0100 AND THEY ASKED ME FOR MY SS# THE ONLY TIME THAT I ANSWERED THE CALL. I DO NOT KNOW WHO IT IS FROM OR WHAT IT IS ABOUT, AND NOW I JUST DON'T ANSWER THE CALLS, BUT I AM VERY UPSET ABOUT THESE CALLS, I JUST WISH SOMETHING COULD BE DONE ABOUT THESE PEOPLE.
0 Votes
5th Mar, 2011 by J.K.P.
I have been receiving calls from this unknown company. The Guy that left me the message said his name is Stewart and he needs to clear up some "Conflicting Imforamtion" THIS A SCAM and I will be forwarding to this phone call and this companies information to the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigation)Than You...

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