Any cure for telemarketing calls? They are making me crazy. I block those numbers, but phone rings anyway even with the number definitely blocked. Others come up marked scam or a number. One that woke me up this morning I couldn't find glasses and answered with #@×¥€ anyway and I never use those words. I'm off antidepressants (long story) and my hubby is terminal, taking care of him by myself at 75 years old. Does any thing WORK???

Call your state attorney's office and complain and ask. Otherwise you'll just have to get creative when answering. For example Thanks for calling Linda's headless shop, how can I help you? Something to throw them off. A coworker of mine has done that a few times. But otherwise it seems they don't care anymore.

OH, try and find out who and what company is calling. Then report them to State Attorney. Save all the numbers as well and turn them in to SA when you call.

When I block a number, I also add it to a contact called "DNA" (do not answer). I set the ringtone for that particular contact to a silent one I made just for those blocked callers. If there's a call and they're not in my contact list, I don't answer, and just picking up and placing my phone face down silences the ringer, so I don't have to hear it keep ringing. If it's important, they'll leave a message. I also set my phone to silent during my sleep time. All of that helps, but only for cell phones, not landlines.

The problem is that they can easily spoof anyone else's number to show as the caller ID, so it's like playing whack-a-mole.

Linda, I have registered both landline and cell number with the National and the Texas do not call sites online. They will let you know by email when it is time to renew the block. If you want the links, I will post them here tomorrow from the computer at work.

And before my husband passed away, he found this phone number to call with my cell phone.
888-382-1222

It is a recording and they verify the cell number and set up an automatic block for that phone number.
All registries won't go into effect for 30 days but once they do, it ends all junk calls.
I get nothing, no surveys, no political candidates, no medicare soliciting, no expired car warranties. None of that. Even on my landline phone there are no missed calls from unknown numbers. It is worth it to stop the aggravation and it costs nothing.

The only calls you can get would be a business you have patronized in the past.

I am sorry you are having to deal with this and hope this helps.

The Do Not Call Registry does help some, I've been on it since 2004. But eventually your number gets on some list and you end up with calls. The ones I get the most are car warranty calls, or charities and organizations asking for donations (donation calls I think are allowed even by Do Not Call but I find them equally annoying). They suggest you report the telemarketers, but how can you when the number is spoofed and you get a recorded message promoting whatever. Plus there's just too many of them to bother with at times.

I know there are monthly pay options like RoboKiller that should help, but it's just against my nature to pay for something that shouldn't be necessary.

I agree, I would not pay to block calls. That is extortion.

I also have blocked land line numbers since the early 2000s and I have never received telemarketer calls during all that time. Also four different cell numbers since the first one in 2000 and again no calls.

I cannot block my business number in the same manner and cannot believe all the crappy solicitation calls I get at work, most annoying... And yes, they are able to use local numbers/names which should be illegal. But what do I know! I simply lay the phone down and when they disconnect, the phone lets me know.

I try to be so annoying that they put me on their actual don't call list. So many weird things to say, ask what they are wearing and can they shift to the left just a little, pant heavily the whole time, act like you know them and were just having lunch with them yesterday and they still owe for their half of the bill, ask how to get blood stains out of the trunk of your car, or how deep you have to bury a body so dogs can't smell it, tell them you have to talk fast because they're going to realize you escaped and take you back any second, tell them you need a table for 6 next to the stage, tell me a story about your gramma when she was hot, ask if this is about your court date again, is this offer available for federal inmates on death row, insist that they sound just like your baby mama and demand to know where the children are, say nothing but all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, ask if they also hear the voices, say hang on a minute and just sit the phone down, airhorn blast, start telling a really long boring story, cry that it's just too sad that the car warranty expired - it was such a nice warranty and didn't deserve that but fought valiantly at the end, start singing they're coming to take me away ho ho hee hee ha ha!!

Our landline is always getting spam calls, I do not answer any of them! If they can't talk to my machine, I'm not missing anything!! Or I put on the message, call my cell and if you don't have that number don't call back.

My Dad was like purpleinopp, he would keep them on the phone just asking them questions. Where are you at? How's the weather? Are you married? Do you have kids? Do they call you? What time is dinner and what are you having, can I call you at dinner time? If they asked for his cell number, he would give them the local police number. All the time my mom is in the background laughing. If we were there he would tell them to call back, he has company now. Purpleinopp, thank you for the memories!

: ) My pleasure! I refuse to let those people upset me. I managed to keep one on the line for 30 mins once acting really interested but confused about why they couldn't find my car - a 1941 pickup truck. It's GOT to be in your records - you called me about it. Give them a fake SSN to check, date of birth, credit card number, other card number, other card number... Pleaaaaase help me do something about the warranty!!

Tiffany, I like your evil plans.

; ) It can be fun to see how quickly you can make them hang up, or how long you can keep them stringing along.

LMBO, Tiffany!! You almost make me want to get the Telemarketing calls just so I can say those things.

Say it loud enough and your wish will be your command until you regret it.

Ooooh, I definitely would regret it. I already get enough spammers, all kinds of various numbers and such. I guess it's pay back time from when I was really young and used to make prank calls to different people with a friend. Ring ring, then hang up. Oh man, if only I had known. in my defense, at least they were people I kind of knew.


ETA:
btw, just to make myself clear, spammers and Telemarketing I believe are different. (?) When it's telemarketing, the number pops up as 'telemarketing' but when it's a prankster or some spammer, it just pops up as some random number.

I was reminded lastnight of a human trafficking news story I read a few months ago.

Some people are lured to another country with the promise of a cushy job, but when they get there they are kidnapped, passport taken from them, and locked up. Then forced to work as spammers (including sometimes these scam phone-calls) to turn a profit for their slave masters.

So, next time you get a scam call you just never know if it is a slave, chained to a desk. Or someone small-time doing it for themselves.

The lengths criminals will go to to turn a profit is amazing.

good point.
Most likely the warm body on the other end is just trying to make a few bucks... If there IS a warm body, I think they can autodial until somone picks up..?

Ones experience with spam calls seems to vary so much, I don't know what on, my husband gets a lot more than I do. And when are they marked spam on your phone before you answer? No idea how.
I did go thru faithfully reporting numbers to AT T months ago. Maybe ten numbers, or maybe it was repeating with the same, or with similar prefix? Maybe this helped me, no clue.

Hello
Is Al there please?
This is Al
Al, my name is _____ and I'd like to ......
Hold on a moment, please. My caregiver stepped away for a moment and I need to go see if I can find my phone.
(Al sets phone down, walks away, allowing the nuisance to decide how long (s)he wants to puzzle and wait.)

Al