By Illinois Radio Network/Cole Lauterbach
SPRINGFIELD – A robocall tracking website estimated that the automated calls rang the average Illinoisan’s phone 10 times a day in January.
YouMail, which offers a robocall blocking service, estimated that Illinois residents received 164.6 million robocalls last month, about 10 per day.
Jim Chilsen, with the Citizens Utility Board, said the best way to fight robocalls is to find out what your carrier offers in terms of free services, as mandated by a new federal law.
“People are defrauded of about $9.5 billion a year because of telecom scams,” he said. “The TRACED Act is a huge step in the right direction but nobody believes it’s the end of robocalls.”
CUB recently updated its free Guide to Fighting Robocalls to include information about the services and new scams consumers should know about.
If you do pick up a robocall that appears to be a scam, Maureen Mahoney with Consumer Reports said not to interact at all. Just hang up.
“The longer you stay on, the more they engage with you, the more they get the sense that you’re a mark,” she said. “You could end up on a list that could be sold to other scammers.”
By pressing a number or even saying “stop,” Mahoney said people were only confirming that the number is live, thus sending more calls to that number. The same goes for spam text messages that ask for a reply to stop them.
YouMail found that the most common robocall was asking for consent to speak with a prisoner, but other scam calls are likely more prevalent because their number changes to match who the call is to.
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