07/17/02: Telemarketers

[juju]

I usually don't mind telemarketers. This is because nearly everyone in the free world calls from a caller-ID capable area, and any calls that say 'unidentified caller' can pretty much be assumed to be soliciters. So I just ignore all out-of-area calls.

Anyway, in the last week, these bastards have taken to calling my house every 30 freaking minutes!!! It's sort of hard to ignore the phone when it's ringing all the god-damned time. I finally broke down and answered it.

Here's how it went:

"Hello?"

"Ah, yes, is Katherine there?"

"No, she's at work. May I ask who's calling?"

"Ohh, it's just a courtesy call." (Courtesy?!?!?!? Do these people even know the MEANING of the word courtesy?? How dare she speak corporate-speak to me!)

"Will you please put my number on your do-not-call-list?"

"::CLICK::"


WHAT?? WHAT?? That bitch hung up on me!?!? AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

GRR!!

ugh.


30 minutes later the damned phone is ringing again. I didn't even have the patience to answer it. Believe it or not, I was actually very nice throughout the whole conversation. Southern hospitality and all.




Ahh.. well, i'm sorry for the cursing, folks. I just had to vent. Think I should try the telemarketing script on them?

[perth]

i have a service that intercepts unidentified calls that tells the caller to key in the phone number or, if theyre a telemarketer, to 'please hang up now'. the only problem is that now my phone never rings.

~james

[juju]

Hmm.. how would I aquire such a service? I have a wav of the "disconnected number" tones. Supposedly if you put it on your answering machine, the telemarketer's machine automatically removes your number from their system. The only problem is that I have a voice-mail service set up, and it doesn't work with those. Someone their machine can detect whether or not you've actually picked up on your line by detecting the voltage drop.

[perth]

i get it through qwest here. they call it security screen. not sure what it would be with you service provider. i dig it. its 2.95 a month. the only thing i wish it would say is 'if you are a telemarketer, please take this number off your call list and hang up now, motherfucker'. well, the 'motherfucker' part should be optional.

~james

[juju]

Man, I have got to find a way to get that before I go insane.

[Tobiasly]

Do you have an answering machine or voice mail? If so, I've heard you can begin your outgoing message with those three tones that you hear before a prerecorded message saying the line is disconnected, and that will automatically tell the telemarketer's computers not to call you anymore.

Otherwise, if they get your machine, they just try back. Sorry, I don't remember what the tones are called, but you way wanna try it. There are only a few big clearinghouses of phone numbers these guys use, so from what I've heard the illusion of your phone being disconnected will eventually propagate to all of them.

[juju]

Yeah, I have a wav of those tones. Unfortunately, though, I have a voice-mail service, so it won't work for me.

Good news, though. I checked my telephone company's webpage and found that they do offer a service like the one Perth has. It's $4.00 a month, but this one even tells telemarketers to put you on their do-not-call list!

If I can get this, it will be so awesome. I just have to convince my wife. We're already subscribed to every phone service under the sun. I think this one is worth it, though.

(relevant link)

[juju]

Wow... Southwestern Bell has a Tracing Service. *57 will trace the last person to call you! $8 per succesfull attempt. That is so cool!

They'll only give the information out to law enforcement agencies, though. But still -- you can initiate the trace yourself! Neat!

[Griff]

So Paul Lawrence at the Award Verification Center left a message on my Callwave. Something vague about a 2002 Jeep Liberty his number is 1-800-385-3851 x500.
It would be an awful shame if HIS phone number got out and was the target of hours of pointless calling, wouldn't it. Hmm... can they connect you to a toll call after you dial an 800?

[SteveDallas]

Hey cool, I've been toying with getting a Telezapper... it supposed puts this tone on. I'm wavering on the $50. Hmm. The bit with the answering machine would be interesting to try. Is there a web site that describes what criteria you have to follow to make it consider you disconnected? :)

We seriously considered the call blocking thing... Verizon offers it. The problem is, you have to subscribe to that, and caller ID, which we don't have.. all told, it will take about $12 per month, which we consider too much. I've moved to just screening almost all calls, and leaving the phone off when I don't feel like being bothered. Everybody whom we want to talk to has our cell phone numbers!!

[juju]

I've lost the link to the site that described it, but here's the wav that you put on your answering machine. Like I said before, it won't work with voice mail, as the telemarketers' computer detects whether or not your line has actually been picked up.

Ah... here it is:

http://www.scn.org/~bk269/zapper.html

[elSicomoro]

The telemarketers keep getting bolder and bolder. They actually leave real messages on my vmail now...not some recorded message. I generally never answer our phone anymore.

Having said that, I'm not personally pissed at the telemarketer...at least in most cases. They're just trying to do a job. Every now and then though, I get a wise guy, such as the one in this thread.

[juju]

They have a choice. They chose a job where they knew they would be pestering people, so I don't feel that they are expunged of any blame.

I mean think about it. People use "it's their job" to excuse all kinds of terrible things. Who are we supposed to hold accountable? Some CEO in a locked building somewhere? Even Michael Moore can't talk to them.. what chance do I have?

YEAH! THE NAZI SOLDIERS WERE JUST DOING THEIR JOB!

:)

[juju]

:)