The FCC, also known as the Federal Communications Commission, has similar goals but concentrates their efforts on policing the telecommunications industry. To put it simply, the FCC regulates the telecommunications industry while the FTC takes a broader approach — regulating businesses across a wide range of industries. We recommend, however, focusing your efforts first on the FCC since the telecom industry is still largely under their purview.
You can contact the FCC through an online portal, through their phone line, and with a written letter. Washington, DC Make sure to include your name, address, contact information, and as much detail as possible about your complaint if you decide to send a letter. While the multiple options provide different ways to contact these regulatory bodies, we strongly recommend using the online portal. Using the helpline or coordinating through written correspondence is certainly a viable option, but the online portal guides you through the process of making a complaint step by step.
The FCC does not assist with the issues of false advertising, deceptive business practices, scams, and debt collection. Additionally, there are a number of services that are best dealt with at the state level using public utility commissions:.
If your issue falls into one of the categories above, find the appropriate state Public Utilities Commission by visiting the website of the National Association Of Regulatory Utility Commissioners.
Alternatively, you can receive assistance by phone at Jump to navigation. The Federal Communications Commission gives consumers the opportunity to file informal complaints about problems with the communications services that the FCC regulates. Complaints can be filed through the FCC's Consumer Complaint Center , which educates consumers about communications issues and guides them through the complaint process.
The informal complaint process requires no complicated legal procedures, has no filing charge, and does not require the complaining party to appear before the FCC.
Complaints about telecommunications billing or service issuses are processed by the FCC's Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Division and will be served on your provider, which has 30 days to respond directly to you, copying the FCC on its response. Complaints may be shared among FCC bureaus and offices for further review and possible investigation.
By filing a consumer complaint with the FCC, you contribute to federal enforcement and consumer protection efforts on a national scale and help us identify trends and track the issues that matter most. While the FCC can help consumers with many types of complaints, there are many issues — such as consumer fraud or cable billing — which are be best addressed by local, state or federal agencies or authorities that have jurisdiction over these issues.
However, spoofing is not always illegal. There are legitimate, legal uses for spoofing, like when a doctor calls a patient from her personal mobile phone and displays the office number rather than the personal phone number or a business displays its toll-free call-back number.
If you get calls from people saying your number is showing up on their caller ID, it's likely that your number has been spoofed. We suggest first that you do not answer any calls from unknown numbers, but if you do, explain that your telephone number is being spoofed and that you did not actually make any calls. You can also place a message on your voicemail letting callers know that your number is being spoofed. Usually scammers switch numbers frequently. It is likely that within hours they will no longer be using your number.
If a telephone number is blocked or labeled as a "potential scam" on your caller ID, it is possible the number has been spoofed. Several phone companies and app developers offer call-blocking and labeling services that detect whether a call is likely to be fraudulent based on call patterns, consumer complaints or other means.
FCC rules do not prohibit call blocking or labeling technologies, however the FCC is very concerned about ensuring that lawful calls are completed and has encouraged providers who block calls to establish a means for a caller whose number is blocked to contact the provider and remedy the problem.
You can legally block the transmission of your phone number when you make calls, so your number will appear as "unknown. During election seasons, consumers will likely experience an increase in calls and texts from political campaigns. While campaign calls and texts are exempt from the Do Not Call List requirements, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act contains specific rules they must follow.
In general, robocalls and robotexts to mobile phones require prior consent and calls to landlines are allowed without prior consent. But there are exceptions detailed below. Political campaign-related autodialed or prerecorded voice calls, including autodialed live calls, autodialed texts, and prerecorded voice messages, are prohibited to cell phones, pagers or other mobile devices without the called party's prior express consent.
The same restrictions apply to protected phone lines such as emergency or toll-free lines, or lines serving hospitals or similar facilities. Political campaign-related autodialed or prerecorded voice calls are permitted when made to landline telephones, even without prior express consent.
All prerecorded voice message calls, campaign-related and otherwise, must include certain identification information:. Robotexts — text messages generated through autodialing — are also considered a type of call and fall under all robocall rules.
As text messages generally go to mobile phones, robotexts require the called party's prior express consent. Campaigns should also honor opt-out requests if you reply "STOP. Call blocking is a tool used by phone companies to stop illegal and unwanted calls from reaching your phone. A recent FCC report found that by partnering with third-party analytics companies, providers are able to block billions of unwanted calls to American consumers each year.
Phone companies sometimes block calls connected to suspicious calling patterns proactively for their customers. Many phone companies also enable their customers to block additional unwanted calls by enrolling in a service or installing an app.
Consumers can also adjust certain settings on their phone, sign up with a third-party service, or download a third-party app to block suspected unwanted calls. Depending on your service provider, a blocked call may go straight to your voicemail, you may hear a single ring and get caller ID information from the blocked call, or you may get no notice at all.
Many phone companies are taking advantage of FCC rules that allow consumers to be enrolled automatically in call blocking services, but you can opt-out if you are concerned about missing wanted calls.
A number of companies also offer call labeling to help consumers determine which calls they want to answer. Labeling services display categories for potentially unwanted or illegal calls such as "spam" or "scam likely" on the caller ID display. Contact your phone company to learn more about the blocking and labeling solutions that may be available to protect you from unwanted and illegal calls.
There may also be apps you can download for your mobile device — at little or no cost — to block or label potential spam calls. The FCC does not endorse any products or services listed, and is not responsible for the content, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of non-FCC websites. The national Do Not Call list protects landline and wireless phone numbers. You can register your numbers on the national Do Not Call list at no cost by calling voice or TTY.
You must call from the phone number you wish to register. You can also register at donotcall.
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