monophoto
Member
So I was down in my shop when the phone rang. It only rang once, which is an indication that it was a robocaller and was intercepted by the NoMoRobo service I use.
A few minutes later, the phone rang again. This time it rang several times indicating that it was likely a real call, and when I answered, it was the doctor confirming my office visit on Monday.
Later, I encountered a problem with my chuck - I had opened it fully to mount a large blank using only two jaws, and the sliders had become unsynchronized. I've done this before, so I know that a little patient fiddling will solve the problem. As I was doing that, the phone rang a third time (really bad timing), and this time it was a real person. But from the background noise, it was obvious that he was calling from a boiler room/call center. And from his accent, it was clear that he wasn't calling from my local town as indicated by caller ID. So this jerk then claims to be calling on behalf of Medicare and asking about my back problem. I don't have a back problem. Instead, I have a problem with robocallers, and I let that dude know about it before hanging on him.
For a while last Spring, my cell phone was reporting a number of 'uncompleted' calls that came in during the middle of the night. Close examination indicated that they originated overseas; the trick they are playing is to call at a point when the call is likely to not be completed, knowing that cell phones capture incomplete calls and make it possible to return the call. They are betting that some of the targets of this scam will return the call without carefully checking to see where it originated - when that happens, the person who returns the call pays the premium international toll for the international call, and the scammer captures a portion of that transaction.
I keep a record of these calls - we average 8-12 of them per week. And in a typical week, we might only get two or three legitimate phone calls. Any time I answer the phone and its a robocaller, I notifiy NoMoRobo so they can add the number to their intercept list. And if I get a series of calls from one number, I add it to the block list for my phone (which, unfortunately, is limited to only 30 numbers). On my cell phone, I have an app that blocks known robocallers, calls from numbers that I choose to block (I can have an unlimited number on that list), any call obviously originating outside the US or a limited selection of other countries, and any call from the exchange associated with our home phone that isn't listed in my personal address book. I also have a second app that blocks all calls from the exchanges associated with my cell phone.
A few minutes later, the phone rang again. This time it rang several times indicating that it was likely a real call, and when I answered, it was the doctor confirming my office visit on Monday.
Later, I encountered a problem with my chuck - I had opened it fully to mount a large blank using only two jaws, and the sliders had become unsynchronized. I've done this before, so I know that a little patient fiddling will solve the problem. As I was doing that, the phone rang a third time (really bad timing), and this time it was a real person. But from the background noise, it was obvious that he was calling from a boiler room/call center. And from his accent, it was clear that he wasn't calling from my local town as indicated by caller ID. So this jerk then claims to be calling on behalf of Medicare and asking about my back problem. I don't have a back problem. Instead, I have a problem with robocallers, and I let that dude know about it before hanging on him.
For a while last Spring, my cell phone was reporting a number of 'uncompleted' calls that came in during the middle of the night. Close examination indicated that they originated overseas; the trick they are playing is to call at a point when the call is likely to not be completed, knowing that cell phones capture incomplete calls and make it possible to return the call. They are betting that some of the targets of this scam will return the call without carefully checking to see where it originated - when that happens, the person who returns the call pays the premium international toll for the international call, and the scammer captures a portion of that transaction.
I keep a record of these calls - we average 8-12 of them per week. And in a typical week, we might only get two or three legitimate phone calls. Any time I answer the phone and its a robocaller, I notifiy NoMoRobo so they can add the number to their intercept list. And if I get a series of calls from one number, I add it to the block list for my phone (which, unfortunately, is limited to only 30 numbers). On my cell phone, I have an app that blocks known robocallers, calls from numbers that I choose to block (I can have an unlimited number on that list), any call obviously originating outside the US or a limited selection of other countries, and any call from the exchange associated with our home phone that isn't listed in my personal address book. I also have a second app that blocks all calls from the exchanges associated with my cell phone.
Last edited: