Another Call, Another Scam

Your phone’s ringing. You look at the number, and notice it is a familiar area code, but you’re still unsure of who it may be. You answer it, and there it is, an automated message saying that you owe money to the IRS. 

Too often we are getting call after call about anything ranging from Social Security to overdue credit card bills. According to First Orion Corporation, almost 50 percent of all calls are robocalls.  Is this something we can stop? And if we can’t stop it, then how can we at least protect ourselves from being scammed?

The unfortunate thing is that we cannot combat robocalls, but what’s helpful is the technology available for cell phone owners and other options to differentiate who is actually calling you and who is calling you to scam you.  

Some phone carriers like AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile have tools to help filter robocalls. Although this may add an extra monthly charge, it can definitely help with those pesky calls! 

Nomorobo, Truecaller and Hiya are just some of the apps you can download from the app store to help detect and look up who is behind the call as well.  

According to the Federal Trade Commission, if any robocalls have messages about  selling something to you, then it is considered illegal and you can report it. 

The FTC also suggests blocking unwanted calls. Unfortunately, scammers disregard if your number is on the National Do Not Call Registry. After your phone stops ringing, simply block the number if your device allows that.  

Receiving a robocall is never fun -- it’s only a matter of time until this problem can be solved -- but until then, these suggestions may help lessen that added stress throughout the day.