Good news for those of you who hate robocalls: The FCC will now allow wireless carriers to automatically block unwanted robocalls for their subscribers unless they opt out
on Thursday voted unanimously to let wireless carriers automatically block unwanted robocalls for their subscribers unless they opt out, despite some businesses' outcry that this could make it harder to reach customers.
Scammers and other robocallers often use so-called "spoofed" numbers to make a call seem like it's coming from a local number or even a legitimate caller like the IRS. Call spoofing has existed for decades but became trivially easy to pull off with the proliferation of internet-based calling in recent years.
"To date I have been pleased by the progress industry has made" toward the year-end goal, he said. "But in case it isn’t, the FCC will not hesitate to take regulatory action." And Rosenworcel said the FCC should have told carriers they have to make call blocking free for subscribers. The agency made no such requirement, a move Rosenworcel called "devastating."
AT&T and Verizon issued separate statements welcoming the FCC vote, as did their trade group USTelecom. Yet a host of business trade associations, including health-care administration, credit union and banking groups, had raised objections to the FCC action ahead of the vote, worried about their ability to make lawful calls to their customers. They had asked the commission to delay the vote.
The FCC action comes as Congress turns increased attention to unwanted robocalls. The Senate last month overwhelmingly passed a bill that would force phone companies to identify spam calls to consumers, increase fines for illegal robocalls and extend the statute of limitations for authorities to prosecute offenders.
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