The Finch Formerly Known As Gold

12 March 2008

It's Jenny on line two

Now this takes nerve:

Some people getting late night and early morning telemarketing calls in the Wilmington [Delaware] area have been doing a double take when they see the number on their caller ID: 867-5309.

Actually, what makes it heinous is not the Tommy Tutone reference, but this:

At least two other people have told the [Wilmington] News-Journal about similar calls, and others have reported the calls in online forums, with more than five dozen complaints logged Tuesday at CallerComplaints.com.

They haven't been able to call back to protest, because there is no 867-5309 in Delaware's 302 area code.

Spoofing Caller ID numbers isn't illegal — yet. But if you're using a fake number to call me, I consider it prima facie evidence that you're dishonest and therefore unworthy of my business or anyone else's.

Posted at 7:54 AM to Scams and Spams


Just another reason why the Do Not Call list should be made permanent.

(I joined when it first came out and it cut the unwanted calls I get in half, easily. I still get "vote for me" begs at election time, and charities calling me up, and the odd "refinance your high interest credit-card" messages [which make me think it's gotta be a scam - for one thing, I don't carry a balance, and for another, they would seem to be violating the No Call List]).

Well, at least they're not violating the memory of Wilson Pickett by spoofing from 634-5789. That would make me sad.

Posted by: fillyjonk at 9:03 AM on 12 March 2008

I generally google numbers I don't recognize. Usually, they are related to the NRA, but a lot are telemarketers, period. Most of the time, a reverse lookup on Anywho doesn't show anything. When Caller ID says "unknown," that kinda simplifies my decisions.

I figure if you want to hide your number from me so I really don't know who is calling, then you really don't want to talk to me badly enough.

Posted by: Jeffro at 10:48 AM on 12 March 2008

My general rule of thumb is, if you're worth my time to talk to you, you'll talk to my voicemail and leave a number where I can call you back.

Entirely too many callers who -- by that definition -- aren't worth my time, just keep calling and calling and never leaving a message. They annoy me even when the little box hooked to our phone stops their call from ringing through.

I think it's because I can't stand watching people prove themselves less capable of learning than a flatworm.

Posted by: McGehee at 3:33 PM on 12 March 2008