My phone number is being used by 3rd party spam/scam

[TheBlackAdder]

1. They're spoofing everyone's numbers. I get calls from all over, including PD, township, state office

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They're just randomly selecting numbers to use, and they've got auto-dial systems that make tens of millions of calls a day.

They have voice scripts play. The most expensive thing is human interaction. That's why you don't ignore the calls, but instead answer them. They'll still call you regardless if you ignore the call or not. There's advice that if you don't answer the call they won't call you as much, but even if an answering machine or block picks up, their system registers that as a live number to dial or sell to others.

I answer the calls, I have their scripts memorized. I say Hi, place the call on mute, just unmute to answer questions to per-qualify the call and then wait until a live person gets on. I will either keep the phone n mute while they waste 30 seconds of saying hello, or I will play with them and waste their time. The only way you hurt them is by taking human resources away.

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