iHappy Friday TCPA World, interesting announcement out of the FCC today with respect to its recent push to mitigate the volume of auto warranty robocalls. Here’s everything you need to know:
On July 7, 2022, FCC’s Robocall Response Team issued a notice which called out a group that it claims is responsible for illegal robocalls which marketed auto warranties. They identified the group as Roy Cox Jr., Aaron Michael Jones, and their Sumco Panama companies. The Robocall Response Team wasn’t finished there – they also ordered a number of voice service providers known to be carrying traffic from this group to immediately stop doing so (you get a cease and desist! you get a cease and desist! you get a cease and desist!) The FCC went on to throw out some pretty shocking stats – this robocall conglomerate is claimed to be responsible for more than 8 billion robocalls since at least 2018 and generated 1,600 complaints to the Ohio AG’s office alone.
Fast forward to today, the FCC is already back in action, announcing an outright order to all phone companies and voice service providers to stop carrying traffic from the illegal robocall conglomerate. Interestingly enough, in today’s order the FCC noted that not a single voice service providers that were issued cease and desists have responded to such orders. Any phone company or provider found by the FCC to have channeled these scam robocalls will be required to “regularly report to the FCC of the steps they have taken to mitigate traffic.”
NOTE TO ALL OF YOU FOLKS: TCPA WORLD CARES ABOUT YOU! The real takeaway here is to be on the lookout for these scam calls. As detailed by the FCC order, these calls may seem legitimate. They will claim that your car insurance/warranty is about to expire and to either press 1 to speak with an agent or call their customer support number. The goal of these calls is to extract consumers’ personal or financial info – they are looking to defraud you. So, be safe and on the lookout for these calls!
