How to put an end to unwanted or harassing phone cell.HAR

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Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
Fact Sheet #3


How to Put an End to Unwanted or Harassing Phone Calls


Obscene or harassing phone calls can be one of the most stressful
and frightening invasions of privacy a person experiences. And
unwanted phone calls, while a minor problem when compared with
threatening calls, can still be a major inconvenience.
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to help put an end to
these unwelcome intrusions.

Harassing Calls

What makes a phone call harassing?

When someone calls and uses obscene or threatening language, or
even heavy breathing or silence to intimidate you, you are
receiving a harassing call. It is against the law in California
to make obscene or threatening calls.

How often do I have to get these calls to make it harassment?

Just one unwelcome call can be harassing; but usually your local
phone company will not take action unless the calls are frequent.
However, if a call specifically threatens you or your family with
bodily harm, the phone company will generally take immediate
action.

Who should I contact when I get harassing calls?

Different phone companies in California have varying policies on
whether to call the phone company or the police first. Pacific
Bell recommends that you first call the phone company's business
office and explain the problem. A representative will connect you
with the Pacific Bell "annoyance desk." Other phone companies may
require you to file a formal complaint with local law enforcement
before they will deal with the matter. To find out what your
local phone company's policy is, contact the business office and
ask for assistance.

What can my local phone company do if I am receiving harassing
calls?

If the calls are frequent or particularly threatening, the phone
company can set up a "trap." With a trap the phone company tries
to determine the telephone number from which the harassing calls
originate based on the date and time the call came in. You must
keep a log noting the time and date the harassing calls are
received. Traps are usually set up for no more than two weeks.

A new phone company service called Call Trace may also be able to
help track down harassing calls. With Call Trace when you receive
a harassing call you enter a code on your phone and the call is
automatically traced. This is easier than using a trap since the
customer does not have to keep a phone log. However, Call Trace
technology currently works only within the local calling area.

There are fees for Call Trace, and it is not yet available in all
areas of California. If the most effective way of determining the
number of a harassing caller is with Call Trace, the phone
company's annoyance desk may provide this service for no charge.

The information collected from Call Trace or from a trap is
turned over to law enforcement personnel, not the customer. Law
enforcement officers try to put a stop to the harassing calls by
either warning or arresting the harasser. With both Call Trace
and a trap, your phone conversations are not listened to or
recorded by the phone company.

Is the phone company always able to solve harassing phone call
problems?

No. If the person making the calls uses a phone booth or multiple
phone numbers, the phone company and law enforcement officials
may never get sufficient identification to take further action.
In cases like these, changing your phone number might help. Also,
you might want to get an unlisted or unpublished number. In
addition, the tips listed below for discouraging unwanted calls
may be of assistance.

Is there anything I can do to stop harassing calls without going
to the phone company?

Yes. First, simply hang up on the caller. Do not engage in
conversation. If that does not work, Pacific Bell suggests that
you put a message like this on your answering machine:

I'm sorry I/we can't come to the phone right now but
you must leave a message. I/we are receiving annoyance
calls and Pacific Bell has a trap on this line. If you
do not leave a message I/we will assume that you are
the annoyance caller and this call will be traced.

If you answer the phone and the harassing caller is on the line,
Pacific Bell suggests that you say: Operator, this is the call.
Then hang up. Or say the word trap, what time it is and the date;
then hang up.

Other Unwanted Calls

What can I do to stop other kinds of unwanted calls?

Sometimes calls are annoying but are not serious enough to
involve law enforcement as is necessary with either a trap or
Call Trace. These might include telemarketing sales calls, wrong
numbers, overly aggresive bill collectors and prank calls. There
are several steps you can take to discourage such unwanted calls.

1. An answering machine is one of the best ways to limit
unwanted calls. Available for as little as $50, an answering
machine tapes messages when you are not available and can also be
used to screen your calls. Similar to an answering machine, a
voice mail service or an answering service can also discourage
unwanted calls.

Another product on the market is an attachment to the telephone
called an "inbound call blocker." It allows only those callers
who enter a special numeric code onto their touch-tone phone to
ring through to your number. This device is highly effective in
preventing unwanted calls. However, you must be certain to give
the code to everyone you want to talk to. Even so, you could miss
important calls from unexpected sources, like emergency services.

2. In some parts of California, new Custom Calling services are
now available from the local phone company which can help limit
unwelcome calls. However, before you sign up, look carefully at
the services to be certain they will work in your situation and
are worth the monthly fee.

Note: These new options are available only in some areas of the
state, currently the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas. It will
be several years before the necessary equipment is installed
throughout California. Until then, these Custom Calling services
will work only in local calling areas.

o Call Block: Your phone can be programmed to reject calls
from selected numbers with a service called Call Block (GTE)
or Call Screen (Pacific Bell). Instead of ringing on your
line, these calls are routed to a recording which tells the
caller you will not take the call. With Call Block and Call
Screen, you can also program your telephone to reject calls
from the number of the last person who called. This allows
you to block calls even if you do not know the phone number.

Call Block and Call Screen are not foolproof ways to stop
unwelcome calls, however. A determined caller can simply
move to a different phone number to bypass the block. Also,
Call Block and Call Screen do not work on calls from outside
your service area. Call Block and Call Screen will not stop
these long distance calls.

o Special Call Acceptance: In the flip-side of the Call Block
idea, GTE offers a service called Special Call Acceptance.
With this program you can stop all numbers from ringing
except those you specifically program your phone to accept.
Up to 12 numbers can be chosen to ring through. All others
are routed to a recorded message.

Special Call Acceptance can effectively stop unwanted or
even harassing phone calls, but it could also delay
important or emergency calls. For example, a family member
dialing from a pay phone would not reach you. An operator
can override the service, but this would cause a delay in
receiving the call. Also, calls from outside your service
area would ring through, so a telemarketer calling you long
distance would not be blocked.

o Call Return: This service allows you to call back the number
of the last person who called, even if you are unable to
answer the phone. Even though you can return the call, you
will not be given the phone number. Some people suggest that
Call Return can be used to stop harassing callers by
allowing you to call the harasser back without knowing the
phone number. Use caution with this method of discouraging
harassing callers, however, as it could actually aggravate
the problem.

Privacy tip: Do not include your telephone number on the
outgoing message of your answering machine if you wish to
keep your number private. By omitting your phone number from
your answering machine's message, you prevent random dialers
and people with Call Return from capturing this information.

3. Another method of limiting the number of unwanted calls you
answer is with a Custom Calling service called Priority Ringing
(Pacific Bell) or VIP Ring (GTE). With this option you program
your phone to give two different rings. The special ring can be
programmed either for calls you want to accept or for calls you
do not want to answer.

There are ways callers can get around Priority Ringing when it is
used as a screening device. If you program your phone for calls
you wish to avoid, the person calling could switch phone lines
and avoid the distinctive ring. In the opposite case, if you
program calls you want to take, you run the risk of missing an
important call dialed from a pay phone or another unknown number.
Also, as with the other Custom Calling services, this option does
not work with calls from outside your local calling area.

Can I use Caller ID to stop unwanted calls?

Caller ID is a Custom Calling service that the California Public
Utilities Commission (PUC) approved in June 1992. However, both
Pacific Bell and GTE have decided not to offer the service at
this time.

With Caller ID, customers who pay a monthly fee and purchase a
display device can see the number of the person calling before
picking up the phone. While some people believe Caller ID would
help reduce harassing or unwelcome calls, others raise strong
privacy concerns about the technology since subscribers to the
service can capture callers' phone numbers without their consent.

To answer these privacy concerns, the Public Utilities Commission
has required the phone companies to offer extensive number-
blocking options. Because of this and other PUC requirements,
phone companies in California have decided not to offer Caller
ID.

For further information

For more information on these and other privacy-related issues,
contact the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse hotline at (800)
773-7748.

The Clearinghouse offers a free fact sheet on telemarketing that
provides tips on reducing the number of telephone sales calls you
receive (Fact Sheet No. 5, "Telemarketing: Whatever Happened to a
Quiet Evening at Home?").

Your local phone company also has useful privacy information.
Call the business office of the phone company which serves your
area and ask for more information.

The California law regarding harassing calls can be found in
California Penal Code section 653m.

Issued October 1992
Revised June 1993