Robocaller Coming From Your Area Code? California Lawmaker Takes Aim At 'Neighbor Spoofing'
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – A California legislator has introduced a bill that aims to stop scammers from being able to spoof their area codes.
Monday, Sen. Ben Hueso introduced SB 208 in order to set a deadline for telecommunication providers to help stop the pestering calls.
In 2017, Americans received over 30 billion robocalls, and experts estimate that between 30 and 40 percent of these calls were scams. Today I introduced a bill to stop these illegal and intrusive calls. #WhoDis #SupportSB208https://t.co/8HK2ZKYDJa
— Senator Ben Hueso (@SenBenHueso) February 4, 2019
"Neighbor spoofing" has become increasingly common in recent years. Using dial systems, scammers are able to pretend they're calling from the same area as the victim. The aim for the scammers is to have more people pick up the call, with the caller ID reading as from the same area code.
According to numbers cited by Sen. Hueso, 30-40 percent of the 30 billion robocalls Americans received in 2017 were scams.
With a task force already having convened in 2016 to try and find solutions to tackle the robocalling problem, Sen. Hueso's bill puts pressure on telecommunication companies to take action by July 1, 2020.