ndallen@contact.uucp (Nigel Allen) (07/30/90)
If you have ever received a telemarketing call at an unlisted number,
you may have wondered how the telemarketing company got the number.
In some cases, the telemarketing company may be calling numbers at
random within a given prefix or series of prefixes. ("Pseudo-random"
might be a better term here; the telemarketers are given a list of
numbers to phone.)
In other cases, the company may be using a city directory which lists
individuals and companies by their addresses and telephone numbers.
This information can either be taken from the local telephone company
database, in which case it will not have any unlisted numbers, or it
may be gathered separately. R.L. Polk & Co.'s Might Directories
division publishes a number of Canadian city directories, and gets the
information for them from a door-to-door canvas and asks employers to
provide information about their employees. If you aren't in when the
R.L. Polk employee comes by, you'll find a form with the heading
"Important Notice" left for you on your return. A "helpful" employer
may release name and address information (particularly if the employer
makes extensive use of the city directory itself). If the employer
also releases telephone information, you can expect to receive calls
from carpet cleaning companies on your unlisted phone line.
I remember seeing a message on a Toronto BBS from a new caller who
said he worked in telemarketing, and had reached a modem carrier when
he had called the number ... so he decided to call from his modem, just
to see what was on the other end.
I know one person who *never* answers her telephone until her
answering machine was seized an incoming call and played her message.
If the person on the other end of the line leaves a message that she's
interested in, she'll pick up the phone before the caller hangs up.alanf@daysinns.UUCP (Daniel Alan Fleming) (08/03/90)
In article <10260@accuvax.nwu.edu> ndallen@contact.uucp (Nigel Allen) writes: >X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 531, Message 5 of 8 >If you have ever received a telemarketing call at an unlisted number, >you may have wondered how the telemarketing company got the number. I once worked for a telemarketing division of a company here in Atlanta. (I am sure my karma was destroyed because of this exposure :-) We recieved 100,000 "leads" from a large telecommunications company every 3 months which we would load into our mainframe and send out via terminal to 150 or so telemarketers. Apparently the Tele-Comm company got their leads from the phone company and from their own representatives. (I imagine they went through an agency). Recently, our place of work has been getting called daily by a department store asking for our employees. They are not allowed to take phone calls while at work, so the calls are sent to our department. We have asked repeatedly for our phone number to be removed from their database and were told this was not possible. (Apparently their "database software" doesn't search fields??!?) Are there any ideas on how to counter this? Due to our professional position, sending concrete blocks COD is not acceptable. Daniel Alan Fleming {uunet}!gatech.edu!daysinns!alanf 4203 Buford Hwy NE Days Inns of America Apt B-7 2751 Buford Hwy N.E. Atlanta, GA 30345: (404)/634-8014 Atlanta, GA 30324: (404)/728-4498 [Moderator's Note: Impossible to remove your number? Like the time the lady at McDonald's told me they were all out of french fries and it was only coincidental that it was ten minutes before closing time, I find that hard to believe, and I would be candid in telling them so. Although tempted to say something rude ("suppose the next time you call here, I come over to see whoever placed the call and chop off his fingers, so he will never be in a position to dial a phone again, period") I would probably call the Chairman's office at the department store, explain the problem, and advise the Chairman that you do not wish to be placed in a position where you must file suit or a formal complaint with the regulators but that you will do so if necessary. Explain that you are asking his office to intervene. I'll bet you don't get any more calls, because he will be the one to go downstairs with an axe. PT]
john@bovine.ati.com (John Higdon) (08/03/90)
alanf@daysinns.UUCP (Daniel Alan Fleming) writes: > We have asked repeatedly for our phone number to be > removed from their database and were told this was not possible. > [Moderator's Note: Impossible to remove your number? Like the time the > [...] > I would probably call the Chairman's office at the department > store, explain the problem, and advise the Chairman that you do not > wish to be placed in a position where you must file suit or a formal > complaint with the regulators but that you will do so if necessary. > Explain that you are asking his office to intervene. I'll bet you > don't get any more calls, because he will be the one to go downstairs > with an axe. PT] Our gentle Moderator is precisely correct. This is exactly how I handled the {San Jose Mercury} and their telemarketing-run-amuck. So far it seems to have worked. It went like this: [Oh god, Martha, another story...] For the past year or more, the Merc would occasionally wreck my morning. Suddenly, about 9:15 AM (a golden hour of sleep for some of us), my phone lines would go berzerk. Modems would answer, my answering machine would become active and my private lines would ring. When answered, a voice at the other end would ask, "This is Suzie from the San Jose Mercury News. Are you receiving our paper ok each day?" "Yes." "And the Sunday paper, too?" "Yes." "Thanks. Have a nice day." This went from about once a month, to twice a month, then once a week. When it started happening every other day, I decided it was time to call a halt. I called the circulation department of the Merc and asked to have my numbers removed from their list. They took each number (even the POTS number for my 800 service) and assured me that I would no longer be bothered. They were right -- for about a month. When it started again an irate call to the same place resulted in a "we have new equipment and can't remove numbers from the list." When I explained that my next call was going to be to Pac*Bell to complain about telephone harassment, I was connected to the president of the telemarketing firm that handles their account. He told me that my numbers could be removed but that it was a difficult process. Not my problem. Two days later, it all happened again. This time I told the gentleman that this was my last call to him. One more set of calls would result in my bringing every resource to bear to have his lines disconnected and even possibly contacting my attorney about a possible suit. That did it. I have had no more calls from the Merc. It's amazing how many things that "can't be done" actually can, given sufficient motivation! John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@bovine.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !