Spam & Telemarketing Archives

Insurance Marketing Coalition Ltd. v. Federal Communications Commission et al.

February 19, 2025

Insurance Marketing Coalition Ltd. v. FCC, et al., No. 24-10277 (11th Cir.) This case was brought by an insurance trade group against the FCC to challenge the validity of the FCC’s One-to-One Consent Rule, which would require telemarketers to obtain consent directly from a consumer before robocalling them. The Rule would have eliminated billions of…

Consumer Group Comments Opposing NumberBarn's Application for Access to Number Resources

December 6, 2024

The sale and rental of telephones allows scammers and telemarketers to evade FCC requirements for truthful caller-ID. These comments urge the FCC to deny the application of a VoIP provider requesting access to number resources based on its previous practices.

Reply Comments by National Consumer and Privacy Groups in AI Proceeding at FCC

November 15, 2024

We strongly support the FCC’s proposal to require that prior express consent for some calls that use AI must include a “clear and conspicuous disclosure that the consumer consents to receive AI-generated calls.” We also strongly support the in-call disclosure proposed by the Commission. The distinguishing characteristics of calls that should trigger the specific consent…

Comments of 26 Consumer, Privacy and Legal Aid Advocates on How to Protect Consumers From AI in Calls and Texts

October 10, 2024

We recommend that for calls that include AI-generated technology: before callers can make AI-generated calls that may employ interaction with the recipient, the callers must obtain explicit consent from called parties to receive calls that use this technology; and second, that these AI-generated calls must include a disclosure at the beginning of each call that…

Testimony Before Senate Commerce Regarding the Escalating Problem of Unwanted Robocalls and What To Do About It

April 18, 2018

Margot Saunders, senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center provided testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on the importance of the TelephoneConsumer Protection Act (TCPA).

Testimony Before Senate Commerce Regarding Illegal Robocalls: Calling All to Stop the Scourge

April 11, 2019

Margot Saunders, senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center provided testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation focused on the importance of maintaining the integrity of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act for consumers.

Testimony Before Senate Commerce Regarding the Importance of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act to Safeguard Consumers

May 18, 2016

On behalf of the millions of consumers, Margot Saunders, senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center, asks Senators to defend and strengthen the Telephone Consumer Protection Act as an essential bulwark against unwanted, annoying, harassing, and even dangerous, robocalls.

Ex Parte to Wireline Bureau on Numbering Policies

March 25, 2024

Callers rotating through numbers circumvent the goals of the TRACED Act as well as the efforts of the FCC and providers to block illegal calls. While existing regulations prohibit this misconduct, the FCC should use TRACED Act authority to issue a new rule that unequivocally prohibits number rotation for outbound calls.

Consumer and Privacy Group Comments to FCC Urging the Elimination of Rotating Numbers for Robocalls

December 22, 2023

These comments urge the FCC to explicitly prohibit the temporary rental of outward dialing telephone numbers to robocallers, to eliminate this method of evading caller ID requirements.

Senate Testimony of Margot Saunders Regarding Protecting Americans from Robocalls

October 24, 2023

Margot Saunders, senior attorney for the National Consumer Law Center testified before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband. The current regulatory structure allows criminals access to Americans’ wallets: billions of dollars are stolen every year through scams executed over this nation’s telephone lines. At the same time,…

Digital Library: Strict New Limits on Prerecorded Debt Collection Calls Effective July 20

July 20, 2023

Effective July 20, 2023, the FCC has placed strict new limits on the number of prerecorded collection calls that a debt collector can send to a consumer’s landline. Importantly, consumers have powerful remedies for violations (statutory damages of $500 to $1500 per call), because the new FCC rule is promulgated under the Telephone Consumer Protection…

How Important Calls Regarding Medicaid Renewals Can be Made Legally

June 3, 2022

FCC must protect consumers from scam health insurance calls while facilitating HHS calls to remind Medicaid recipients to reenroll.