HARTFORD, CT – Attorney General William Tong and 48 other attorneys general are calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to strengthen rules aimed at preventing scammers from obtaining legitimate telephone numbers used to carry out illegal robocalls and text message scams.
The bipartisan coalition is urging the FCC to adopt stronger safeguards that would make it more difficult for scammers to purchase and misuse legitimate phone numbers. According to the attorneys general, limiting access to these numbers would significantly reduce scammers’ ability to impersonate businesses and government agencies and deceive consumers.
Attorney General Tong said that while spam filters block billions of robocalls each year, billions more still reach consumers, resulting in nearly $2 billion in fraud losses nationwide last year. He said stronger federal action is needed to stop scammers from obtaining new phone numbers and to hold companies accountable for selling numbers that are later used in illegal robocall operations.
The coalition is asking the FCC to require stronger certification standards for companies that purchase and resell phone numbers, improve reporting requirements so law enforcement can better trace illegal robocalls, require applicants to certify they will not use numbers for illegal robocalls, block the sale of phone numbers to entities not connected to legitimate calling or texting services, prohibit the practice of “number cycling” used to evade spam filters, and restrict the use of trial phone numbers that are frequently exploited by scammers.
Attorney General Tong joined attorneys general from 48 other states and territories in signing the letter urging the FCC to strengthen its proposed rules.