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TECHNOLOGY Thursday 3 augusT 2017
Is there finally some relief from annoying robocalls?

By TALI ARBEL are fraudsters, of course. only faked numbers. Not all
AP Technology Writer Pharmacies send automat- robocalls are spoofed.
NEW YORK (AP) — For Mi- ed messages about pre- Consumers Union wants
chael Rizzo, answering the scriptions being filled. But phone companies to
phone is too often a waste too often, it’s this: you owe make call-blocking tools
of time. the IRS money; it’s Micro- available to all consumers
His Sports City Pizza Pub soft calling to fix your com- for free.
in Buffalo, New York, de- puter; free cruises! In the longer term, the FCC
pends on customers call- And spam callers have supports industry efforts to
ing to order wings, pizza tricky technology that verify that callers are re-
and potato skins. But much makes a phone’s caller ally who they say they are.
of the time, it’s an auto- ID display a local or im- Perhaps one day, you’ll
mated message pushing portant-looking caller, like see a green checkmark
a scam . “It’s getting to the IRS. Cracking down on on your smartphone when
the point where it’s block- “spoofed” numbers would the caller is legitimate. U.S.
ing other callers from com- make running a scam more Telecom, the phone-com-
ing in,” the 24-year-old bar difficult and save U.S. con- pany lobby, says rolling this
owner said. sumers millions of dollars, In this Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017, photo, Jen Vargas shows the data out could take a few years,
Help is coming, if slowly. a group of state attorneys of a recent robocall on her home phone in Orlando, Fla. but would prove powerful
Over the past year, prod- general said in an FCC fil- against robocallers.
ded by the government, ing. fraudulent calls to her cell- already block some calls The FCC is also seeking
cellphones have added ___ phone, but she’s given up that are being faked. The ways to stop annoying
new tools to counteract WHAT PHONE COMPANIES with the landline. FCC has proposed rules calls from dogging con-
unwanted “robocalls.” The ARE DOING “Very rarely do I pick up a to formalize that practice sumers when they change
Federal Communications Phone companies and call from a number I don’t and permit them to block numbers. Today, if you sign
Commission has proposed independent apps can know,” Vargas said. other calls they suspect are up for Do Not Call but then
letting phone companies screen or block unwanted Apps including YouMail scams. That means Verizon get a new number, a mar-
block more spam and is calls by checking them and Nomorobo offer re- can block a toll-free num- keter may not know and
hoping to deter scammers against databases of lief on home phones for ber that accepts calls for could pester you on your
with big fines. known problem numbers free, with limitations. With a bank but never initiates new line.
Experts say these steps are and analyzing suspicious YouMail, your carrier must a call. Carriers would also ___
not a cure-all, but they’re a behavior, like a number allow “conditional call for- be able to block calls they WHAT CAN YOU DO?
good start. that’s calling lots of people warding,” which forwards know aren’t legitimate, like Robocallers aren’t going
___ on Do Not Call lists. calls if a line is unanswered a number with a 911 area away, said Aaron Foss of
WHY IS THIS HAPPENING? Wireless carriers also have or busy. Nomorobo isn’t code. The rules still need to Nomorobo, a call-blocking
The federal and state “Do tools that flag incoming available through all home be finalized. service for cellphones and
Not Call” lists are supposed calls with warnings like phone providers and won’t Maureen Mahoney, a pub- home phones. “These guys
to protect people from un- “scam likely,” but they work with older, copper- lic policy fellow at the non- are criminals and they’re
wanted calls from telemar- aren’t available on all based landlines. You can profit Consumers Union, going to find their way
keters. But scammers don’t phones, or to many pre- also buy gadgets , some said the development is around any system. But it’s
care about breaking the paid customers. The ver- pretty clunky, that block “promising,” but won’t pro- our job to make sure we
law. sions from Verizon and calls on home phones. Ve- tect consumers from all un- make it as difficult for them
Scammers reach people Sprint cost extra. rizon is also testing warnings wanted calls. as possible.”
cheaply and easily using A few Android phones, about suspicious calls on a For one thing, “Do Not There are common-sense
“autodialers,” which spew including Google’s Pixel, home phone’s caller ID dis- Call” lists don’t apply to measures for consumers to
out a large number of calls screen spam calls for free. play. certain types of callers, follow.
automatically. It’s estimat- Jen Vargas, 39, a multime- ___ such as debt collectors — Don’t answer the phone
ed that Americans receive dia producer from Orlan- HELP FROM THE GOVERN- and political campaigns. if you don’t recognize the
tens of millions of robocalls do, Florida, said her AT&T MENT In addition, Mahoney said, number. q
every day. Not all of them app flags and blocks some Phone companies can the FCC rules would cover
Wisconsin company holds ‘chip

party’ to microchip workers

By JEFF BAENEN voluntarily microchipped Katie Langer passed, citing
Associated Press during a “chip party” at health concerns related
RIVER FALLS, Wis. (AP) — A company headquarters in to putting a foreign object
brief sting is all employees River Falls. into her hand, while noting
of a Wisconsin technol- Melissa Timmins, vice presi- the chip received approv-
ogy company said they dent of sales at 32M, said al from the U.S. Food and
felt Tuesday when they she was initially apprehen- Drug Administration in 2004.
received a microchip im- sive but decided to give “But that’s still not very long
plant in their hand that will the chip a chance. term in my book, so I’d just
allow them to open doors, “I planned for the worst like to know more about
log onto computers or buy and it wasn’t bad at all,” the long-term health ef-
breakroom snacks by sim- said Timmins, who received fects,” Langer said, adding Tony Danna, left, vice president of international development
ply waving their hand. a microchip in her left hand that she is not ruling out a at Three Square Market in River Falls, Wis., receives a micro-
chip in his left hand at company headquarters Tuesday, Aug.
Three Square Market, also on Monday. “Just a little future implant of the $300 1, 2017.
known as 32M, said 41 of its prick.” microchip paid for by Three Associated Press
85 employees agreed to be But marketing executive Square Market .q