State attorney general calls on phone carriers to offer call-blocking technology

State Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Wednesday called on five major phone companies to offer call-blocking technology to their customers.

  • BY Wire Service
  • Wednesday, July 22, 2015 3:26pm
  • News
State Attorney General Bob Ferguson.

State Attorney General Bob Ferguson.

State Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Wednesday called on five major phone companies to offer call-blocking technology to their customers.

In a joint letter sent with 44 other attorneys general to the chief executives of the carriers, Ferguson said a new Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule clarification confirms that telecommunications service providers can offer customers the ability to block unwanted calls.

“My office is committed to enforcing laws intended to prevent unwanted robocalls,” Ferguson said in a media release. “The FCC has now made clear that the technology is available to stop these calls before they happen. I call upon the industry to offer consumers the tools that will empower them to fight back.”

In their letter to AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile and CenturyLink, the attorneys general stated, “Every year, our offices are flooded with consumer complaints pleading for a solution to stop intrusive robocalls. Your companies are now poised to offer your customers the help they need. We urge you to act without delay.”

Phone carriers had previously claimed they could not offer such services. At a July 2013 hearing before a U.S. Senate subcommittee, for instance, representatives from the U.S. Telecom Association and trade group CTIA testified that “legal barriers prevent carriers from implementing advanced call-blocking technology to reduce the number of unwanted telemarketing calls.”

Ferguson noted that call-blocking options already exist for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone service (NoMoRobo.com) and Android cell phones (Call Control) and called upon the phone carriers to move quickly to implement these options and inform consumers.

Last September, Ferguson and 38 other attorneys general called on the FCC to clarify whether phone companies could utilize call-blocking technologies. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler endorsed the request in late May, and the FCC passed the rule clarification on June 18.

The attorneys general offices that signed today’s letter are: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in News

Stock photo, Metro Creative Graphics
Heavy rainfall to hit Kent, city crews to monitor roadway conditions

National Weather Service predicts 2 to 5 inches through Tuesday night, Dec. 5

t
Drone helps Kent Police locate robbery suspect at Clark Lake Park

Mother, 42, was reportedly getaway driver for 24-year-old son in Dec. 4 incident on East Hill

t
Kent Police arrest several men on warrants for escape, assault

One man, 37, wrestles with officers prior to being taken into custody

T
I-5 overnight closures in SeaTac set for Dec. 8-9 near S. 216th Street

State Department of Transportation to demolish old S. 216th Street overpass; new bridge under construction

Image courtesy King County
One-time grant offered for homelessness assistance in south King County | King County

King County has set aside $5 million for cities to construct and operate projects to address local homelessness.

t
A change of cities to Auburn from Kent for Bridges neighborhood

Kent City Council approves move by Auburn to annex area and remove municipal island

Courtesy Photo, City of Kent
Comcast service outage covered 25 square miles in Kent

Company doesn’t release customer numbers impacted by outage

Kent Police Chief Rafael Padilla. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Police
Kent Police seek tips, clues to find Comcast cable line vandals

Police chief says ‘We take these cases seriously’

t
Thousands in Kent lose Comcast service after vandals damage cable lines

Connection went down early Thursday morning, Nov. 30; service could be out until 8 to 10 p.m.

t
Northwood Middle School mourns death of 13-year-old Chloe Comeau

‘She was the most loving, courageous and positive person,’ mother says after daughter battled brain tumor

The area within the dotted line is a Kent neighborhood known as The Bridges, completely surrounded by Auburn. (COURTESY IMAGE)
Auburn council slated to vote on Bridges annexation

This would set the clock ticking down to 12:01 a.m., Jan. 1, 2024, when the annexation of the neighborhood from Kent to Auburn becomes official.

t
Recruit firefighters in Kent learn ladder raising, auto extrication and more | Photos

All part of a 21-week course to join Puget Sound Fire and other local departments