25 May Republicans want to let robocallers spam your voicemail
Dinner is set but the phone rings, and when you pick up it isn’t a friend, or someone you know, sometimes it’s not even a person. It’s a robocall.
Robocalls for years have managed to catch people at the most inopportune moments, and the shift from landlines to mobile phones hasn’t seemed to prevent all those fake tax collectors and mortgage vendors from calling in. While the law is supposed to prevent unwanted robocallers from reaching your cellphone without your consent, Republicans are supporting what consumer groups describe as a workaround.
The Republican National Committee is backing a petition that would allow political campaigns and businesses to leave automated messages on your voicemail, without your phone having to ring. Under consideration by the Federal Communications Commission, which has been asked to review ringless voicemail, the proposal would free telemarketers from restrictions that prevent them from robo-calling people’s cellphones without first getting their permission.