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FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

docs.fcc.gov

31–40 of 352 posts

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#31
Why is this problem unique to the USA?

I'm not saying I never get spam calls, but I certainly have to scroll back quite a bit in my phone call history to see the last one.

Also, on the rare occasion I do get a spam call it's always from some random international country like South Sudan or Oman that I would never expect a phone call from.

What makes this problem uniquely hard to solve for the USA as opposed to anywhere else?

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After 15 years of cell phone spam, anything that shows up as a number on my personal phone, and not a contact, is reflexively ignored. I don't think I'll ever shake this habit: if it is important, they will leave a message.

I've pushed that reflex further : if it's important, the information will find its way to me.

"Hi jimmy, this is your mother. My phone died so I am calling you from the hospital phone. Your dad is in the hospital. Come quick."

In the above scenario that happened to me, sometimes you just don't have time to let the information find you.

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#33
post #20

Will this also prevent spoofed text messages?

I have never received a spoofed SMS message so I already thought this was impossible.

It's definitely a thing and prevent some SMS use cases due to this security hole. This new FCC doc only references tracing the original sender.

"The FCC has also called on the industry to “trace back” illegal spoofed calls and text messages to their original sources."

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've pushed that reflex further : if it's important, the information will find its way to me.

"Hi jimmy, this is your mother. My phone died so I am calling you from the hospital phone. Your dad is in the hospital. Come quick." In the above scenario that happened to me, sometimes you just don't have time to let the information find you.

That would suck, but fear of that scenario isn't enough to make me answer my phone for spammers 5 times a day.

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#35

Why is this problem unique to the USA? I'm not saying I never get spam calls, but I certainly have to scroll back quite a bit in my phone call history to see the last one. Also, on the rare occasion I do get a spam call it's always from some random international country like South Sudan or Oman that I would never expect a phone call from. What makes this problem uniquely hard to solve for the USA as opposed to anywhe…

Embedded corporate interests and lobbies fighting against solutions because it'll cost them money to implement or lower their revenue once implemented. The usual.

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#36
90% of my phone calls are from the same outfit informing me that this is my last chance to renew the extended warranty on my car. Based on my call history that recording is officially my best friend. And a very forgiving one given that it has been my last chance hundreds of times over the past several years. I hope this regulation won't interfere with our relationship.

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Hi jimmy, this is your mother. My phone died so I am calling you from the hospital phone. Your dad is in the hospital. Come quick." In the above scenario that happened to me, sometimes you just don't have time to let the information find you.

That would suck, but fear of that scenario isn't enough to make me answer my phone for spammers 5 times a day.

Also, I'd hope they'd have the initiative to leave both a voicemail and an SMS.

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#39

Why is this problem unique to the USA? I'm not saying I never get spam calls, but I certainly have to scroll back quite a bit in my phone call history to see the last one. Also, on the rare occasion I do get a spam call it's always from some random international country like South Sudan or Oman that I would never expect a phone call from. What makes this problem uniquely hard to solve for the USA as opposed to anywhe…

Embedded corporate interests and lobbies fighting against solutions because it'll cost them money to implement or lower their revenue once implemented. The usual.

What solutions does Europe, etc have that the US doesn't? Genuine question.

Re: FCC will require phone carriers to authenticate calls by June 2021 [pdf]

#40

Why is this problem unique to the USA? I'm not saying I never get spam calls, but I certainly have to scroll back quite a bit in my phone call history to see the last one. Also, on the rare occasion I do get a spam call it's always from some random international country like South Sudan or Oman that I would never expect a phone call from. What makes this problem uniquely hard to solve for the USA as opposed to anywhe…

If you were setting up a little scam operation.. who would you target?

Would you decide to set it up to call over 40 different countries in europe? Each with their own way to show phone numbers.. each carrier attempting to block spam calls in different ways.. each country virtually speaking a different language.. most countries having some different banking/credit card systems..

Or would you target the united states which everyone in the country has the same phone prefix, pretty much all speak one language, banking/credit card system is the same, etc.

It just makes sense for scammers to target the US. You can target hundreds of millions of people the exact same way.

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