There are few things that bug the American consumer like robocalls.
And that’s why the issue is getting the attention of top government officials, like New York Senator Chuck Schumer, who held a press conference Sunday along with the advocacy group Consumer Union, to call on the nation’s largest telephone companies to do something about them, according the the New York Daily News.
“The ‘Game of Phones’ with robocalls has gone on far too long,” Schumer said, according the report. “Whether it’s mortgage companies, credit card firms or, even worse, scammers, telephone companies should provide their customers with access to robocall-blocking technology that will eliminate future nuisance.”
The New York Senator said that he would consider supporting legislation that would force phone companies to help block these calls, but that the firms should voluntarily offer access to call-blocking software. The industry has previously claimed in statements to the FCC that offering such software would be prohibitively expensive.
The issue, however, isn’t likely to go away soon. According to Consumer Union, the advocacy arm of Consumer Reports, “Unwanted calls are the top complaint to Consumers Union, the FCC, and the FTC,” and the campaign to stop robocalls has been its “fastest-growing” ever.