The Federal Communications Commission has warned two additional voice service providers not to carry illegal robocall traffic, the latest move in its ongoing efforts to crack down on unwanted spam and scam calls.
The agency said that it sent warning letters to SIPphony of Arizona and Wyoming-based Vultik that they are apparently originating illegal robocall traffic, based on “numerous tracebacks” by USTelecom’s Industry Traceback Group combined with consumer flagging of robocalls to wireless devices without consent.
Upon receiving the letters, providers have 48 hours to inform the FCC of immediate steps they have taken to address the issue, and 14 days to develop and deliver a plan to combat robocalls going forward. The FCC allows downstream U.S.-based voice providers to block all traffic from a provider which does not comply.
The FCC says that more than 20 providers have received such warning letters, with “almost all recipients either demonstrating that the robocall traffic was cut off or notifying the FCC that they would be ceasing all operations.” The agency added that its Enforcement Bureau “took more aggressive action against the few that did not take responsive action following cease-and-desist letters,” and that Enforcement Bureau staff continues to monitor providers after the fact to make sure that robocall traffic doesn’t return.
“These actions have had a dramatic impact on large-scale robocalling schemes,” the agency added. It said that its crackdown on one massive auto warranty robocall scam operation earlier this year resulted in a 99% drop in the volume of those calls.
