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ReportedCalls.com, a service provider that offers data about robocalls, spam calls and other unwanted phone calls affecting Americans, today announced that unwanted call complaints have risen 162% since April, 2020. The data comes from reports published by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and US Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The rate of unwanted call complaints fell mid-year, most likely due to closures of call centers during the COVID-19 pandemic lock down period. The volume of unwanted calls has now surged back up.“This big jump in complaints should not surprise anyone,” said a spokesperson for ReportedCalls.com. “The scammers snapped back into action as soon as the pandemic restrictions eased. In fact, in our estimation, they are now preying on vulnerable people, such as the elderly, more than ever during this confusing period of time.”
The pandemic has led phone scammers to shift tactics and change their messages to catch consumers off guard. According to the FTC, phone frauds now include Medicare scams. In this approach, the scammer tells the victim that he or she eligible for a “Coronavirus package” or Medicare benefits related to COVID-19. In the process, the caller tries to get the victim’s social security number and other valuable information. Alternatively, scammers pose as government agencies offering relief payments. Scammers pose as employees of the Social Security Administration, the IRS, the FDIC and so forth.
According to the FTC and FCC, there were over 404,000 complaints regarding unwanted calls in September, 2020. That’s up from 356,000 in August and 277,000 in July. In April, 2020, the complaint level sank to just 153,000. At the time, the FTC stated, “April’s and May’s number of reported robocalls are the lowest we’ve seen in years — lower than every month since August 2011.” It has been rising steadily since then.
The most affected states include California, which had over 46,000 complaints, Texas, with 32,000 and Florida, with 29,000. New York, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Arizona and North Carolina were also among the top 10 states with the highest levels of complaints regarding unwanted calls.
About ReportedCalls.com
ReportedCalls.com was founded in 2017 to help people search and identify potential spam and scam phone numbers. The company hosts and analyzes complaints about phone calls and text messages which were reported to the U.S. Federal Commissions. Its database includes over 14 million complaints about more than 6 million U.S. phone numbers. More than 300 thousand people use the ReportedCalls.com phone number lookup service every month.
For more information, visit www.reportedcalls.com
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Contact Info:
Name: Media Relations
Email: Send Email
Organization: ReportedCalls.com
Website: http://www.reportedcalls.com
Release ID: 88980681
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