Aug 16, 2013
If you do not recognize the number and no name is shown or says it is "unavailable" simply do not answer the phone. Let it go to your VM or your answering machine. If it's something important, the caller will leave you a message. With an answering machine, you can pick up the call as the caller begins speaking, anyway. It is clear that the DNC list has become a national joke. The seedy people always find a way to circumvent the law. Thank goodness for voice mail and answering machines. If I'm in an ornery mood, I answer the phone, play along, give bogus credit card numbers such as 123456789 etc., etc. (BE CAREFUL - use nothing that would actually exist and you can research this and come up with a non-verifiable#) and, in general, take up the caller's time. It's much more satisfying to "GIVE" than it is to receive. I have even told them the person they were looking for was in a nursing home or deceased and sound totally shocked they didn't know! Don't get angry. Have a little fun at THEIR expense. After all, they're trying to get your money and time IS money. I have ZERO sympathy for anyone who works as a telemarketer. It is not an honest way to make a living IMHO.