Nobody likes receiving unsolicited promotional messages and unwanted calls from telemarketers and spammers. They are an invasion of our privacy and a major disturbance to our daily routine. Which is why the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has set up the National Do Not Call Registry (NDNC).
Smartphone users can either use the DND 2.0 (Do Not Disturb) app or call/message 1909 to opt-out of commercial communication. However, this does not block spam entirely, reports NDTV.
According to ABC News, since the residents of the US also face this nuisance, the Senate has approved the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (TRACED Act) which cracks down on illegal robocalls (automated telephone call with a prerecorded message).
Today, the Senate is sending Americans a holiday gift on everyone’s list: stopping the plague of robocalls. The bipartisan @SenJohnThune-Markey TRACED Act will finally crack down on scammers and fraudsters.
Watch LIVE as we pass this critical legislation: https://t.co/7BGA7TFHRY pic.twitter.com/gT1iUWWBm8
— Ed Markey (@SenMarkey) December 19, 2019
Senator John Thune was quoted saying,
“I have yet to meet someone who says they enjoy receiving those unwanted and illegal robocalls that plague our phones…this is a significant win for consumers in every corner of the country, and it finally and officially puts illegal robocallers on notice.”
The bill will become a law after the President’s signature and telecom companies will be required to verify incoming calls and block pesky robocalls. In addition, scammers will be fined $10,000 (Rs.7 lakh) per call, reports The Verge.
We hope that TRAI follows suit and takes adequate steps to shutdown illegal and spoof calls that are sometimes malicious in nature and seek to scam users of their personal data.