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National Do Not Call List Opens for Registrations 599

Posted by michael from the ring-ring dept.
prockcore writes "The National Do Not Call Registry is up and running. Sign up so most telemarketers cannot call you starting October 1st. There are exemptions though, like for charities and political organizations." Note that many of the states which have opened their own registries will be sharing that data with the national list, so you may not have to re-register - check and see what your state is doing.
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National Do Not Call List Opens for Registrations More

National Do Not Call List Opens for Registrations

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  • Needs email address to register... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by sdo1 ( 213835 ) * on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:50AM (#6310562) Journal
    I'm not particularly pleased that the US government now has a growing database tying email addresses to phone numbers.

    (for those that didn't bother to read it, they require a valid email address to register your phone number online)

    I guess I'll be creating a throw-away yahoo or hotmail address for this...

    -S

    • Re:Needs email address to register... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by slide-rule ( 153968 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:53AM (#6310590)

      They are supposed to be releasing a phone number to call in after a week (or few). I plan to make use of that myself, as the CT do not call list has served me and my wife quite well. (We only get called once a year from a local sheriff's office asking for money.) The online version no doubt alleviates a flood of call volume from people who aren't so worried about the e-mail address thing, so more power to them.

    • Re:Needs email address to register... (Score:4, Funny)

      by notque ( 636838 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:56AM (#6310626) Homepage Journal
      they require a valid email address to register your phone number online

      They said valid, but they didn't say mine!

      bgates@microsoft.com
    • I'm not particularly pleased that the US government now has a growing database tying email addresses to phone numbers.

      Have you heard of hotmail ?

    • Spam Gourmet - Disposable addresses (Score:5, Informative)

      by Flamesplash ( 469287 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:00AM (#6310677) Homepage Journal
      You should check out Spam Gourmet [spamgourmet.com] instead of creating whole yahoo or hotmail accounts. It has worked really well for me.
    • And as such, that's the exact reason I won't be registering with it at all.
      Simply put, it's yet another database being compiled by the government, and to be for such a frivilous matter as telemarketers, I don't see the need.

      Do like I do: when I telemarketer calls, put them on hold... and forget about them. Or goof on them, al la Ed Norton in Boiler Room.

    • Re:Needs email address to register... (Score:5, Informative)

      by dki ( 597803 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:05AM (#6310723) Journal
      You can register by phone as well, without giving out an email address. Info on how to register by phone is here [ftc.gov].

    • Re:Needs email address to register... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by squarefish ( 561836 ) * on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:08AM (#6310760)
      I think you're a little paranoid about the wrong things. What will the email do for them that the other info they obtain by your phone # doesn't? Chances are that by just supplying your phone # and prior to that they already know where you live, work, eat and sleep. Do you really think they haven't already tied your internet use to your phone/ip/address if they really wanted too?

      even though we generally don't have any privacy and our civil liberties are slowly being axed by the current administration- at least we can have sex any way we want now [cnn.com]

      not for the super rightwingers: this is good for everyone.
    • They use an email address so that someone else cannot request to un-block your phone number.

      How useless would this be if any telemarketer could just log in, drop your phone numbers out of the DB, then call you.

      Besides, if the government wanted to get your phone number and email address together, I'm sure they could.
    • I personally do not care that they have my email address. To not be interrupted four times while sitting at my table for dinner is priceless. Besides - what makes you guys think that the government has no clue what your email address is??

      Their Privacy Policy [donotcall.gov] states: "If you contact us via the Internet, we also collect your email address to confirm your registration request. We will store your email address in a secure manner, separate from your telephone number. We will not share your email address with

      • Re:Read their privacy policy... (Score:5, Funny)

        by BDew ( 202321 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:41AM (#6311679)
        Ah, yes, but this only shows your lack of sophistication. Believing the government, how quaint. This would be a much better response, guaranteed to get you boatloads of positive moderation:

        "The DoNotCall registry has a privacy policy which states that the e-mail address is only used for confirmation and will be stored separately from the phone numbers. Fortunately, I am too wise to fall for this dastardly scheme thought up by the evil genius of Dick Cheney and Karl Rove. Because of my vaunted sophistication, I know for certain that this is a fig leaf to cover the insertion of this data into the TIA database run by the war criminals Don Rumsfeld and John Poindexter. Further, thanks to my superior intellectual ability, I am sure that the oil barons who control GWB will use the e-mail addresses for spamming in an effort to make even more money. The only way for us to be safe is to hope that Howard Dean is elected this year. And, of course, to make sure that the Supreme Court doesn't get a chance to rig the election again. Until that happens, I will be much too smart to include myself on this purported "DoNotCall" List, which I think will be sold by the Republican Party to the highest bidder."

        See, that wasn't so hard! Now you too can comment on political issues here at Slashdot and reap the ever increasing karma rewards!

    • Re:Needs email address to register... (Score:5, Funny)

      by rodney dill ( 631059 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:36AM (#6311630) Journal
      I fooled them I registered with a false name, false phone number, AND a false email address.

      Now if I could just get my phone to stop ringing.
  • already slashdooted and no posts, i love the gov'

  • Fastest Slashdotting ever? (Score:4, Funny)

    by frieked ( 187664 ) * on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:51AM (#6310564) Homepage Journal
    Wow, slashdotted before the article was even posted to non-subscribers...
    I think this is a new record: Slashdotted in negative 37 seconds

    But seriously, I like screwing with telemarketers heads too much to put my number on this list anyway.

  • If you find the site slow ... (Score:3, Informative)

    by jmays ( 450770 ) * on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:51AM (#6310571)
    The site has been heavy hit all day ... even before the coming slashdotting!

  • Yes... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by mgcsinc ( 681597 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:52AM (#6310575)
    All I can say is Thank God! More than a simple annoyance in our home lives, the telemarketing industry is a severe drain on the resources of this country. Much like the bureaucracies of Europe (not to mention Canada) which are so widely criticized, the US telemarking industry provides a means of artificial employment for innumerable workers in this country, with people attempting to sell unwanted products in vain, going from job to job as telemarketing franchises are born and die, contributing nothing to the actual economic output of the country. Goodbye telemarketing, and good riddance...

    • Re:Yes... (Score:2, Insightful)

      by gregoryb ( 306233 )
      > with people attempting to sell unwanted products in vain

      I'm not sure it's all in vain. Somebody has to buy the crap, otherwise you'd think it wouldn't be so widespread and companies would quit using it as a method of advertising.

      Unfortunately, I'm sad to say that my age 80+ grandparents have bought way too much of the junk sold by telemarketers, and I'm sure there are others like them out there.

    • Re:Yes... (Score:4, Interesting)

      by dave-tx ( 684169 ) <df19808+slashdot AT gmail DOT com> on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:05AM (#6310728)
      I'm hoping this will work better than the do-not-call list in Texas. Maybe other Texans have had better luck, but I'm still swamped with calls that fall under the "legal" umbrella (such as shady real estate dealings that somehow claim they fall under the non-profit clause). Hey, at least the national list doesn't make you fork out a couple bucks to sign up, unlike the Texas list.
    • I would agree with you, except that companies woudln't employ telemarketers if it wasn't economically viable. In other words, they do contribute to the economy of this country, by selling us products we wouldn't other wise get, which keeps the flow of money going, which is essential in a capatalist economy.

      Also, I woudln't mind having a bureaucracy like Europe and Canada if I got the services that they get. Free Healthcare, for starters. Instead, all we have is more guns than anyone else. Go USA!

  • But, signing up now seems a bit absurd. It would be like giving the telemarketters three months time to use my number until then. I think that I might just wait until, oh say, October 1st.

    • They have three months to put all new entries into their systems. No matter when you sign up there's a three month window until it takes effect...
    • Why don't you read the site before saying anything:
      All consumers whose numbers are on the registry by August 31, 2003 will notice a downturn in telemarketing calls starting October 1, 2003. Consumers who register after September 1, 2003 will notice a drop in telemarketing calls within three months of the date they register.
    • If you had READ the information on the very FIRST page od the Donotcall.gov site, then you would know that after you sign up, they have up to 3 months to stop calling you. You if you sign up on Oct 1. They can continue to legally call you until Jan 1.

      But I should have known you didn't do any reading, this is Slashdot of course.
    • This should be 5: funny, not Insightful. If you register now, do they pass the number around to telemarketers? I somehow doubt it.

      Although, with the slashdotting right now, it might BE October 1st before I get to register.
    • it doesn't matter, it will take three months after you sign up for it to go into effect.

      The State of MN's DNC list has saved me quite a few calls. I still get a couple recordings on my answering machine though without phone #s to call back and yell at.

      I am hoping that using this will stop ALL attempts at using my answering machine as a billboard.

      I prefer when it says 0.
    • From the FTC FAQ:

      "The law requires telemarketers to search the registry every three months and synchronize their call lists with the phone numbers that are on the registry."

      If you want to be on the list for October 1st, you need to register by August 31. If you register on October 1st, you won't be on all the telemarketers DNC list until February 1st

    • From the website:

      If you register: June 27 - August 31, 2003
      Most telemarketers must stop calling and you may file a complaint: After October 1, 2003
      If you register: September 1, 2003 or after
      Most telemarketers must stop calling and you may file a complaint: Three months after you register

      So it looks like the best time to register would be in late August. After that, you're always going to have a three month period they can bug you.
    • But, signing up now seems a bit absurd. It would be like giving the telemarketters three months time to use my number until then. I think that I might just wait until, oh say, October 1st.

      Given that it's 3 months from when you sign up until your number goes on the list no matter when you sign up, how exactly is waiting until Oct 1st going to gain you anything?

  • There are exemptions though, like for charities and political organizations.

    Political organizations are exempt?

    Shocking!

    • Re:Never woulda thunk it (Score:5, Insightful)

      by FearUncertaintyDoubt ( 578295 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:17AM (#6310846)
      Political organizations are exempt?

      Shocking!

      This is probably a good thing from a certain point of view. If they had tried to restrict political calls, then the whole regulation might have been tossed out on 1st Amendment grounds. It certainly would have clouded the issue, and would have very like have been challenged.

  • National Call List? (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:55AM (#6310614)
    Is there a national call list? I am lonely and would like to get more phone calls please.

  • Too bad... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by nhaze ( 684461 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:55AM (#6310617)
    this doesn't affect market researchers calling you. Don't get me wrong i'm not complaining, but it would be great if we could somehow get them under the umbrella.

    • Re:Too bad... (Score:2, Insightful)

      by notque ( 636838 )
      this doesn't affect market researchers calling you. Don't get me wrong i'm not complaining, but it would be great if we could somehow get them under the umbrella.

      Could we also add ex-girlfriend's to the list?

    • Re:Too bad... (Score:3, Insightful)

      by yintercept ( 517362 )
      I recall that there are exemptions for certain types of research. For example, the BLS [bls.gov] has phone surveys on employment research.

      However, a blanket exclusion of "market research" would pretty much nullify the entire program since marketers would just make every call a "research call."

      "Have you every wanted to make a million dollars with no effort?"

      "Have you ever heard the magic three letters 'MLM'?"
    • Actually, I wish more market researchers would call me. It strikes me that most of the people who take the time to answer their questions are usually the people who just have nothing better to do. It would be nice to get more normal, active people to take part in polls, so we can start seeing a realistic representation of this country's opinions.

      OK OK, I'm not normal or active, but still...

      Fine. I just want more phone calls, alright??

      -j

  • more information here... (Score:3, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:56AM (#6310622)
    You can't register here, but much more info at: http://www.ftc.gov/donotcall/ [ftc.gov]

  • Automated??? (Score:5, Funny)

    by SuperDuG ( 134989 ) <<kt.celce> <ta> <eb>> on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:56AM (#6310634) Homepage Journal
    I say we start a campaign. Take a phone book and add every number in that phone book to the do not call list.

    Here's my next question, where the hell is my http://donotemail.gov ???

    Scum of the earth, scum of the earth.

    • Take a phone book and add every number in that phone book to the do not call list.

      Man, we're in 2003. I suggest you make a script that queries www.whitepages.com and leave it run overnight instead of typing the entire phone book manually.

  • West of the Big Muddy (Score:4, Informative)

    by Anne_Nonymous ( 313852 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:57AM (#6310636) Homepage Journal
    you can also call 888.382.1222, east of the Mississippi can call the same number after 7/7/03. Don't forget to ask if they want to switch to AT&T.
  • Many employees from telemarketing companies were 'laid off' today and mysteriously were seeking jobs working for the National DNC registry. Oddly enough, when asked what position they were looking for, they all answered "anything that works directly with the database of names and their numbers, preferably on a computer with a CD-Burner."

  • According to C|NET [com.com] the phone number will be 1-888-382-1222. My initial call to the number from my home line generated a "this will soon be available..." message and referred me to the website (which is not responding). :)

    But I'm sure this won't be a popular service or anything....

  • If charities are exempt (Score:5, Interesting)

    by pulse2600 ( 625694 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @08:59AM (#6310661)
    I can't wait to see companies buying time on charity organization's phone calls. Imagine this:

    1) Company makes donation to charity
    2) Charity promises to advertise company during charity's fund raising calls
    3) Company claims donation on their taxes
    4) ????
    5) Profit!!! (or in the case of the charity: Non-Profit!!!!!)
  • So, a national do-not-call list, and maybe a national do-not-email list... I think we'd all be happy not to be deluged with attempted connections from spammers and telemarketers, wouldn't we?

    Now, how about a national do-not-link list? For people who value their bandwidth, and don't particularly want to be linked to from high-traffic news sites?

  • Blah. (Score:4, Informative)

    by nege ( 263655 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:06AM (#6310735) Journal
    No. Placing your number on the National Do Not Call Registry will stop most, but not all, telemarketing calls. Some businesses are exempt from the national registry and still can call you even if you place your number on it. Exempt businesses include:

    * long-distance phone companies
    * airlines
    * banks and credit unions; and
    * the business of insurance, to the extent that it is regulated by state law.

    Uhm...yea the exempt list manages to get exempt just about 80% of all my telemarketing calls. woohoo! Not to mention the local paper (Times Dispatch) that calls every week, but manages to also tie in your subscription to a charity. I guess I'll go get a fake email addy and sign up anyway.

    • Re:Blah. (Score:5, Informative)

      by segfault7375 ( 135849 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:24AM (#6310907)
      From a CNN article:

      The FCC voted 5-0 Thursday to add its authority to the do-not-call list and to plug holes in its protections. The registry will now also block telemarketers from industries whose calls the FCC regulates, including airlines, banks and telephone companies.

      Nice!

  • What about. . . (Score:2, Insightful)

    by LordGibson ( 104709 )
    My concern regarding this list is how it may be used by the exempt entities. All of these political and non-profit organizations are free to interrupt my dinnertime at will. What's to keep them from harvesting this uber-list to augment their dialing pool? I may just wind up with more telemarketing calls after I jump on this registry than I ever did before. Granted they'll be "for a good cause" but I prefer to choose my own causes, thank you very much!

  • This is a new thing? (Score:5, Funny)

    by LinuxGeek ( 6139 ) <djand.nc@gm[ ].com ['ail' in gap]> on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:09AM (#6310771)
    I have had several ladies tell me that I was on their don't call list. How can one get this entry cleared?
  • Exemptions also include long-distance phone companies and credit card companies. How did they get through?

    Also, since the site is now slashdotted, I looked on cnn.com [cnn.com] and noticed that registration using 1-888-382-1222 is available in states west of the Mississippi River, including Minnesota and Louisiana.
  • i filled out their online form 2 hours before this slashdot story was posted, and i haven't gotten an email from them yet

    is this in line with everyone else's experiences?

    i'm not actually surprised, their site is hammered, i'm just wondering if i am the rule or the exception ;-)
  • He hates his job, but it pays him... They get around the do not call list because they're not "technically" telemarketing. They give away something for free. Free demonstrations. ;-) All that they do over the phone is try and get people to accept a free demonstration of some product. The sales people who go do the demo are the ones trying to sell stuff. I wonder if many other companies will be using techniques like this now?
    • I think you will find that the FTC will determine that like someone "giving a survey" about buying a product with a sales pitch at the end, that the phone call is initiating a sale, and therefore prohibited, but I could be wrong. I couldn't find a place to submit this question, but this

      Q: Who is covered by the National Do Not Call Registry?

      A: The National Do Not Call Registry applies to any plan, program or campaign to sell goods or services through interstate phone calls. This includes telemarketer
  • Isn't there something inherently wrong about slashdotting a anti-telemarketing site? I'm all for it (well, against it depending on your pov) and I'm sure the news headlines will include "Federal do not call list swamped with over 3 million users in first 12 hours." Unfortunately its looking like about 4 of those 3 million users will actually be able to sign up.

    Also, what's with the e-mail address requirement? Is that so people don't sign thier neighbors up to not get calls at dinnertime or something?
  • For all of you complaining that they require a valid email address - If you're that concerned, you can just wait until July 7th when you can register by phone, rather than using the 'net...

    Of course.. you'll have to speak to an actual human being.. but hey, you can't win 'em all ;-)

  • Exemption Explanation (Score:5, Informative)

    by unfortunateson ( 527551 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:22AM (#6310886) Journal
    Someone above quoted the FAQ that lists the exempt industries. (He also left off the second part: "You may still receive calls from political organizations, charities, telephone surveyors or companies with which you have an existing business relationship.")

    I think it sucks too, but there's a reason for it: The Federal Trade commission is the one creating this list, and only those industries regulated by them are controllable by this list. For instance, phone companies are regulated by the FCC.

    *&$% Congress should have plugged this hole by unifying a do-not-call across the various regulatory agencies.

    You can bet that congressional campaigns were probably specifically exempted by the bill, though.

  • 9:45 GMT-5 and slashdotted already (Score:3, Insightful)

    by dkh2 ( 29130 ) <{dkh2} {at} {WhyDoMyTitsItch.com}> on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:25AM (#6310922) Homepage
    I guess we're going to have to wait a few hours on this.

    BTW, The e-mail address is so they can verify. You MUST respond to their e-mail within 72 hours or the registration is cancelled.

    Next step, a national Do Not Email registry.

  • It sucks (Score:4, Informative)

    by giminy ( 94188 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:28AM (#6310958) Homepage Journal
    Exemptions:

    - Charities
    - Companies you have "done business with" (ie you bought something from them)
    - Long Distance companies
    - Insurance companies
    - Banks (including credit card companies)
    - Airlines
    - Political fundraisers
    - Overseas telemarketers


    It's all Right here [donotcall.gov]. In my opinion it's hardly worth registering. "Professional" telemarketing companies could become phone number resellers. Professional telemarketers would get the list from the do not call registry, then sell the list to private companies' in-house telemarketers. Since it's legal for most private companies to call you still, and they now have a list with your correct phone number, your calls may increase, not decrease.

    • Re:It sucks (Score:3, Informative)

      by MImeKillEr ( 445828 )
      There are ways around this as well :

      1) Telling them to remove you from their list. Get the name and phone number of a supervisor. Record the date & time. Ask to speak to the supervisor. Inform the supervisor you're telling them to remove you from their list. Failure to do so is punishable by a $500 fine. I had to go this route to get a long-distance company to stop calling me. I've not received a call from them in more than a year. You can also record inbound calls (depending on your state) without let

    • Re:It sucks (Score:5, Informative)

      by Atlantix ( 209245 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:14AM (#6311424)
      The original exemptions are due to the FTC not having control over airlines, banks, and phone companies. Those industries are regulated by the FCC. If you read this article at CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/06/27/do.not.c all.ap/index.html, you'll find the following quote:

      "The FCC voted 5-0 Thursday to add its authority to the do-not-call list and to plug holes in its protections. The registry will now also block telemarketers from industries whose calls the FCC regulates, including airlines, banks and telephone companies."

      So by the time it goes active (october 1) this thing WILL be useful.

      --Atlantix

  • Equivalent service in the UK (Score:3, Informative)

    by floydigus ( 415917 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:35AM (#6311031)
    The equivalent in the UK is the telephone preference service.
    You can sign up here [dmaconsumers.org]. Use links from this page to set yourself up on the mailing preference service (door spam) the faxing preference service (fax spam) and email preference service (spam spam spam spam, spam spam spam spam).

  • I'm going to miss them when they're gone... (Score:4, Funny)

    by Angerson ( 121904 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:38AM (#6311049) Homepage
    It's kind of sad that they'll be going away, really. Oh how I'll miss that ever-present 10 second pause before they say hello. Or how they talk to my answering machine for a few minutes before they realize no one is there (with the general interest in telemarketing I could understand the confusion). And of course who can overlook the sheer amount of interesting stories they can provide a person.

    For example like the time I answered the phone only to find a telemarketer in the midst of conversation with her "girlfrient" Brandy in the next cubicle. This one didn't even bother to say hello, just kept on talking. At least she was kind enough to eventually tell me to, "Hold on minute, will you?" Or perhaps the one time I kindly the told the telemarketer that I wasn't interested in their offer and he promptly told me to screw off in his own expletive-ridden way. My favorite, however, was the time I told one I was actually interested in their product just for kicks.

    Sales Drone: "Excuse me, sir? Did you say you were interested?"

    Me: "Yeah, that's right."

    Sales Drone: "No one is ever interested, sir. I'm not even sure how to make a sale."

    (Sets phone down and yells to his associates)

    Sales Drone: "Anyone here ever make a sale before!?"

    (Short pause)

    Sales Drone: "I'm going to have to get you a manager. Can we call you back?"

    Seriously, will anyone miss these people?

  • Slashdotted - Check out FAQ here: (Score:5, Informative)

    by LookSharp ( 3864 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:39AM (#6311068)
    I snagged a copy and emailed it on before it got posted to Slashdot:

    Tell Me More About the National Do Not Call Registry

    Q: Why would I register my phone number with the National Do Not Call Registry?

    A: The National Do Not Call Registry gives you an opportunity to limit the telemarketing calls you receive. On October 1, 2003, when the National Do Not Call Registry will be enforced, most telemarketers will be required to remove the numbers on the registry from their call lists.

    Q: Who manages the National Do Not Call Registry?

    A: The National Do Not Call Registry is managed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency.

    Q: Why was the National Do Not Call Registry created?

    A: The registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. The FTC's decision to create the National Do Not Call Registry was the culmination of a comprehensive, three year review of the Telemarketing Sales Rule, as well as the Commission's extensive experience enforcing the Rule over seven years. The FTC held numerous workshops, meetings and briefings to solicit feedback from interested parties and considered over 64,000 public comments, most of which favored creating the registry. You can review the entire record of the Rule review at www.ftc.gov/bcp/rulemaking/tsr/tsrrulemaking/index .htm.

    How Does Registration Work?

    Q: How soon after I register will I notice a reduction in calls?

    A: If you register by August 31, 2003, you will start receiving fewer telemarketing calls by October 1, 2003. If you register after September 1, 2003, telemarketers covered by the National Do Not Call Registry will have up to three months from the date you register to stop calling you.

    Q: I've already registered on my state's do not call list. Do I need to register on the National Do Not Call Registry?

    A: The answer depends on where you live. Most of the 26 states will that currently have active do not call lists will transfer numbers from their lists to the National Do Not Call Registry. A few will not. You can find out which states are transferring their do not call lists to the National Do Not Call Registry at www.ftc.gov/donotcall. If you live in a state that is transferring its do not call list to the national registry, you do not need to re-register. On the other hand, if you live in a state that has its own do not call list, but the state is not transferring numbers to the National Registry, then you need to register your own number on the National Registry. If you are uncertain whether you are on a state do not call list and wish to limit your telemarketing contacts, you can register with the National Do Not Call Registry.

    Q: When I register my phone number, how long until it shows up on the National Do Not Call Registry?

    A: After you register, your phone number will be available for telemarketers to remove it from their call lists by the next day. Telemarketers will have up to three months to get your phone number and remove it from their call lists.

    Q: How long does it take after I delete my phone number for it to be deleted from the National Do Not Call Registry?

    A: After you delete your phone number, it will be removed from the National Do Not Call Registry by the next day. But telemarketers have up to three months to access information about your deletion and add your number back to their call lists, if they choose to.

    Q: If I registered by phone, will I receive a confirmation?

    A: No, but you can verify that your number is on the registry online or by calling the registry's toll-free number, 1-888-382-1222; for TTY, call 1-866-290-4236.

    Q: I received a phone call from someone offering to put my name on the National Do Not Call Registry. Should I let them?

    A: No. The FTC will not allow private companies or other such third parties to "pre-register" consumers for the National Do Not Call Registry. Web sites

  • Big deal... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Iamthefallen ( 523816 ) <Gmail name: Iamthefallen> on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:44AM (#6311123) Homepage Journal

    You do realize that any product you buy will now have a clause stating that by buying or registering the product you also sign up to receive special offers from them, their affiliates and whomever else they sell your information to? Explicit permission can be given in many ways, but few of them are actually explicit.

  • What benefit does it have over state NC list? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Mustang Matt ( 133426 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:52AM (#6311206)
    If I'm already on the Missouri list and it's been nearly 100% successful, why would I need to be on the national list? Missouri isn't sharing it's data according to the site and I'm kind of glad because that would probably lead to "charities" from out of state calling me.

  • Resist temptation to flood the list, please (Score:5, Interesting)

    by unfortunateson ( 527551 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @09:53AM (#6311226) Journal
    I just had another thought.

    Some enterprising young /.er is probably thinking right now that it's less than ten billion total phone numbers (by the time you screen out non-US area codes, toll-free and service numbers it's probably on the order of 6 or 7 billion), a bunch of random domains and e-mails can be created to add EVERY SINGLE phone number to the list, and even automate the e-mail reply with a procmail line. (Actually, since business phone numbers aren't covered by the DNC list, it's probably less than 3 billion possible numbers.)

    Don't.

    No, really.

    If the registry is a complete set of the US phone system, some telemarketer will sue claiming that there's false data in there, and that the majority of the people on the list never opted out.

    They'll have to scrap the whole thing, and start over again with an even-more-invasive registration procedure.

  • A National DO NOT /. list (Score:3, Interesting)

    by adzoox ( 615327 ) * on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:08AM (#6311366) Journal
    I bet there are some websites that wish there was such a thing as a national do not /. list. I have seen some people post really nasty messages after a site was linked by /. staff. Such as this one [vidarholen.net]. For about a week this website had a "F*** You /." message on it.

  • You're GIVING your number to exempt orgs. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by AtariDatacenter ( 31657 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:10AM (#6311382)
    Think about this for a second, folks. You're helping the government compile a list that anyone but 'protected telemarketers' can call. The regular telemarketers have to grab the list, and weed the numbers out of their databases.

    Now think about this. The government is supplying a list of telephone numbers. There exists 'protected telemarketers'. If you were a protected telemarketer, what would you do?

    You got it. Download the list, and you've got yourself a database of active telephone nubmers to start calling. All for free. "Thanks for giving us your number, chump. Now me and my buddies can call all we want."
    • They already have your number. This is not like email harvesting.
      And they'd have to be particularly dense to use that strategy. "Let's see, here is a list of people who have specifically and in no uncertain terms stated that they do not like to be called by telemarketers. Let me call them and try to sell them something".
      Really, like selling Windows licenses at a Linuxfest. Good luck.

  • Does not start until October 1! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by artemis67 ( 93453 ) on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:20AM (#6311484)
    Until October 1, telemarketers are free to call without checking the "do not call" list.

    You know that these marketing companies are going to be pressuring their clients to jump on their service before the deadline, to get the most bang. Expect a deluge of sales calls in September.

  • So what's to stop (Score:5, Insightful)

    by earthforce_1 ( 454968 ) <earthforce_1@y a h oo.com> on Friday June 27, 2003 @10:26AM (#6311537) Journal
    Offshore telemarketers and spammers from mining the do not call database? These people are scum anyways, and as long as they are not operating within the US, it seems to me that the US government has just handed them a bonafide list of valid phone and email addresses.
  • The pages are all made by MicroSoft Visual Studio 7.0:


    <html>
    <head>
    <title>National Do Not Call Registry</title>
    <meta content="Microsoft Visual Studio 7.0" name="GENERATOR">
    <meta name="keywords" content="National Do Not Call Registry, telemarketers, FTC, Mobile Phone, Home Phone, Registration, Do Not Call" />
    <meta content="C#" name="CODE_LANGUAGE">
    <meta content="JavaScript" name="vs_defaultClientScript">
    <meta content="http://schemas.microsoft.com/intellisense /ie5" name="vs_targetSchema">

    <link rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' href="css/style.css">
    <script src="WebTrendScript.js" language="Javascript1.1"></script>

    </head>

    Which currently doesn't show up in Mozilla *at all*.

    Now does Microsoft intentionally make their Visual Studio stuff (not to mention the latest PowerPoint, etc.) generate almost-HTML that don't display in Mozilla? You be the judge...

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