Silent phone calls

[Mistyeyeddreamer]

Every so often I get a 'silent' phone call. Usually around 11.30am - 12.30pm. They continue for a three or four days then on the fifth day I pick up the phone and it's some book club asking me if I want to join up.

I read this today:

Do you ever get those annoying phone calls with no one on the other end? This is a telemarketing technique where a machine makes phone calls and records the time of day when a person answers the phone. This technique is used to determine the best time of day for a "real" sales person to call back and get someone at home.
What you can do after answering, if you notice there is no one there, is to immediately start hitting your # button on the phone, 6 or 7 times, as quickly as possible. This confuses the machine that dialed the call and it kicks your number out of their system. Since doing this, my phone calls have decreased dramatically.
**
http://rense.com/general45/junak.htm

I had one of those silent phone calls yesterday and sure enough today, just after I read the above, around 11.30am the phone rang, a silent phone call. So I frantically bashed the # button. Ended up with a peep-peep sound. Then I put the phone down. I don't know if it will have the desired effect, I'll probably just have to wait and see if I get any more calls :)

Misty

[Eskander]

Misty,

Thanks for this - for about a week I've been getting these calls on my mobile and very few people know the number. It struck me a couple of days ago that they were conming at about the same time each day, so maybe now I know what it is.

Pity it's a machine though, means there's no point bellowing B**GGER off down the phone. :D

[Blue Cow]

Hi Misty

This is disgusting!! :angry: I've never heard of this before. I know that companies need to be able to maximise their marketing activities, but his is ridiculous.

Would these silent calls not be classed as nuisance or hoax calls? I'm sure that they could cause a lot of distress to some people.

I hope that your plan works, but if not, I would take down the name of the company when they finally call you and report them to Trading Standards.

Blue Cow

[Annabel]

I have come across this as well, but in a business context. the calls were coming in from overseas and we were told it would be very difficult to get them stopped. anyway it lasted for a while until we literally left the line open on speakerphone, we could hear bits of noise) after half an hour it went dead. We havent been bothered since. but we are still flummoxed as to who it was trying to contact us,as we would have spoken to them...even if it was just to say 'on yer bike'. :P

I am registered with the telephone preference service at home so we do not get junk calls, i wonder if this would help you (although it doesnt cover overseas calls unfortunately)....

[Beth]

we had the same about a month ago

an international number, the samre time every day for about 3 weeks, was driving us crackers

so on a day off I sat with the phone by me and sure enough.....

a well known bank saying they were returning Mr ****** call about the account

I said we do no have a account with you, but I am returning his call said a very forgien sounding gentleman

I said if you are trying to seel something we are not interested

he was very persisitant and in the end I said dont waste your time calling agin and hung up

nothing since

the weird thing is we are x directory!!
I dont give my number out at all, so was well narked off by it

and guess what.???Mr ****** had no idea about the call....he had never rung them for thenm to return it!!

[Eskander]

I've been thiniking about the I'm ex-directory so why do I get these calls? thing.

Well, this post is about silent calls made by a machine which logs whether and when the calls are answered. Most phone numbers are 6 or 7 digits plus an area code. I'm sure that the same machine can generate such numbers at random and then dial them. If the phone rimgs, the machine knows it's genreated a real number. Wouldn't be surprised ifm that's what happens.

[Beth]

Ahhhhh.....but how and why did they have my name!!??!??!?!

he used our surname which we do not have on the answer machine, just our first names, so he got out details from somewhere!

makes you paranoid about big brother watching you! :ph34r:

[Mistyeyeddreamer]

There was something in the paper a few weeks ago about these silent calls. It's all down to automated calling machines. I know how the book club got my number because I used to be a member. I'm ex-directory as well so I'd be a bit worried if somebody called from a company I had no dealings with who knew my name.

In the past I think companies used to sell lists of names and phone numbers but I think that can't happen now because of the Data Protection Act. However there are still unscrupulous firms out there I suppose and I could have that wrong.

Misty

[Maria2]

Had a few of those too myself. Will try that simple button trick next time.

Having said that, once I didn't get to the phone in time so I did 1471 and it was an automated answer from some bank or other telling me "to get your call transfered please give your credit card details and speak slowly".

Reported it straight away to BT

[melanie345]

Hi All,

I got music on my answering machine a few times.
I think its NFH but cant be sure.
This happened a few times and also happened to
a person helping me. (same music).
Also got a fax machine auto dialling to my phone
(really annoying because the fax machine tries 4 times
before it gives up). I caught the fax machine the other
day as we have calling number display and faxed
them back telling whoever it was they were annoying and
not to fax anymore and it stopped.
My friend got a reverse charge call designed to help kids
in trouble and such phone home and it left his line open
so he pulled the plug. An automated voice asked if he would
receive the reverse charge call. He thought it might be
a relative but it was just a silent call that never hung up.
Phone company said if that happens again to call them and
they can disconnect it. These calls could even be interstate
so you have to be careful (you'd have to call phone company
on another number).
I think it was NFH and he did this from a phone box (my guess).

Melanie