August 02, 2019
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The Federal Trade Commission is trying to combat the harassing robocalls cell phone users receive on a daily basis. A new set of data released by the FTC says New Jersey residents complain about robocalls more than any other state in the country.
The Federal Trade Commission launched an interactive website this week dedicated to providing more readily-available data about telemarketing robocalls.
You know the ones: They look like your own phone number, or they're labeled "Warning: Fraud Risk" by your phone's caller ID, and they rattle off some quasi-official-sounding message about your social security number.
The FTC said it's compiled Do Not Call data into a centralized, transparent web tool in order to make it easier for consumers to use as the commission attempts to combat the unwanted calls.
In June, the commission announced a "major crackdown" on illegal robocalls, including nearly 100 campaigns targeting robocall operations around the country.
The data breaks complaints down by state, and also ranks each state by complaints per 100,000 residents, using data from October 2016 to June 2019, so it's pretty recent. Leading the way is New Jersey, where residents lodged 7,609 complaints per 100,000 residents, far and away the highest number of complaints. Second-highest is Connecticut, with 6,510 complaints per 100,000 residents.
The most common robocall topic that bugged New Jersey residents was a "dropped call or no message", followed by reducing debt; energy, solar, and utilities; and medical concerns or prescriptions.
Pennsylvania ranked No. 15 in the country in complaints.
You can check out the full tool at this link.
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