[lbo-talk] mobile phones and telemarketers [was: backlash?]

[Wojtek Sokolowski]

Matt:
> 
> About a year ago I added the DTMF tones indicating no service (the
> bee-boo-boop that you hear when dialing a number not in service) to
> the front end of my answering machine message.  As long as you
> start talking right after the tones any human dialing the phone will
> know that the number works, but the auto-dialers telemarketers use
> will remove your number from their listings.
> 
> The "zapper" advertised on TV does the same thing, but they charge $50
> or something absurd.  And I think they only emit the first of the
> three tones, and telemarketers are getting smart to this and not
> deleting numbers unless they receive all three tones.  [The three
> tones were used to indicate no service so that other combinations of
> multiple tones could be used for other indicators.  However the first
> tone hasn't been used in any other combination so some auto-dialers
> would treat a number as being not in service upon hearing just the
> first tone.]
> 
> You can download the tones from a few websites if you google for them,
> or I can mail a wav file of them to anyone interested.  I get
> absolutely no telemarketing calls any more.

My point was to waste the telemarketer's time (i.e. resources) rather
than being nasty to their employees.  Nobody abuses them by making them
wait, in fact they can have a little break at their boss's expense.

As far as recording the Special Information Tone (SIT) on the answering
machine - it is an excellent immediate solution, but it does not tie up
the telemarketers' resources.  It only makes their operations more
efficient by automatically purging their calling lists.  The point is,
however, to make it less efficient.

 Here is the site to download a zipped 'Special Information Tone' (SIT)
.wav file:

http://www.imptec.com/download.htm

Wojtek