Scam Auto Renewals: FCC Takes Action

The FCC has ordered phone companies to stop carrying robocalls that push phony auto warranty renewals.

The calls originate from Roy Cox, Jr., Aaron Michael Jones, and related companies and associates.

The FCC’s Robocall Response Team says U.S. voice service providers must “take all necessary steps to avoid carrying this robocall traffic” or provide reports explaining how they’re at least trying to reduce the traffic.

These scammers have made more than 8 billion unlawful prerecorded calls to Americans since at least 2018, according to an FCC statement. The companies responsible are currently under investigation by the FCC’s enforcement bureau and are the targets of a lawsuit filed with the Ohio Attorney General’s office.

The fake warranty scam features callers who pretend to represent reputable companies. They often provide victims with specific details about their car’s manufacturer in order to lend an air of legitimacy to the offer.
The number of these robocalls received by Americans reached a new high in June, with 4.3 billion total calls reported by YouMail Inc., a company that identifies and blocks unwanted phone numbers. That’s an 8% increase over the previous month.

According to the FCC, other top robocall categories include Social Security number phishing scams, credit and credit card scams, false insurance and healthcare, and fake lawsuits or criminal charges. Among these, auto warranty scam calls have seen a significant increase from 7,600 in 2020 to more than 12,000 in 2021.

The FCC has made it clear that carriers may block calls and regulate the way people use their phones. In recent years, they’ve told phone providers to adopt a system for digitally validating phone calls passing through networks which is intended to reduce the prevalence of illegal robocalls.

But as yet, the robocalls haven’t slowed down, as per YouMail in a recent news release.

Since last year, Americans have received around 48.3 billion robocalls. Such calls are atop consumer complaint.

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