CONCORD, N.H. — Have you been receiving robocalls every day lately, and at all times?
If you are, then you’re not alone -- and New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella is sending a stern warning for companies who are allowing the robocalls to continue.
Formella on Tuesday warned four voice service providers that they have been “transmitting suspected illegal robocall traffic on their networks” on behalf of one or more of their customers.
“Robocalls are not just an inconvenience; they are a serious threat to the privacy and security of our residents. We will not stand by while companies enable illegal scams that target our citizens, especially our most vulnerable,” Formella said in a statement.
“These voice service providers have a responsibility to ensure their networks are not used to perpetuate fraud,” Formella said. “If these companies fail to take swift action, we will pursue every legal avenue available to hold them accountable and protect consumers.”
Formella is a member of the Anti-Robocall Multistate Litigation Task Force, a coalition of 51 attorneys general investigating providers responsible for routing “significant volumes of illegal robocall traffic” into and across the United States.
In the warning letters, the task force informed the providers that it has shared the findings of its investigations with the Federal Communications Commission, which will consider appropriate next steps.
Formella said the task force sent warning letters to the following companies:
- KWK Communications Inc. received at least 129 traceback notices from the industry traceback group between 2020 and 2022, which included high volumes of calls associated with IRS and Social Security Administration scams, auto warranty scams, and utilities scams. In just one month in 2022, KWK allegedly routed more than 20,000 calls with illegally spoofed telephone numbers and more than 8.7 million calls made using invalid Caller ID numbers.
- Inbound Communications Inc. (formerly Inbound Inc.) received at least 63 traceback notices between 2021 and 2022, including many about calls that involved imposter scams. Inbound is also estimated to have allegedly routed more than 28.4 million DirecTV and cable discount scam robocalls in a single month in 2022. The FTC previously issued a cease-and-desist demand to Inbound over these scam calls.
- AKA Management Inc. received at least 129 traceback notices between 2020 and 2022, including about calls that were government imposter scams and tech support scams. AKA is also estimated to have allegedly routed about 12.1 million Amazon and Apple imposter robocalls to consumers in a single month in 2022.
- CallVox LLC received more than 47 traceback notices between 2020 and 2022 warning of unlawful or suspicious robocalls that it helped move into and through the U.S. telephone network, including thousands of calls to people who were registered on the Do Not Call list and calls placed using illegally spoofed telephone numbers.
The letters warned that if these providers continue to transmit robocalls and violate state and federal laws, the task force may pursue further legal actions against these companies and their owners, Formella said.
Copies of the warning letters are available here.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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