Attorney General Henry Calls on the FCC to Strengthen Vetting Process to Block Robocallers

November 18, 2024 | Topic: Consumers

HARRISBURG — Attorney General Michelle Henry joined a bipartisan coalition of 46 Attorneys General in calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to improve their Robocall Mitigation Database and close what has effectively been an unmonitored loophole that bad actors exploit to contact Pennsylvanians with unwanted phone calls and text messages.  

“Every day, Pennsylvanians are being inundated with spam robocalls and text messages,” Attorney General Henry said. “We have made it clear that robocalls are not welcome here, and I am proud to stand with my colleagues in this coalition to announce an important action in the fight against illegal, nuisance robocalls.” 

Currently, voice service providers must register under the FCC’s database — however, since the database launched in 2021, there has been little maintenance done to ensure bad actors do not have access to the U.S. telephone network. Companies have submitted non-vetted information and voice service providers have faced no real consequences for filing inaccurate, false, misleading, or otherwise incomplete information. 

The coalition of Attorneys General is calling on the FCC to strengthen the database so providers are subjected to deadlines and have their information scrutinized. If adopted, the proposed changes would make it harder for bad actors to gain access to the U.S. telephone network and contact residents.

Attorney General Henry is a member of the Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force and has been committed to actively investigating and pursuing enforcement actions against entities who perpetrate illegal robocalls.

 A copy of the letter is available here.

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