h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I was woken this morning at 4:58 am by a phone call. When I answered, they hung up. Obviously I immediately dialled 1471, and got a local landline number. I called it back, but it was engaged. So, obviously, I Googled it. I found the caller's name, address and mobile number - he's got a CV online. Both landline and mobile number were also linked in a classified ad in a trade union newsletter available online, consistent with the employment history on the CV.

So I called the mobile number. No answer. Whatever. I hung up and went back to sleep, writing it off as just one of those things.

About 7am, the mobile number called my landline. My wife answered, and I picked up just as she was apologetically explaining that her husband had done the calling back. When the chap on the other end said rather indignantly said "And can you tell me who your husband is?" I interjected "No, Mr. xxxxxxx." "Oh, you know who I am." "Yes, and I know where you live." "Well why don't you come round to my f£$%ing house then?" "I don't want to, I just wanted to know why you'd called me."

He adamantly denied calling me, and wanted to know how I knew who he was and where he lived. I declined to supply that information (seriously, in 2016 is it hard to work out I'd Googled?), and after some more nonsense, I hung up.

He rang back five minutes or so later demanding to know how I'd got his mobile number, as it's a work phone, and denying that the landline number was his, although he admitted to recognising it and had apparently in the interim consulted with the person whose number he says it is. I suggested he take up the problem with BT or with the person whose landline it is. I assured him I had no interest in him, only wanted to know what he'd wanted, and since we'd now established it was a wrong number that as far as I was concerned the matter was at an end. I did this between him ranting at me about something or other. I assured him I would not call him again, but that if I received a fourth call I would inform the police. He in turn accused me of "snooping" and said *he* was going to call the police, which I encouraged him to do before hanging up.

So far, two hours later, he has not called back.

Funny old world.

What would you have done...? (Apart from not put your CV online with your home address and mobile number on it...)

We get some wrong-number calls, and way too many calls looking for various things that I am not interested in. We look at the Call-Display, and if the number is unknown or no caller name is presented, we simply disreguard entirely. I figure that if it is important to anyone, they can leave a message.

Mind, if it does become a repeat calling number - I too use Google. And most often find it's some telecom company, or duct cleaning service or some other equally exciting something, really wanting to impress me with their recorded message or tell me of a fabulous vacation I have just won for using a non-existent credit card.

Three responses to that:

1. Thanks presumably to the TPS, I don't get (or at least as a full time worker who's not in during the day don't notice) "junk" calls. I get loads on my mobile, which are easily ignored as you say.

2. The timing of the call, five in the morning, suggests dire emergency, and waking from sleep to this made me simply pick the phone by my bed straight up (and I don't have caller display on that handset).

3. Only three people have my landline number, hence "dire emergency" is immediately connected with "person very close to me", and I'm reacting *fast*, not being circumspect as I might be if it were (a) daytime or (b) my mobile.

As said above - if it IS an emergency of any sort, a message can be left. And in very short order, a very prominent and red blinking LED on the phones would advise of a left message.

When I was still employed (before a forced medical retirement - my 3rd retirement in all), I would find a record of numerous worthless calls during the day-time hours. With no messages left, so not worthy of follow-up actions.

I'm not sure I'd have gone to the trouble you did after just one call - people tend to ring back or leave a message if it's important - but I understand why you did, as it's frustrating to lose sleep.

I doubt he'll bother you again.

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I was woken this morning at 4:58 am by a phone call. When I answered, they hung up. >>

At that point I would have rolled over and went back to sleep.

I'm with Swl on that one - I'd just ignore it.

If they hung up, it is because they didn't want to talk to you, so it must have been a wrong number. I'd only pursue it if they kept ringing you.

I have a 2nd land-line - a hold-over from the days of dial-up internet. It was the newest copper coming into my house (by about 40-some years) and I kept it primarily as the link for my ADSL internet service. That number has never been listed in any phone books, but it does get a lot of calls - asking for various women who apparently give out fake phone numbers.

Can your provider block his numbers you have enough cause he is a nuisance.

You're not dealing with a reasonable person. I would not have called him back.

Probably a very irate person, indeed. Mind, if someone called me up on a mobile phone and pointed out that they had work and home addresses and phones, I'd be rather edgy too. Maybe I am too sensitive?

I wouldn't say he was a nuisance - I received three calls, total, the first one probably not even from him.

And yes, I did probably make him edgy. I feel much better now - I rang him back and apologised for being so ratty, told him my (first) name when he asked, and reassured him that all I'd done was google the landline and found his CV, which was where I'd got his address and mobile. He thanked me for calling him back, and seemed reassured. We rang off amicably. Phew.

When I get a hang up call like that, a wrong number isn't even my first assumption. What I now get more often is calls I suspect of being scams. There are some new rules in the States regarding unsolicited marketing calls. While these rules are often flouted, they can result in rather serious fines if they call someone repeatedly after being asked to stop. There are some exceptions. Charities, politicians and entities that have been contacted by the callee can call folks when others cannot.

I think one method some less reputable marketing associations use now is the one-ring and hang up calls. If you call them back, this may give them some legal cover for calling you back later.

I typically use a reverse directory when I get such calls and typically I see a lot of complaints about the number being associated with one-ring and hang up calls.

I use reverse directories too. I love that the Internet lets me do things like that!

In Ireland they get around the law about not calling people who have asked not to be called by ringing from India.

If I answer the phone and there is a pause followed by a clicking noise and more silence, I hang up, as it is a telemarketer with an automatic dialler. They dial many numbers simultaneously. If any number answers, they alert the telemarketer who takes a second or two to react.

I don't have a landline phone any more, only using it for broadband. The blessed relief from incessant telemarketeers is incredible.

This (not Hoovooloo's) is a big problem. My brother recently had a shop tell him that they didn't ring anyone any more as *nobody* answers the phone. Why? Well, why don't *you* answer unknown numbers? I know for myself that it will be about my 'accident' or PPI or less often some other marketing scam.

It's making real life uses of the telephone unusable. It's about time something was done about it properly. Though I don't know the logistics of how it would be.

Neither do I. And even my cellular phone is quieter than it was several years ago. The worst I had on my cell was a series of collect calls from jails and prisons here in Texas. These calls are State authorized scams. The state of Texas, as many know, is a leading market for the privatization of prisons. One aspect of this is a new telecom industry supplying phone access to convicts. Prisoners can have a "commissary" account set up for them with which to pay for things like cigarettes and special services or treats while there. This is linked to the "collect call" system. These companies charge outrageous rates for calls from prison, but one thing that they can also do is fund these commissary accounts with collect calls. So, sometimes prisoners will call complete strangers hoping they'll accept the charges which may be as much as $50 per call.

More info.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/21/opinion/the-prison-commercial-complex.html

How about incomplete strangers?

How did we allow the telecoms industry to become so unregulated? We appear to be largely helpless when it comes to preventing scams, nuisance calls, etc through legislation.

I can only imagine this is such a lucrative business that its proceeds are transacted in offshore banking havens - in which which our elected political representatives invest.

Or am I being cynical?