CallerComplaints.com - Fight Telemarketers

Although government action like the creation of the Do-Not-Call List has helped to stem unsolicited telemarketing calls, the problem is far from solved. CallerComplaints.com is a site established to help consumers fight telemarketers, who can range from an annoyance to borderline harassment. Federal agencies where you can make complaints do exist, but Caller Complaints says their site will be a more effective way to take action. Anyone can sign on and search for the phone number of a telemarketing call they received. If the number is already in the database, they can add their complaint to the list, or start a new entry if the number hasn’t been registered yet. There is a CAPTCHA system in place to screen users. There is also a section on the site for ‘spoofed numbers’ - those telemarketers who trick Caller ID devices into displaying an incorrect phone number. All data collected by CallerComplaints.com is available to the public, and the data could be used in the future to file class-action complaints with the government.

"We're Building The Leading Telemarketer Database. By combining the data from users all over the world, CallerComplaints.com provides unique information about a phone number not available anywhere else. This data can be used to file joint-action complaints with government agencies, allow other users to learn more about a phone number, or any of a dozen other uses."

Unsolicited telemarketing calls are an annoyance that almost everyone deals with, so lots of people will probably appreciate having a website on which to vent, document their complaint, and hopefully discourage future telemarketing calls.

If filing a complaint with a government agency or registering on the Do-Not-Call List isn’t a very effective way to combat telemarketers, how will making your complaint on a non-government website really make a difference? Can this site do anything to discourage those telemarketers who circumvent Caller ID’s with an “unknown number” message?