Telemarketers Are Allegedly Hijacking Local Phone Lines

Many people will not answer out of state calls they do not know. There is an obvious fear that picking up the phone around dinner time when the caller ID reads “unknown” or “out of area” will result in a lengthily sales pitch. This practice of avoiding such caller ID designations and not answering out of state calls is obviously no unwarranted.

But recently in a city just off Interstate 80 a new telemarketing practice supposedly arose. Residents in North Platte, Nebraska, population 23,878, have complained that telemarketers have been disguising their presence. Those same individuals who don’t answer out of state calls were now being hit by telemarketers calling from a “local number”. Presumably, these telemarketers are hijacking local phone lines so those residents with caller ID cannot identify them.

It gets weirder. The number was not automated. Victims said they could call the number back. The person who answered told them they had not called. A reverse phone number lookup would not work here, but if this happens to you, you could ask for an email and use that to perform a reverse email lookup.

Protect yourself. If it happens to you contact your local service provider and report the incident. Make sure you follow the line of questioning that goes along with receiving a telemarketing call.