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Old 10-21-2006, 10:03 AM
curbfeeler curbfeeler is offline
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Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 14
Telemarketers from India

Just wondering if any of you have had a similar experience, this is more an annoying situation then problematic.

For the most part of this year I have been receiving daily phone calls from an on-line pharmacy based in India. There have been times when I have received up to three calls a day anytime from 8am to 9pm any day of the week. The issue is they are looking for somebody I don’t know (Michael) and mistakenly placed my number on their call list. I have had the same phone number for over twenty years, it is unlisted and I do not have caller id. Nobody in my household has ever done business with them nor have any desire to use their service. The telemarketer will represent himself from a number of on-line pharmacies, e.g. RX-Pharmacy, On-Line Pharmacy, etc. I have advised my family not to provide any information to these people, not to engage in conversation, and hang up the phone.

Initially we would advise they have the wrong number and to please cease calling. A month later they learned not to ask for Michael. The telemarketer would immediately ask what medications we are taking and make inquiries on our family medical history. All attempts to advise the on-line pharmacy telemarketer to stop calling have failed. The situation has now become harassment as on one occasion I explained to the telemarketer that he is wasting his time calling and there would be no chance we would do business with him. The telemarketer immediately called back and just laughed on the phone. Afterwards, the frequency of calls have increased.

A call was placed to my telephone service provider. The only alternative I have is to change my phone number which is not a good choice for me since I work primarily from my home and often need to answer unidentified callers. My telephone service provider stated the following:

1. Blame NAFTA for allowing this activity
2. FTC laws do not apply to foreign companies
3. Placing them on a “do not call’ list will not stop the calls. They are calling from India through a call forwarded numbers (e.g. 866-255-3635)
4. Using a caller ID service will not identify them
5. Contact a local government official
6. Contact FTC and keep complaining

Last edited by curbfeeler; 10-21-2006 at 11:33 AM.
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