Attorneys general want better anti-robocall technology

By TOM LATEK, Kentucky Today

FRANKFORT, Ky. (KT) – Tired of robocalls?  So is Attorney General Daniel Cameron. On Monday, he joined a bipartisan coalition of 51 attorneys general calling on the Federal Communications Commission for faster implementation of anti-robocall technology.

The coalition urges the FCC to move up the deadline for certain small telephone companies to implement caller ID authentication technology.

Under the TRACED Act, which became law in 2019, phone companies are required to implement on their networks an industry-standard caller ID authentication technology known as STIR/SHAKEN, which helps ensure that telephone calls are originating from verified numbers, not “spoofed” sources.  Large companies were required to implement the technology by June 2021, and smaller phone companies were originally given an extension until June 2023.

According to the letter, “a subset of small voice service providers are originating a high and increasing share of illegal robocalls relative to their subscriber base.” Without the STIR/SHAKEN technology in place, these smaller companies are failing to take a necessary step to minimize the continued onslaught of illegal robocalls that spam Americans and lead to financial or personal data loss.

As a result, the coalition has asked the FCC to require these companies to implement STIR/SHAKEN technology as soon as possible, or by June 30, 2022.

"Phone companies that continue to funnel illegal robocalls to Kentuckians aid scammers in perpetrating fraud,” Cameron stated. “In 2020 alone, Kentuckians reported losing $1.2 million to phone scams, and robocalls are largely to blame. We joined this coalition in urging the FCC to expedite the deadline for certain phone companies to implement technology that will help cut down on the number of illegal robocalls and call spoofing.”

Cameron submitted the comments alongside the attorneys general of all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia.

View a copy of the comments by clicking here.

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