At the FCC’s open meeting this morning under the gavel of newly appointed Chairman Carr they unanimously approved the NPRM for Strengthening Call Blocking Rules, docket number 17-59. What will this new order impose:
- Expand the range of voice service providers that block based on a reasonable do-not-originate list from only gateway providers to all voice service providers in a call path. A do-not-originate list may include unused, unallocated, or invalid numbers, as well as numbers for which a subscriber has requested blocking.
- Modify the existing requirement for voice service providers to immediately notify callers when providers block calls based on reasonable analytics by requiring the use of Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) code 603+ and eliminating the use of SIP codes 603, 607, and 608 for this purpose. This will better ensure a fast resolution of any erroneous blocking.
Commissioner Starks stated, “this is why the FCC needs to do everything in its power to close the vectors for fraud in its network and on that account I would have hoped that this item would address robotexts and go further to block Robo calls.”
While Chairman Carr shared “Illegal Robocalls are a nuisance and the annoy far too many Americans far too often and the commission is going to continue its work to accelerate on this crackdown on the scourge of illegal Robocalls. Americans are fed up and tired of unknown numbers calling at all hours or spoof numbers that appear to come from a trusted source. A lot of people have just given up and not answering the phones. And although there is no silver bullet here, the FCC needs to keep pushing on multiple fronts. We do so today by taking two important steps. Both of these actions are designed to stop illegal calls before they ever reach consumers.”
We will keep our eye on this as it goes through the process of becoming a final rule and provide effective dates once published in the Federal Register. Read the NPRM HERE.