Consumers who have complaints can contact the FTC online at FTC.gov or use the toll-free number for the FTC Consumer Response Center at 877-382-4357.

I am so sick of these calls that I have opened a complaint case with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).  The FTC has been fighting these MedAlert scammers for a few years now. (See 2015 USA Today article for example.)

These calls are a total pain in the neck and they come up on your caller ID as a seemingly legitimate number. Today I have had two calls so far, and the call that came in at 12:13 PM actually belongs to a real person who still has that phone number – their number was spoofed.

That’s what these med alert call-center people do. They spoof a seemingly normal looking number in your area and they call you. You pick up the phone and it’s a Robo call telling you that you have been selected to receive a free medical alert device. You can hit the number one to get a live person which I had done  every so often to keep requesting the do not call list. 

The do not call list never happens with these people because they are spoofing phone numbers it’s hard to figure out where they are coming from but research indicates Florida is the origination point.

A couple of  weeks ago when I couldn’t take it anymore because the calls are so frequent I called the FTC – the number is 1-(877)-FTC – HELP or 1-877-382-4357.  I was assigned a case number and now whenever the calls come in and I am home I write down the phone number the time and date of the call and I call the toll-free number back and update my file with the FTC.  It only takes a couple of minutes and that’s how cases are built against these horrible scam robo call  people.

Here are the numbers which have called recently which are different from today:

610-469-3824

484-250-5942

610-792-0373

All of these calls are originating out of the call center in Central Florida. I get gals name Alexis and Tabatha and Ashley who want to sell me MedAlert devices. 

I will note the FTC says do not talk to these people just hang up. That’s what I do now, but at first I kept trying to pound through to get somebody to put me on a do not call list.

These people generally speaking like to target senior citizens in particular.

I have been getting in the neighborhood of 2 to 3 of these Robo calls per day Monday through Friday.

There is a Consumer Watchdog reporter who works for the Morning Call in the Lehigh Valley who has written a couple of great articles about this in the past – here is one:

Feds say company is behind medical alert scam

Paul Muschick Paul MuschickContact Reporter/The Watchdog

July 15, 2015

We may finally know the driving force behind those annoying, deceptive robocalls that hounded area senior citizens by offering them “free” medical alert systems that weren’t really free.

Authorities say Lifewatch, a New York company that sells the devices, orchestrated the illegal telemarketing campaign. The Federal Trade Commission and Florida attorney general’s office sued that company, its president and related businesses a few weeks ago and are seeking a preliminary injunction to stop the calls.

I know I am not the only one who is receiving these calls. I have been receiving them for give or take a month about 18 months. 

 It would be terrific if media local to us and/or in the Philadelphia region took an interest in this, but thus far they haven’t. 

It would be great if our elected officials on a state and federal level took an interest in nuisances like this that cost unsuspecting people money from Harrisburg PA to Washington DC I’m not really sure what any of them are doing these days are you?

Today we signed up for NoMoRobo . For landlines thus far it is free:

Anything that helps reduce the volume of these calls is a GREAT thing as far as I am concerned! Because is it just me or are the state and federal do not call lists somewhat of a joke these days? You sign up, you verify periodically that it’s still active, yet the calls keep coming. 

Granted you can’t stop the fake charity calls because they are registered as nonprofits even if they are using professional for profit call centers, but it would be really nice to cut down on these calls!