In March 2021, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Robocall Enforcement Unit, a unit with staff dedicated to making Ohio the most difficult state in which illegal robocallers operate.
Understanding the overwhelming frustration and annoyance that robocalls bring, last year, Attorney General Yost put together a team housed in his Consumer Protection Section to combat this problem that affects everyone.
“Robocallers bombard our phones every day, many time pushing worthless products,” said Attorney General Yost. “It’s time for them to get the message – not in Ohio!”
In an attempt to fight robocalls in a number of different ways, since its inception, the Unit has:
- Received over 47,000 Unwanted Call Notifications, which serve as the launching point for investigations and information sharing;
- Worked with state and federal partners as well as USTelecom, the industry-led telecommunications consortium, to trace the origin of suspected illegal robocalls;
- Opened a number of investigations pertaining to over 40 targets and issued over 50 investigatory subpoenas in those investigations.
- Joined a brief with 33 other state attorneys general in asking a US Court of Appeals to reverse a decision that prevents the enforcement of the robocall prohibitions of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
- With seven other states’ attorneys general, filed a case against eight defendants alleged to be responsible for sending over 59 million robocalls to Ohioans offering vehicle service contracts and health care plans.
- With the Federal Trade Commission, settled a case against ten defendants, including Globex Telecom, marking the first case ever filed against a voice service provider for assisting and facilitating illegal robocalls.
- Issued letters to 14 different companies offering “car warranties,” reinforcing the requirement to comply with Ohio’s Telephone Solicitation Sales Act as well as federal telemarketing statutes and regulations.
- Previously crafted and is currently supporting legislation to make Ohio the toughest state in which to conduct an illegal robocall scheme by fully incorporating existing prohibitions of certain federal statutes into a similar Ohio statute, as well as prohibit anyone from providing substantial assistance to robocallers in an effort to hold all the bad actors who knowingly participated in these schemes accountable.
Attorney General Yost also sent a “thank you” letter to those who have filed Unwanted Call Notifications, encouraging them to keep filing to help in this effort. If you receive an unwanted call,
file a complaint online or call 800-282-0515. To learn more about robocalls, visit
www.OhioProtects.org.
And remember, when it comes to unwanted calls, Just Don’t Answer!