Since taking office in January 2019, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has been disconnecting robocallers by going after every link in the robocall chain.
“I will continue to protect consumers by weeding out illegal operators,” Yost said. “These dishonest pests have no place in Ohio, and my office is here to be the exterminator.”
Yost has redoubled his efforts this summer, issuing warning letters, pursuing numerous legal actions and consistently working to educate the public. A timeline of that work:
June 28: Yost’s Robocall Enforcement Unit issued warning letters to 10 Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers that were supporting customers who may have been engaging in illegal conduct. The letters warned that the Attorney General’s Office would pursue enforcement actions if the companies continued to provide support to telemarketers by transmitting illegal robocalls.
June 28: Yost entered into a
settlement with G4 Telecom Inc. and owner Joe Putegnat. G4, a voice service provider was carrying traffic for bad actors engaging in robocalls, some of whom would be named in a lawsuit filed on July 7. The legal action requires G4 to pay the state $20,000 and stop assisting and facilitating others in violating the Telemarketing Sales Rule by carrying illegal robocall traffic and to implement extensive screening for future customers so it avoids carrying additional illegal robocalls.
July 7: Yost filed a
lawsuit against 22 defendants responsible for a scheme that bombarded U.S. consumers with billions of illegal robocalls, many of them centered on fraudulent “car warranty” plans. This particular operation prompted more than 1,600 unwanted-call complaints to Yost’s office.
July 12-13: Yost and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel hosted the National Association of Attorneys General 2022 Robocall Summit in Detroit so state and federal partners could share experiences, resources and expertise on how to combat this growing problem. In addition, the summit provided an opportunity to hear from industry and federal enforcers, plus representatives from consumer advocacy groups.
Consumers who receive unwanted calls can complete an Unwanted Call Notification Form at www.OhioProtects.org. That information will be shared with the Robocall Enforcement Unit, which uses the reports to identify trends to protect Ohioans.