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UtterlyBoring.com is produced by Jake Ortman (e-mail, resume), a 30-year-old dad, percussionist, freelance Web designer, consultant and jack-of-all-trades computer geek, living in Bend, Oregon. He created this so that his expensive journalism and technology degree isn't getting totally wasted. In addition to editing this site in his free time, he is the IT Director and Ad Designer at both Sunray and Discover Sunriver. He has LinkedIn, MySpace, Facebook profiles if you're trying to stalk him.
Opinions and comments on this site are the opinions of the author, not the author's employer, family, friends or pets. This site is powered by Movable Type and is hosted by orty.com. Internet connection provided by Bend BroadBand. Since December 1st, 2002, there have been 5112 entries. Visitors to this blog have posted 15565 comments. If you're reading this, you have too much time on your hands. |
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Do Not Call List -- Red Hot, Big LoopholesI really love Al's Morning Meeting. It's a great place for stories like these. For example, the whole Do Not Call idea may not work. Some of the biggest users of telemarketing are exempt. From the column: Long-distance phone companies got an exemption for their nightly slam calls. There's an irony in there someplace.So, really, what is this Do Not Call registry protecting us from? Not a whole lot, especially since the FTC and the FCC can't figure out what's actually going to be enforced by that list. So say the list does serve its purpose. Telemarketers will have to find other ways to bug us, so expect the amount of spam and junk mail to rise sharply. Update: Since the articles are no longer on Fortune.com, I've linked to a Web Archive or Google Cache version of them where possible. If anybody has good copies of these articles, let me know. Update on 10/02/05: Two years later, the list still isn't working. Posted by Jake on 07/06/03 @ 03:02 PM
Posted in Interesting | 537 Comments | Permalink Submit to digg, del.icio.us, reddit, or stumbleupon 537 CommentsBeep said on 07/08/03 @ 01:58 PM:I'm from Colorado, and we've recently been allowed to sign up for a state "No call" list. I put my name and number on it right away. Following this, i've discovered that charities and surveyors (political and otherwise) are purchasing the list so that they have access to a list of confirmed phone numbers at a cheap price that they can freely call. In less than a month after I had signed up, my calls had almost tripled. They are finally tapering off about 8 months later. Because of this, I won't be signing up for the national list. I don't want to deal with the sudden increase again. Ken said on 03/27/04 @ 12:04 PM: I'm also from Colorado and added my number to the list as soon as it became available. It seemed to be working quite nicely at first but the loophole for charitible organizations has become a major hassle. I made the mistake of donating to one charitible organization that called me and soon started receiving all kinds of calls from all kinds of charities (I think my number got added to the "soft-hearted sucker" list). My advice to anyone who doesn't want to be pestered with annoying phone calls: NEVER EVER EVER give money to a charity that uses phone solicitations. There are plenty of charities that you can find by other means and they are much more deserving of your money than the ones that rely on telephone solicitations. Also: has anyone else been receiving annoying hang-up calls from a number that shows up on caller ID as "Area Services 770-933-8528"? I can't figure out how to get through to a human to ask to be added to their private "do not call" list and I don't know if it is exempt from the Colorado or national do not call lists (it could be a charity for all I know) so I can't register a complaint. It seems to me that the "do not call" list was a nice idea but it is totally worthless do to these loopholes. Michele said on 04/02/04 @ 06:49 PM: To Ken's Comment: I have had calls from 770-933-8528 which appears to be a phone mail service. Calls from 770-956-7025 seem to be from a charity solicitor...new calls coming from this number now Mendalyn said on 04/10/04 @ 02:13 PM: I get both 770 area service calls. At LEAST once every day. If anyone has any idea how to stop them please let me know. They are harrassing charities. I guess we should never donate to the Fulton County police again. I think that must be where they picked up up from. I tried to block the numbers but my phone service won't allow me. ehl said on 04/15/04 @ 03:28 PM: I've been getting calls from 770-956-7025 almost daily, also. But why would they continue to call and never have a human talk? Pain in the backside. I am also on the "do not call list." What can be done about this? Ideas? Michelle said on 04/16/04 @ 08:40 AM: I'm getting 2-3 calls per day from 770-956-7025 and they're driving me nuts. I always let them go to my machine and I really don't understand why they keep calling, since I'm on the do not call list, though I understand that charities have some loophole. Bryan said on 04/16/04 @ 10:11 AM: I am also being harrased by this 770-956-7025 number. No one ever speaks and no when ever picks up when you call back. These people are pissing me off! Donna said on 04/16/04 @ 11:32 AM: I'm getting calls from 770-956-7025 as well and Bryan is correct that even when you answer the phone, you are greeted with a hang up each time. No one ever says anything. I haven't tried calling the number back. Is there anyway to find out who owns the number? Dave said on 04/17/04 @ 08:00 AM: 770-956-7025 keeps calling me too. It was a police or fire charity when it picked up the phone last week some time. Very aggressive and we told them to take us off their list several times. But they keep calling, now with hangups. ody said on 04/17/04 @ 09:42 AM: 770-956-7025 calls me daily and they have pissed me off so much. Apparently the only way is to buy a service from your phone company (MCI in my case) for $4/month and then you can have up to 6 numbers blocked. Can we find out who owns that number? I think it is a cell phone Chris Barili said on 04/18/04 @ 10:59 AM: I have been hit with both 770 numbers to the tune of 1-2 calls per day. I am at the point of being blunt and almost rude with the people using this service. If enough of the companies using this service start to catch HE!! from those of us receiving the calls, perhaps they'll tell that company to take us off their lists. The local firemen called from the 7025 number a minute ago. I told them, "I've asked this dialing service to remove me from their call list. Further calls will be considered harrassment." This is ridiculous. Tim said on 04/18/04 @ 03:43 PM: 770-956-7025!!! 4 times...so far today. At least a few times everyday. I spoke to a lady once...told her not to call...she hung-up on me. And the beat goes on..... Dave said on 04/18/04 @ 04:58 PM: Got another one, It was for virginia fraternal order of police. Ask to talk to a manager. He'll tell you his name and company. I forget his name but the company was JKA productions. He also said it takes 30 days to get off the list, so I told him he'd be hearing an air horn on subsequent calls. The other good trick is to tell them to hold on, and put the phone down. Play loud music or have sex in the background to keep their attention... at least it'll waste their time. Infuriating! Ben said on 04/20/04 @ 05:55 AM: Also receiving daily non-answered calls from "Area Services" 770 956-7025. Decided to search on the web for the number and found this page. I will try to block the number. Want to but I'm afraid to blow the air horn. I also fear they are trying to figure out what time the house is usually occupied. I live in Northern Virginia. Russ said on 04/20/04 @ 07:40 AM: Just got another hang-up from 7709567025 and searched-out this web page. I have an idea to help fix this. I assume the charity solicitors must have the "blessing" of the actual charity to use the charity's name for fundraising. When we get harrassed like, this, let's start calling the CHARITY itself, and let them know that their hired henchmen are harrassing the public, and therefore that charity should expect to NEVER see another donation from me, and anyone I can tell about their method of hiring henchmen. You can then point the charity to web pages like this to prove the case. Terre said on 04/20/04 @ 03:29 PM: I have been getting these 770-956-7025 calls where the caller ID says "Area Services." I'm also in Colorado where several of the comments were from. Did these idiots get our numbers from the Colorado Do-Not-Call lists? There is never anyone there. Has anyone ever tried to call them back? Terre said on 04/20/04 @ 03:57 PM: I just tried to block it and and Qwest wouldn't do it. I contacted Qwest and they said they couldn't block a long-distance call. I won't even deal with who the idiots were who decided that! But Qwest suggested that I contact the state attorney general. I noticed several comments came from Colorado. So here is the Colorado Attorney General contact info: Attorney General 1525 Sherman St. 5th floor Denver, CO 80203 (303)866-4500 FAX: (303)866-5691 I just sent them a fax. So should everyone, everytime you get a call. Michele said on 04/20/04 @ 04:47 PM: I got this from Mike in Denver: When you receive solicitation calls from numbers consistently and the caller either hangs up or is silent, the cause is usually a programming loop error at the sender's end. I've been tagged with a few of these over the years - here's what to do: Area Code 770 is Georgia and Prefix 956 is the Atlanta / Marietta area. Track and record the dates and times the calls are being received. Mark down whether there was a human, a recording, complete silence, static or a quick disconnect for each call received. Take a week to do this so the phone company has something to work with. Contact your local telephone company and give the phone company your information. Your phone company can contact the telephone company servicing the caller's line. The caller's telephone company can then pull the billing statement for that number and contact the entity paying the bill. If you are not happy humans after a week or so, file a harassment complaint with your local telephone company. With that complaint (case) number, you can have the local police investigate. I have never had to do any more than the above. Of course, I never heard the results of my complaint but the calls magically stopped. Michele said on 04/20/04 @ 04:51 PM: When i finally had a human at the other end (and it WAS the Virginia Fraternal Order of Police), I agreed to contribute. When I get the bill...I will search for a number to call and inform them that they have lost a contribution based on their irritating methods of solicitation. Chris Barili said on 04/21/04 @ 05:37 PM: OK, I went back and researched a little on this. From the two 770 numbers, I have received calls from: The Colorado Police Protective Association The National Leukemia Foundation A Sherriff's Charity The Local Firemen's Charity I'm now just telling them to remove me or face harrassment charges. Period. Brian said on 04/23/04 @ 04:48 PM: Just got called by 770-956-7025, except they talked and asked for parents and then I told them that they weren't home, they hung up after they said it was a charity...we'll see what happens when they call again. Jason J said on 04/26/04 @ 06:20 PM: Okay I have two things regarding our favorite mystery caller (770) 956-7025. I live in Denver also and the calls are all the time now! I would like to know which non-profit sold my information and to whom. Number one is pisses me off, and number two and most importantly, they need to realize that this is a huge mistake and will eventually affect that organization in the long term. People like us are getting pissed and talking about the cause. If this is what is going to happen when I donate to an organization in the future I will think twice, and 99% of non-profits depend on every cent they get. I am going to list the charity I have donated to in the last year at the bottom of this message. If you will list whom you have contributed to this year we can compare the information and alert these organizations about this issue. It would be a same to see a charity that I cared enough to give money at some point ultimately end up the real loser. My Donations: AIDS Walk Colorado --Good Bet Project Angle Heart -Best Bet Habitat for the Humanity AIDS Ride CA Susan G Komen Foundation SPCA of San Francisco Denver Broncos Wifes AIDS Walk San Francisco AIDS Walk Africa (Elizabeth Glazer Pediatric AIDS Foundation) Matthew Shepard Foundation GLAAD HRC (Human Right Campaign) American AIDS Foundation Project Safe (Domestic abuse shelter) The Center (Denver) Academy of Friends (Kyle Mouser Foundation) Long Beach AIDS Walk Okay now here is something that you are going to love. I went online and found a kick ass program that is free to use ($18 - $30 suggested donation) that will solve all your issues will blocked, out of area, and unidentified callers. All you need is a computer with a modem and you are set. I have DSL and do not use the modem and it does not affect the program. It took less then 3 mins to install and setup on my system. I have all the Qwest features including call screen/rejection and this program is so much better then those features together. On of the best features of the program is an add-on you can get from the site that will use your computer to announce the name and number of the caller when calling! Yeah, I am lazy but it is nice not having to get up and rush to find the phone each time to see who is calling. Another add-on is a simple audio file that programs uses to automatically remove your number from those auto dial computers, same thing as the Call Zapper you can buy for $40 buck at your local retailer. It is free – remember to download it! Finally is will send you a text message to you cell phone or pager for caller’s you can program in the database it has built in! Great for other days you are playing sick or staying in for then night! You get notified and you can call them right back and say you were in the shower or something! Oh yeah I forgot the most important feature! If you keep getting calls from the name number(s) and you are sick of it all you is enter that number in to a box and check a box that will auto hung up the call every time they try to call. I am going pay the 30 bucks when my evaluation time is up. http://www.imptec.com/download.htm Dave said on 04/29/04 @ 06:49 AM: Found the VFOP website and got their 800 number. Spoke to a nice lady who said she'd take me off their list. Said it was the second call they got this week. I said they had a bigger problem than that. Here's the number (800)367-0317 Michelle said on 05/03/04 @ 02:53 PM: Oddly, I live in Virginia too and I *have* contributed to the local police (did I bring this on myself -- say it ain't so!?). Anyhow, it's interesting to hear that other northern Virginians are having similar issues. Scrolling through my caller ID, I saw the other number as well, incidentally. Verrrry interesting. If you Google it, however, it says it belongs to someone called Liliana Gonzalez in Marietta, GA. Lissa said on 05/04/04 @ 04:43 PM: Well, I, too, live in the Denver area and have been plagued by these 770-956-7025 calls for months now. Each time, it's similar to other people's experiences: they call, "Area services" appears on my caller ID along with the aforementioned number, I answer hoping this time someone will be there so I can tell them to STOP calling me, and they hang up. I finally found this forum, but when I called my phone company (Qwest), they said there isn't much they could do even if I did keep track of the calls, times, etc. However, they said there are two options. One is to add "Call rejection" in which you're allowed up to 15 numbers you can block. This service is around $3 a month. The other, and personally, I find this the more preferred method, is to do what they call "Call tracing" which is to hit *57 after the other party has hung up (I'm assuming it's before I hang up, but I'll have to try it out to be sure). The rep told me it's $1.59 each time, but after three instances of your tracing the same number, they will investigate and send a "nasty letter" that tells them to stop calling your number immediately "or else." He said he basically makes it sound as if they are going to send the law after them if they don't stop calling you. The reason I prefer this is because I want that damn company to know they can't do this kind of crap and get away with it. But those were the only two options presented to me by Qwest. Lissa said on 05/04/04 @ 04:48 PM: Update: Apparently, this is how you use call trace -- After receiving the annoying call, you hang up for at least two seconds, pick up the receiver, and dial *57. I looked this information up online, but haven't tried it yet, so can't say what happens after you dial. Hopefully, this will pressure the company to stop calling. Mary said on 05/10/04 @ 10:46 AM: I live in Central Virginia - between Richmond and Charlottesville. I get a call from 770-956-7025 about weekly. My caller ID says it's "Georgia." They always hang up when I answer. I called them and got an answering machine with a nice Georgia drawl announcing I'd reached the Charitable and Non-profit Fundraising Group - or some name like that. If you'd like to make a donation, please leave a message with your name and number and the name of the organization you wish to donate to.... I told them to stop hanging up on me when I answer because how can I donate money if they don't at least say hello? I tried Lissa's call trace suggestion. I dialed *57 an hour after "Georgia" called and got a message that the number was being traced. Thanks for sharing all the information here. It really helps! staceyb0711 said on 05/12/04 @ 12:14 PM: 720-744-7365 is a telemarketing service company in GA callek JAK. In order to be removed from their list, you can contact Skip Stogsdill at sstogsdill@cppa.net or call 800.320.2772. Gary said on 05/17/04 @ 03:38 PM: Oh My God! I thought I was the only one being harrassed unmercifully by the 770-956-7025 number as well as a new one from Ga. 770-226-9632. So sorry to see that you guys are being aggravated as well. I have been lucky enough to actually leave a voice mail message on the so called 'charitable foundations' machine...I even threatend to go down there ( Old Hammond Rd in Marietta Ga) and do bodily harm if they did not take me off their list....to no avail...they still call. Any way....go to Guidestar.com to see if they are a legit organization...if so...call the BBB in Marietta GA and make a complaint. Good luck. Gary said on 05/17/04 @ 03:56 PM: disregard the web site guidestar.com unless you have $75 per month to burn...it used to be free...now they want the cash. Call the Better Business Bureau in Marietta Georgia to research further. Liz said on 05/22/04 @ 09:18 AM: I'm another unhappy Coloradoan gett ing these calls also. Some in the State may remember that a while back Qwest automatically signed everyone up for a "that number is busy. For $.75 Qwest will redial it for you." I worked for an ISP on the Western Slope and customers couldn't even get through to our access numbers (which we knew were not busy!) We told customers to call Qwest and have them remove this "feature" from their phone service. All reported their busy signals went down by 30%. It's almsot as if Qwest was making calls busy so we'd have to pay $.75 to get through. Now I wonder if they are selling our names (they need the money for legal fees) and then charging us $1.75 for call trace to make it stop. Jody Wahl said on 05/25/04 @ 09:41 AM: From: www.cppa.net/whatsnew.htm The Colorado Police Protective Association has contracted JAK Productions to do Colorado residential telemarketing. Contributions are not tax deductible due to the Colorado Police Protective Association's particular tax status for federal income tax purposes. The CPPA is a 501 (c) (8). The CPPA is guaranteed $93,000 or 15% of the total gross received from the fund-raising drive conducted by JAK Productions. The CPPA's Colorado registration # is 20023004090 JAK Production's Colorado registration # is 20023003576 From phone listings: JAK Productions Inc 4501 Circle 75 Parkway Northwest, Atlanta, GA 30303 (770) 612-1386 JAK Productions may need to be registered to conduct business in your particular state. The registration information on file may provide you with additional contact information regarding the nonprofit organization that has hired JAK. I encourage you to file complaints (preferably in writing) with the charitable solicitation regulation office in your state and send a copy to the FTC. If you would like your telephone number removed from the calling list please contact the CPPA office either by telephone or email at 800.320.2772 or cppa@cppa.net and leave the entire telephone number to include area code that you want removed. It takes five business days to process your request. jodi said on 05/25/04 @ 06:49 PM: Heh.. me too...I live in Boulder and am harrassed by the phantom 770.956.7025 and it's driving me crazy as well! I've picked up a couple times when they've called and yelled #4@!*& at them and told them to take me off their list, but I never let them get a word in edge-wise, so I don't know if anyone was on the other end! lol. Anyway, I went to the website www.donotcall.gov and filed a complaint against this company. The only catch is that you have to have your own number registered on the "do not call" website for 3 months. We'll see if this works. Glad to know I'm not alone... Jo Freeman said on 06/01/04 @ 07:15 AM: JAK Productions, Inc., aka Area Services, is a registered professional solicitor that contracts with charities to solicit contributions for them. 38 states regulate charitable solicitations and can do the same for their consumers. Web site links to state regulator offices can be found at www.nasconet.org. For your information, the Federal Trade Commission is very interested in these type of complaints, too. Under their Telemarketing Sales Rule, solicitors calling for charities are required to honor potential donors' requests to be put on their in-house do not call lists. Failure to do so is a prosecutable offense. I suspect that failure to provide consumers with the opportunity to ask to be put on such a list would also be an offense, since the law that created the National Do Not Call Registry covers harrassing hang-up calls (call abandonment). The FTC's Web site also has a link for filing complaints at www.ftc.gov. joetta said on 06/01/04 @ 04:15 PM: it appears the phantom 770-956-7025 has moved into the virginia beach, virgina area. i googled the number and found all of you. thanks for the info. Jim said on 06/06/04 @ 08:19 PM: I'm just another Coloradan with similar experiences with 770-956-7025. Just when I thought I was alone out there, I found you guys! Your comments are very helpful, and I plan to start applying some pressure to eliminate this pest. Here's some not-so-good news: I've started getting hit by 770-690-8489 - same symptoms. Anyone else? JIm said on 06/08/04 @ 07:34 AM: It seems that JAK is "moving around". This time from Virginia with the number 678-627-0358. There was a live person at the other end instead of the usual phantom caller. He promptly hung-up after giving me the name JAK and the usual charity speech. Judd said on 06/19/04 @ 01:06 PM: The company that is causing this problem is called JAK Productions, Inc. Their address is 4501 Circle 75 Parkway, NW, Atlanta, GA 30303. Their phone number is 770-612-1386 although you will only get a voice mail. Please note that they are not located in Marietta and if you have called or written the BBB for Marietta then you may have unwittingly affected a local company in Marietta that does video services (not related that I am aware of or could see on their corporate filings). Feel free to e-mail the Secretary of State of Georgia sosweb@sos.state.ga.us and the head of the Corporations Division for Georgia jjackson@sos.state.ga.us Here is another link showing that JAK is listed in Georgia as an unca=haritable charity due to the fact that they keep 86% of the funds they collect. http://www.sos.state.ga.us/securities/uncharitable_charities_2003/uncharitable_charities.htm I encourage you to send this info. to your State Attorney General. I am trying to determine if there is a way to file a suit against this company. I will keep you posted. Laurie said on 06/22/04 @ 11:04 AM: Hello, I was beginning to wonder if this was a problem that other people were experience. I am in NO VA and got one call on Sunday from 770 690-8489 and last night from 770 956-7025. I have been getting the calls for quite awhile but didn't really pick up on the problem until recently. But not sure what can be done. When I do call them back it is either busy or I get a voice mail. It is very annoying as they always hang up. What about contacting the FCC since they own the Do Not Call list? Jim said on 06/24/04 @ 06:26 AM: I live in Richmond, Va. I get harrassed so much by 770-956-7025 that I decided to google it . I see that I am not alone. Victoria said on 06/25/04 @ 07:56 PM: I, too, have rec'd so many calls that I decided to google it to see what would happen. I have already reported this number 3 times. The amount of calls I get from them is unbelievable. Karen said on 06/27/04 @ 02:47 PM: I am a Denver resident who has just started receiving multiple calls from the 770-956-7025 number and ran a google and found this page. Using the information from the posting by Jody, I have e-mailed Colorado Police Protective Association to let them know the negative impact their organization is receiving because of JAK Productions tactics. It will be interesting to see if that solves my problem. POLITICAL CALLS!!! My solution...DO NOT PUT YOU PHONE NUMBER ON YOUR VOTER REGISTRATION. If your phone number is on a voter registration list...have it removed. Let ALL voters in your home know not to list a number. Do not put your phone number or e-mail address on anything unsless you want it passed along. I no longer drop my name into boxes at the mall to win a car or a vacuum. Ordering from certain catalogue companies can really cause problems. Suggestion....if you hand out our e-mail to places that might share the address...create a junk mail address at one of the free sites. I have one that became trashed years ago and I still use it just for junk purposes. Rod said on 06/30/04 @ 07:29 AM: You are not alone!! I too live in the Richmond area and am going absolutely nuts from 770-956-7025. You can't file a complaint to the do not call list, because they are a charity. My wife has already spoke to the attorney general in Georgia and is calling her back once again today. We should file a class action suit against these bastards! ust to get them in court would be sweet! Doug said on 06/30/04 @ 08:04 AM: Hey, looks I'm the newest member of the Georgia hang up club. I live in Williamsburg, VA and have never made a charitable donation to anyone besides throwing change in the Salvation Army pots in front of the store at Christmas. Last I checked in VA you can take this to local courts once you have asked them to remove you and they continue to call. You WILL receive payment for each violation the judge deems willfull. I first received a call from 678-627-0358 at 8:15AM and the next day from 770-226-9632 at 9:15 AM. I'll be waiting for the 10:30 AM call tomorrow. Just FYI for everyone there is another DoNotCall list run by the DMA-Direct Marketing Association that you can sign up for to reduce your telemarketing calls and even e-mails. Check the web at www.dmaconsumers.org once you've signed up you will be processed on their next list (which is done quarterly) and all companies that are registered with them are required not to call. This reduced our calls drastically within 3 months. Good luck out there and I'm on board for anything to stop this harassment. Nannette said on 06/30/04 @ 12:05 PM: I have called the Georgia Attorney General's office again. I was told I had to file any complaints with my state's department of consumer affairs which I have done. I suggest all of you file complaints in your respective states. I called the number(s) back --770-956-7025 and 770-690-8489 and they are supposedly named "Charitable and non-profit organization" - sounds like a shady name to me. I also was able to leave a voice mail telling them to take my number off their list and not to call again. Didn't work last time so I don't anticipate it working this time. AAARRRRGGGHHHHH Nannette said on 06/30/04 @ 12:53 PM: Ok, I know who they are :-) I remember when I spoke to them before, I asked them who they were calling for. They are calling on behalf of the Virginia Fraternal Order of Police. I called the FOP and asked if they deal with a solcitation company in georgia with the 770 number and i was told yes! The lady asked for my number and said that she would have them take my number off. If y'all want the number of the FOP it is 1-800-367-0317. It may take a few days but your number should be removed. Michael said on 06/30/04 @ 01:04 PM: I live in Richmond, VA and I just got a call from the 770 956 7025 number myself. Like a lot of you I googled the number and found this page. I guess if I get another call, I'll give that number Nannette provided a try. I didn't bother to answer the phone since I generally don't answer calls I'm not expecting, especialyl from out of state. JANET said on 07/07/04 @ 01:39 PM: LATEST VICTIM OF HARRASSMENT HERE....WOW, I THOUGHT I WAS ALONE, WHAT A SUPRISE......I AM SO READY TO JUST TURN THE PHONE OFF AND USE MY CELL........GEEZ........GOOD LUCK!! SMF said on 07/09/04 @ 08:32 AM: Hello, Well... I got a live person at 800.320.2772 - The Colorado Police Protective Association. He was incredibly nice and VERY apologetic about how their contracted telemarketing company has been treating the people they are calling. It's something that is being worked on. I asked him to add my number to their list. He took it and said it would take 5 business days to process. I am so tired of the relentless calls - DAILY from JAK. I am going to repost Jodi's comments from May below because if you live in Colorado, it appear that following her directions below should stop these calls. Shelly said on 07/09/04 @ 08:33 AM: Jody Wahl said on 05/25/04 @ 09:41 AM: From: www.cppa.net/whatsnew.htm The Colorado Police Protective Association has contracted JAK Productions to do Colorado residential telemarketing. Contributions are not tax deductible due to the Colorado Police Protective Association's particular tax status for federal income tax purposes. The CPPA is a 501 (c) (8). The CPPA is guaranteed $93,000 or 15% of the total gross received from the fund-raising drive conducted by JAK Productions. The CPPA's Colorado registration # is 20023004090 JAK Production's Colorado registration # is 20023003576 From phone listings: JAK Productions Inc 4501 Circle 75 Parkway Northwest, Atlanta, GA 30303 (770) 612-1386 JAK Productions may need to be registered to conduct business in your particular state. The registration information on file may provide you with additional contact information regarding the nonprofit organization that has hired JAK. I encourage you to file complaints (preferably in writing) with the charitable solicitation regulation office in your state and send a copy to the FTC. If you would like your telephone number removed from the calling list please contact the CPPA office either by telephone or email at 800.320.2772 or cppa@cppa.net and leave the entire telephone number to include area code that you want removed. It takes five business days to process your request. Sandy said on 07/09/04 @ 09:19 AM: I am from Colorado and have just gotten my first call from 678 627 0358. After searching the number on the internet, this site came up. I pay for a private, non published number. It aggrivates me that anyone would dare to share my phone number. I have in the past given donations to the Police Association Chas said on 07/09/04 @ 05:06 PM: Yep. Colorado Springs, CO here. Been getting this call for several weeks now. I come home from work and it's on my caller ID. But it says: Neighborhood Outreach 770 690 8489 I was begining to wonder if something was going on. Now I know it's just spam. What's weird is I have tried to pick up a couple times and it just disconnects me. Why do they call me if they don't want to talk to me? They never leave a message either. jtk said on 07/10/04 @ 08:31 AM: anyone know anything about 770-226-9632 nomprofit development? Doug said on 07/10/04 @ 01:51 PM: These numbers have called me the indicated number of times in the last six months: 34 770-956-7025 17 954-935-4140 14 800-448-2755 11 887-767-8930 11 518-587-2500 8 888-797-5686 In case this is of use to anyone. Antigone said on 07/12/04 @ 07:00 AM: Be on the lookout for 800-379-8414. Believe it or not, it is a porn telemarketer. I googled the number from my Caller ID. Antigone said on 07/12/04 @ 07:00 AM: Be on the lookout for 800-379-8414. Believe it or not, it is a porn telemarketer. I googled the number from my Caller ID. L said on 07/13/04 @ 04:52 PM: I have been receiving these calls as well, along with a 248-569-2247--- a modeling agency in MI---????. I work at a local phone company and by law if you ask to be removed off the calling list they MUST do or risk being fined by the FCC. From what I hear it is a hefty fine. I suggest you call the number back, leave a message (if the box isn't full--keep trying I got thru) stating your name, number with area code, and that you want your name removed from their calling list. If they don't contact the Federal Communication Commison and you local State agency and report them. Also document the times you call and leave the message and what number. Since it is all under the same buisness it should take care of it. L said on 07/13/04 @ 05:19 PM: also call the 800 numbers above and hang up--like they do you, remember they have to pay for those calls, lol. danielle said on 07/14/04 @ 03:51 PM: wow. im still confused. im in GA and i just got called by the 770.690.8489 number. caller id says "neighborhood outreach." the guy was a jerk and continually gave me obscure answers when i tried to find out what company he was from. i asked to speak to a manager and he said ok. after a long silence i heard him whisper "brian wilson brian wilson" over and over again. then he said it really load, laughed and hung up. i called the number back and it was routed to a voice mail box that of course was full. BKHDENCO said on 07/17/04 @ 07:32 PM: I HAVE BEEN GETTING CALLS FROM THESE NUMBERS FOR OVER A MONTH. I FINALLY DECIDED TO GOOGLE THE 678 NUMBER AFTER THEY ONCE AGAIN CALLED AT 11am TODAY. I AM CONFUSED AS HOW TO HANDLE THESE. I HAVE BEEN ON THE COLORADO AND NATIONAL NO-CALL LISTS SINCE THEY WERE IMPLIMENTED. PUBLIC OUTREACH 678-627-0358 NONPROFIT DEVEL 770-226-9632 NEIGHBOR OUTREA 770-690-8489 AREA SERVICES 770-956-7025 Jo Freeman said on 07/29/04 @ 01:50 PM: I hear you, but desperately need your help to take these guys to court. PLEASE, all VIRGINIANS, go to our state Web site, www.vdacs.state.va.us, click on the big yellow button for Consumer Assistance, and download the complaint form (7th option on the assistance menu). I have Nanette's complaint. I need lots more and we can all go together to bring an action against JAK. I cannot do it without you folks as witnesses. COLORADANS, I have contacted your state regulator and notified him of the new complaints on this site. I hope he will put out a message for you, too. JAK - if you're monitoring these messages, too, we've "got your number." Shari said on 08/02/04 @ 05:12 AM: I live in northern VA and have been getting bombarded with these calls. I did the same thing as everyone else: I googled it and discovered this site. I called the VFOP as suggested by Nanette and the calls disappeared. Well, JAK is real cutesy because apparently they have a batch of newf numbers and have started their harrassment tactics again. These numbers are 866-785-0505, 877-300-3504, 877-827-2921, 888-243-0573, 888-832-2237. I've received calls from these numbers all in the last week. Once again I have called VFOP and they have agreed to remove my number but I believe I have grounds for a lawsuit now that they have ignored my request. Is this correct? I just don't understand how they can get away with this for so long. Obviously they are not really a charity although they claim to be. Jo Freeman: I will do as you ask but I really don't get how they have been able to get away with this for so long. Jo Freeman said on 08/02/04 @ 09:43 AM: They have "gotten away" with it because folks fail to file complaints with our office. We need more than one or two complaints in order to recommend an action. The Federal Trade Commission needs even more complaints than we do, since they regulate nationwide. Folks, please help me to do my job and file those complaints with my office. I can help those who received calls in Virginia. Chris Cash said on 08/06/04 @ 04:04 PM: As Jo Freeman and Jody Wahl have noted, it is important to send complaints to regulators. Coloradans can send a complaint about JAK Productions or any other paid solicitor to the Colorado Secretary of State, Licensing Division, Attn: Charities Program Manager, 1560 Broadway Ste. 200, Denver, CO 80202. Useful information that we encourage you to provide includes: (1) age group of complainant (18-to-60, or over 60), (2) name, address, phone number, e-mail address, and web address of entity you are complaining against, (3) name of person with whom you dealt, (4) date of transaction or solicitation, (5) whether or not you made a donation to the solicitor or charity, and if so, the dollar amount and the method of payment (cash, money order, credit card, direct debit from bank account, other). It would also be helpful if you could provide your own name, address, phone number and/or email address, so we can contact you if we have questions. Anonymous complaints will be accepted, however. You can also phone (303) 894-2200 ext. 6408, send an email to charitable@sos.state.co.us, or use the internet form at www.sos.state.co.us - Licensing Division. Complaints concerning the Colorado No-Call list can be made at (888) 600-5688, or via the internet at www.coloradonocall.com, but as we know, the Colorado DNC does not cover charities or their paid solicitors. Complaints about hangups, harrassment, and failure to be put on internal do-not-call lists can be directed to the Federal Trade Commission at 877-382-4357 or www.ftc.gov. Angela said on 08/19/04 @ 07:14 AM: I have a question. Is this number 877-827-2921 a solicitation for charity? They called me, but I didn't answer. I am on the Do Not Call list too! Thanks Pam said on 08/24/04 @ 06:46 AM: Received call from 877-300-3504. Will file a complaint. Meg said on 08/31/04 @ 08:09 AM: Wow!! I am from upstate NY so it is obvious this problem is "spreading". We started receving calls about two weeks ago from this number and as of today, they are calling at least five times a day. At first, I thought that someone was just calling the wrong number because everytime I answered, they would hang up. Finally, I called the number back and a message came up thanking me for returning their call and that they offered vacation homes. I just hung up. Then I googled the number 954-935-4140 and it let me to this web site... I am glad that I did. This site has been so helpful. It amazes me, and annoys me, that so many people are being affected by these calls. I will definitely do whatever I can to stop them.....dialing *57, contacting BBB, and my phone company. Thank you all for your help. Angela said on 09/02/04 @ 12:37 PM: I continue to get these calls. The most frequent one is 888-243-0573 I have also received calls from 877-827-2921 Thankfully I googled them and found this site! Gary House said on 09/02/04 @ 05:49 PM: Here we go again.....months ago I was unmercifully harrassed by the 770-956-7025...after calling them back ( and never getting a live human being) and basically threatening bodily harm they eventually stopped...now they are calling with a different number..877-300-3504..it doesn't matter who you call to complain etc..these people just change their number and keep on calling. Joe Whistler said on 09/04/04 @ 07:58 PM: 877-300-3504 Remember this number.. and complain to someone who willl listen. Like the FCC Got a call from them this afternoon...Saturday. Gary said on 09/06/04 @ 10:05 AM: Ye-haw! call your phonce companyand invest the advanced call intercept feature and block up to 10 phone numbers! P.S....I recieved a call from the 877-300-3540 number today...I actually talked to a live person there who was a total jerk when I asked to be removed from their call list. I recited his business address and intimated about the possibility of a personal and unpleasant visit by me in the near future and the conversation then ended quickly....anyway...get call intercept and get piece of mind. Cheryl said on 09/07/04 @ 03:11 PM: I found this page after doing a search for JAK productions...The charity only gets 15%? That's pathetic. The Colorado Police Protective Association has contracted JAK Productions to do Colorado residential telemarketing. Contributions are not tax deductible due to the Colorado Police Protective Association's particular tax status for federal income tax purposes. The CPPA is a 501 (c) (8). The CPPA is guaranteed $93,000 or 15% of the total gross received from the fund-raising drive conducted by JAK Productions. The CPPA's Colorado registration # is 20023004090 JAK Production's Colorado registration # is 20023003576 If you would like your telephone number removed from the calling list please contact the CPPA office either by telephone or email at 800.320.2772 or cppa@cppa.net and leave the entire telephone number to include area code that you want removed. It takes five business days to process your request. Anonymous said on 09/16/04 @ 06:57 AM: I live in Northern Virginia. I've been getting these the last few days. The numbers I've been called from have been: 866-785-0505 888-243-0573 866-845-1834 ...and one that showed up on Caller ID as "POL PROTCT FUND" which I didn't answer. The number was: 727-449-9646 JW said on 09/25/04 @ 06:11 AM: I keep getting calls from 888-243-0573 and 888-832-2232. These apparent telemarketer(s) will call my house and let the phone ring once--then hang up...they also call several times over approximately an hour period--each time letting the phone ring from 1-4 times before hanging up. Of course these a-holes call at inconvenient times; this week's calls have started as early as 8:00am on Saturday (today) and as late as 8:30pm on several nights earlier this week. I hate to be rude with telemarketers, but these antics should be a **bleep** felony!!!! HELP!!!! JW said on 09/25/04 @ 06:12 AM: I also live in northern VA and keep getting calls from 888-243-0573 and 888-832-2232. These apparent telemarketer(s) will call my house and let the phone ring once--then hang up...they also call several times over approximately an hour period--each time letting the phone ring from 1-4 times before hanging up. Of course these a-holes call at inconvenient times; this week's calls have started as early as 8:00am on Saturday (today) and as late as 8:30pm on several nights earlier this week. I hate to be rude with telemarketers, but these antics should be a **bleep** felony!!!! HELP!!!! Paul said on 09/25/04 @ 10:50 AM: I live in northern Colorado and have used Qwest's "security screen" service for the last few years and it has worked extemely well. No calls from any solicitors except charities I have donated to in the past. It costs about $3/month. Recently I tried turning it off, thinking that Colorado's don-not-call list would be sufficient and was disappointed -- I'm going to turn the security screen back on. The downside to using the security screen is that people calling you that have caller id blocked will have to type in their phone number when they call you. Jeff said on 09/27/04 @ 08:12 AM: I've been getting numerous calls from 10 different 800, 877, & 866 #'s as early as 8 am. I am on both the State & Federal DO NOT Call List. Here is the list of numbers. 888-243-0573 866-785-0505 800-704-1645 800-454-1212 800-990-1906 877-827-2921 866-288-8879 866-845-1834 888-832-2237 877-300-3504 Most of them are from JAK Productions Inc. registered at 4501 Circle 75 Pkwy NW Atlanta GA. 30303. I called a Justin Daiye @ 770-612-1386 today and asked to be removed from their telemarketing list. We will see how this works. Good Luck getting off of this NON Charitable Charity List. (They keep about 85% of the funds raised) Sara said on 09/29/04 @ 07:16 AM: I'm in Pennsylvania, and I just received a call from 800-379-8414 (Caller ID said the name was "unknown"). I didn't answer, and they didn't leave a message. What gets me upset is that I'm registered with both the state and federal no-call lists. When this number called a couple of months ago, I answered, and rather than trying to sell me something, they hung up on me. So I filed a complaint against this number with my state. The response I got from the great Commonwealth of PA is that I didn't provide enough information for them to investigate. The guy hung up on me! What kind of information (besides the phone number) could I provide? It's so frustrating! Everett said on 09/29/04 @ 03:21 PM: We received a Phone Call from 866-845-1834 which my wife answered. The person was requesring a contribution for Police Officers killed in action. He was not a Policeman and was very persistent about taking NO for an answer. My wife had no way of knowing it this was a SCAM. We do not agree to any negotions on the telephone. We are on the NO CALL LIST. Gary said on 09/30/04 @ 04:12 AM: Get 'Call Intercept' with the additional feature of 'call block' ( up to 10 numbers)....and your problems with this charitable and non profit nuisance will go away....I did...and I have not had any more calls. Sara said on 09/30/04 @ 08:15 AM: I have 'Caller ID with name', 'Call Intercept', and 'Call Block'. The problem with all this is that you can only block up to ten phone numbers, so if there are more than ten companies calling or they utilize multiple phone numbers (one company could have use of 100 phone numbers), you can't block everyone. I have to admit that with 'Call Intercept', the number of calls has lessened, but I think all businesses, charities, surveys, etc. should be required to have their phone number AND name show up on 'Caller ID'. I really hate when the phone rings and there's a number but "unknown" or "unavailable" for the name. Another Verizon feature I've used is 'Call Trace *57'. This lets Verizon know there's a problem caller and if they see the same number enough times, they involve the police. L said on 10/02/04 @ 02:16 PM: I did a search at this site: http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/consumers/index.html And this is what I found on them. (770) 612-1386 Primary Name: JAK Productions, Inc. Other Names: Area Services Federal Employer ID Number (EIN) 531597985 Address: 4501 Circle 75 Parkway Atlanta GA, 30339 Current Registration Expires: 2005-06-03 00:00:00 Registration Extended Until: N/A Registration Filing Status: Professional Solicitor - registered to solicit IRS Filing Status: PROFIT (click to link to GuideStar.org* for additional information) Kris said on 10/04/04 @ 02:18 PM: I've gotten two of these calls in a week. The number that shows up on my caller id is 877-300-3504. The first time, after MUCH prodding, I got the person to tell me who was calling. They then asked me if I was the lady of the house. I replied,"I ain't no lady!" and hung up. The second time my husband answered the call and the person asked if he was the "man of the house." My husband replied,"Hang on, let me ask my wife" and hung up. I'm waiting for my next call! plj said on 10/18/04 @ 06:08 PM: I received a call from 877-827-2921 today. I Googled the phone number and found this website. i would not normally place a message here, I but I thought it was important enough that other visitors should know. I'm on the Do Not Call List, so there aren't many ways to get my number. Something should be done about the entity using this number. Mike said on 10/22/04 @ 08:09 AM: I get probably 4-5 calls a day from those numbers listed. They have called 8am sunday and one time almost 11pm at night. I also am on a do not call list. We should come together to stop these calls. Also I saw one post listed a Virginia web site. I am in Virginia and the question being are most of us getting these calls in Virginia? Mike said on 10/22/04 @ 08:18 AM: Well I thought you guys should know I talked to a cop friend of mine and he said to file a complaint with your local law enfocement for harrasment. And if the calls continue after making a few complaints you could get a restraining order probably, then if they call serious legal action could be taken for violationg a restraining order. Heather said on 10/24/04 @ 05:50 AM: I have also been getting these calls. I live in South Florida Mike said on 10/29/04 @ 04:20 PM: 800-704-1645 is the Purple Heart (or the soliciting company used by Purple Heart) Jim said on 10/30/04 @ 03:48 PM: I get bugged daily by 905-482-1663, 866-288-8879. Also, 251-666-7633 (Mobile, AL) All this in little ole Harrisonburg, VA imzcat said on 10/31/04 @ 12:29 PM: I'm on the Do Not Call list as well. I received a call from 877-827-2921 today. I didn't answer the phone because I didn't recognize the number and figured it was something I wasn't interested in. Apparently I was right. Diane said on 11/03/04 @ 04:48 PM: I received four phone calls today alone, from 866-785-0505, 866-288-8879, 888-832-2237 and 877-300-3504. My husband also dealt with multiple calls from a Virginia Police Association. I called back and left a nasty message, then not 10 minutes later got ANOTHER call, this time with a live person. Needless to say, I gave her an earful! I told her I was looking at a Web site where people across the country were complaining about her company, and told her that in keeping with the regulations of the National Do Not Call List, regardless of who she is representing, she was to IMMEDIATELY remove my telephone number from their lists. She said okay. We'll see! But I feel better. :) --Diane Diane said on 11/04/04 @ 07:49 AM: I called the FTC to complain about this "gray area" where a for-profit company can call on behalf of a non-profit organization. In essense, JAK Productions is "selling" me a charity and that is in direct violation of the Do Not Call List. The FTC said they want you to call and report this to them. Call 1-800-FTC-HELP and file a complaint! Laura said on 11/11/04 @ 10:32 AM: I have received more than 30 calls from the following numbers: 877-300-3504, 866-288-8879, 866-785-0505, 866-243-0573, 800-650-3839. I am so grateful to have found this site and will file a complaint with the Virginia office Jo Freeman references. It appears JAK Productions will just keep changing their numbers until they are shut down. Lane said on 11/15/04 @ 12:12 PM: I am also getting calls nearly every day from 866-288-8879 and they don't seem to get the message that we don't want to talk to them. Good luck you all! :-) Sue said on 11/18/04 @ 09:00 PM: I don't normally post to these things, but I've been receiving 3-4 calls from the number 1-866-785-0505. I didn't answer the phone because I didn't recognize the number, but they didn't leave a message either. I googled the number out of curiosity and found this web site. For an extremely brief period I worked for JAK Productions. I was in college and got sucked into it. I was placed on the telemarketing calls (for the National Lukemia Foundation) for less than two weeks and then I worked as a secretary because I could not do the calls. I didn't feel right taking pledges from people because I wasn't even sure that particular charity even existed! This company really is terrible!! It is extremely sexist...the males are used for police and firefighter charites and women are used for "sympathy" charites...unless a woman has a deep voice, then she is allowed to call with the males. All I witnessed was sex and drugs within the office and I just couldn't stomach it. They will call and call and call. If you tell them to remove you, all they have to do is hit one button on the keyboard to purge your number from the system, so don't believe that it takes 30 days...that is complete BS. However, most of them are young kids and they will keep your number in the system and type in a message telling the next employee that gets your number to mess with you. To those who want to file a lawsuit...go for it!! The company was started and owned by John Keller. He is filthy rich, though, and can afford a battle in court. My advice (and I'm going to do this tomrow when, that's right when not if, they call) is to tell them you're going to pledge $100. You can give them a phony address if you want, or just have it sent to you. They can't do jack to you if you do not send in the pledge...but you will get some letters "reminding" you to send in your pledge. I say if they're not going to respect your privacy and remove your number from their system, then give them a taste of their own medicine in the only way you can!!!!! Hope this helps someone...if you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me. Barbara said on 11/20/04 @ 03:54 PM: I have received SIX calls from the following numbers today alone! 877-827-2921 (3 calls) 866-288-8879 (1 call) 866-785-0505 (2 calls) This all between 0958-1836 today. I live in Virginia and in September I was called by an "800 number service" and decided to answer the call. It was the Virginia State Police Association asking for a donation. I asked if this would make my phone ring off the hook if I donated and I was told "no." LIES!!!! It rings EVERYDAY since. I will try the software listed early on if it is still available and see if that helps. I will also see if my local phone service has 800 number call block. If so, I will subscribe to prevent future calls. Will keep you posted. Sheri S. said on 11/22/04 @ 02:26 PM: Here in PHilly I'm getting bugged with the 905--482--1663 daily as well. NO one is on the other end when you answer it, so half the time my phone will ring until our voicemail picks it up. They never leave a message. Harvey said on 11/24/04 @ 10:59 AM: Is there anyone to whom I can report a frequent nuisance that is tying up my cell phone and causing me charges? The number is 954-935-4140. Gary said on 11/26/04 @ 04:26 PM: Like I said in earlier posts....get call block from your phone company! I have not had a call from any of the above mentioned numbers for several months now. True, they may change numbers everyonce in a while but even that has a nominal cost for them. So..just delete one of the 10 you can store and put in the new one...or...ask your phone company for extra space James said on 11/28/04 @ 10:14 AM: I've been receiving calls from 866-785-0505. I tried to call the FTC complaint number listed above (1-800-FTC-HELP posted by Diane 11/4/04) but it connected me with somebody else. Does anyone know the correct number? Gary said on 11/28/04 @ 05:01 PM: don't waste your time complaining....get call block. Look at all the previous posts over the last couple of months tell you to call here and complain and call there to complain...has the Nuisance been shut down yet? No. Get call block! Jen said on 11/30/04 @ 05:47 PM: I am in upstate NY and like others, am now getting calls from 800-379-8414. I gave to the Fraternal Order of Police in the past, all my new calls are also related to the police, when I pick up. Unfortunately, I don't have caller ID and have to do *69 whenever I'm curious about who called. Also, one of the police charity phone calls I received, I asked them what kinds of programs the organization has. The guy didn't even know and just gave me a website for me to look it up. I told him I would look it up and call him back if I decided to give him any money. He said, we can't give out our number, so can we put you down for $25? Then you can check out the website and give more if you like the programs. I eventually had to hang up on him since I won't give my money to someone who won't tell me what he's going to do with it. grrrr.... Tammy said on 12/03/04 @ 09:29 AM: I'm in Longmont, CO, and 877-300-3503 has begun calling me and hanging up. If I don't answer, no message is left. If I do answer, they hang up on me. I googled the # and found this Web page. Thanks to everyone for writing in and explaining who these nuts are. I worked till 3am last night, and they called early this morning, woke me up and hung up on me. I am definitely going to try blocking their calls. Linda said on 12/03/04 @ 03:41 PM: I live in the Atlanta area and get these calls daily now. I have caller ID and the numbers are 866-785-0505, 888-832-2237, 877-300-3504, 866-845-1834, and 888-451-5983. Caller ID shows them as "Tollfree Number" so I have tried calling them back, but either get a busy signal or a recorded message. So far they have called while I'm at work, so haven't yet been able to get the phone when they call. Google led me here. BTW, I am also on the national Do Not Call List. Tammy said on 12/07/04 @ 09:34 AM: This is a follow-up to my earlier post. I talked to Qwest, which sold me their "caller rejection" package for $8.50 installation and $4.50 per month. But after the service was installed, I discovered that toll-free calls cannot be blocked. So, now I've canceled the caller rejection package. I can't use the "No Soliciting" service they offer, which has a recording telling solicitors not to call, because I work at home and get a lot of international calls and that message would blow the minds of many of my callers. I think it's really awful that I'm forced to receive hang-up calls daily from 888-243-0573, 877-300-3504 and 866-785-0505. Tracy said on 12/08/04 @ 05:17 PM: What's up with all the Colorado calls? We live in Denver and have been on the no-call list since 2003 and have had an unlisted number for longer than that. Suddenly, we have been getting calls from 866-785-0505, 877-827-2921, 877-300-3504, 877-827-2921, 888-832-2237, etc... that *always* hang-up. Called one back (after checking that it was not a fee-for-call area code) and got a voicemail message that it was "Charitable ..." and the mailbox was full (DUH!!). Why all of a sudden and mostly us in Colorado?? jeff m said on 12/09/04 @ 12:51 PM: You all are a bunch of morons. *The National Do Not Call list DOES NOT APPLY to fundraising on behalf of Police, Firefighter groups, Charitable and politica groups! As you all know, those are the types of organizations that need support from the public and were not the type of calls lawmakers have intended to stop!!! *I work for JAK. That's right. It's a living. Deal with it. And, when people say anything stupid to me, I reschedule them for a call back! If you kindly refuse me... I'll put your number in the refusal bin. If you pledge, I will love you! If you cuss me out... I will laugh at you! You people aren't cool cussing out telemarketers or using clever methods of prolonging a call or getting rid of us. In fact, we get paid regardless. And don't hang up on me in the middle of my pitch... I will just reschedule you for a call back. If you're polite and nice to me, I'll return the favor. However, if you are a moronic douchebag, odds are I will fight fire with fire. Jeff M. Editor's Note: Jeff: Up until this point, the comments here have been constructive. The only reason I'm leaving this comment up here is so that everybody knows how big of assholes some of you telephone folks are. Everybody, this guy's IP address when he posted this was "12.20.121.52" and his e-mail is jaft_boss@yahoo.com (both are probably fake). If he's going to be a prick to you, feel free to be a prick to him. gary said on 12/09/04 @ 05:03 PM: Dear Jeff M.; your kind of rhetoric and threats is just enough to file a complaint with the FTC and FCC not to mention the local police dept. in your town. You just crossed the line buddy....start looking for a knock on your door by the police. gary said on 12/09/04 @ 05:07 PM: If anyone else would like to respond to Mr. Jeff M. then send email to his address at Jaft_boss@yahoo.com. Make complaints to his yahoo server and lets get him shut down. Don't make threats Jeff...you never know who might be a law enforcement offical of some government type on these posts who could very easily check you out and make life difficult. Josephine said on 12/10/04 @ 11:21 AM: Thanks so much for your site -- I received a call at 8:40 this a.m. and was so incensed I googled it, found your site, realized all the other 888 and 877 numbers I received were from the same group, realized I wasn't alone, realized they weren't going to stop, and sent this message out to vfop: To: vafop@aol.com Sent: Friday, December 10, 2004 10:51 AM Subject: Complaint about your fundraising efforts You have a problem that you should address as soon as possible. I understand that you may have contracted with JAk Productions to help with fundraising for your organization. Please note the following link, which contains numerous complaints about JAK Productions. This is not a minor problem; the only reason I know about this site is because JAk Productions has annoyed me so much that I looked up their numbers. http://utterlyboring.com/archives/2003/07/06/do_not_call_list_red_hot_big_loopholes.php You should be aware that this organization calls and hangs up at least five times a day. This morning, they called at 8:40 a.m. That was the last straw. When I called them back on their calle-rID identified numbers, all I got was a recording. That's when I recognized them as the same group that harrassed me a few months ago. After they had called me at 7:40 a.m. one Saturday morning (and hung up), I called that number, got the same recording, and told them never to call me back. Apparently my call was meaningless to them. These numbers are 866-785-0505, 877-300-3504, 877-827-2921, 888-243-0573, 888-832-2237, 888-844-8332, 800-690-6978, and possibly 678-992-2430. All of the above either lead to the same recording, or are always busy. These numbers are also identified on the website of complaints. Prior to this morning, I might have considered your charity for my 2004 CFC donation. I understand that you have been contacted about it since at least April of this year about this organization, which is why I am unsympathetic about your plight. You should now go back to them and thank them for harassing me again, because you have ensured that your charity will live in infamy in my mind forever. I'm going to report them (and possibly you) to the FTC, FCC, and Virginia Consumer Affairs Dept. I hope that you will reconsider your support of this unscrupulous organization in order to salvage any remaining donations that you might have for the future. In the meantime, this is my official request to have my number removed from any list, direct or indirect, related to your organization. I will keep an official record of this written request, as I understand that written evidence is helpful when establishing a potential lawsuit under the "DoNotCall" regulations. Thank you, and have a nice day (I had hoped my day would be nice, too, but I have been up and angry since 8:40 a.m. on the only day that I have been able to take a day off and sleep past 9 a.m. since June of this year.) This is the response I received this afternoon (note they do not deny their affiliation with JAK): ----- Original Message ----- From: VAFOP@aol.com Sent: Friday, December 10, 2004 11:11 AM Subject: Re: Complaint about your fundraising efforts We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused. We assure you, your name will be removed from our calling list. Bonnie Stinson VA State Lodge "Law is a Safeguard of Freedom" Websites: FOP of VA - vastatefop.com National - www.grandlodgefop.org My advice to everyone -- write to vfop. If I get another call from these numbers again, I'm taking the next step. But tomorrow, I'm filing my complaints with Virginia Consumer Affairs and everybody else I can think of. Take care, Josephine Josephine said on 12/10/04 @ 11:25 AM: Also, if you search for "JAK and fop" you'll find a proud posting at Colorado's fop site regarding their contract with JAK for fundraising. So I wrote them this e-mail (which they have not responded to): ----- Original Message ----- To: cppa@cppa.net Sent: Friday, December 10, 2004 10:36 AM Subject: complaints about JAK Productions You might want to check out the numerous complaints about JAK productions at http://utterlyboring.com/archives/2003/07/06/do_not_call_list_red_hot_big_loopholes.php. This telemarketing service is a problem in every state that a FOP contracts with them. I am in Virginia, and I am about to contact VFOP because JAK calls approx. 5 times a day and hangs up as soon as I pick up. This morning, 8:40 a.m., was the final straw. When you call their numbers back, all you get is a voicemail box. I told them to stop calling me and take my name off the list (by leaving my name and a very rude message on the voicemail box) when they called me at 7:30 a.m. two months ago, and now they are back. Now that I know who contracts with them, I shall in my lifetime never contribute a single penny to such organizations. This is what you're supporting, and the word is getting out. You may want to reconsider your contract. Dave said on 12/14/04 @ 07:33 PM: I found this site by googling phone numbers from my caller ID. I would like to thank everyone for the helpful information. I've been able to stop the harrassment, for now anyway, because my telephone service provider has an excellent selective call blocking service (up to thirty numbers). I am wondering what would happen if we all used call forwarding, instead, directing their calls back at them through other numbers that they use. has anyone tried this? Any comments or suggestions? gary said on 12/15/04 @ 02:43 AM: to Dave: you would probably end up with a huge long distance bill given that they will call you multiple times per day. As you have done....I have found a safe haven from their calls with call block as well. Dave said on 12/15/04 @ 07:39 PM: Thanks Gary, I assumed, probably incorrectly, that the service numbers are toll free. This is a new problem for me. I wasn't receiving any of these calls until I called a toll free number in a newspaper ad for heavy equipment certification (800-589-4977). It turned out to be a scam and I've been getting calls from both the company that I called and the telemarketers. These calls were annoying before, but after reading Jeff M's remarks, I've lost the capacity of courtesy and patience for these people. Tyler said on 12/18/04 @ 01:15 AM: Ya these calls are killing me really they are.I dont know what to do %&@!$#&^ charity people stop calling me damn.I'v tried to lose them but noooo!!!They still call and they still hang up like a pranksters.Well it is good to know im not alone.Well I hope y'all and yes,me, get these people back. Dave said on 12/19/04 @ 07:54 AM: Does anyone have any names of the people responsible for these loopholes? Contact information, etc...? Jake said on 12/20/04 @ 11:32 AM: If you guys are interested in making the telemarketers pay a bit, there are Google ads showing up down below at the bottom of this page for telemarketing outfits. Feel free to click away on their ads, as it will cost those outfits money every time you do (and I apologize to anybody who is subscribed to these comments -- I was testing some formatting earlier and you probably got a few test messages from me). Lisa said on 12/21/04 @ 04:19 PM: Hello! I live in Southwest Virginia and I just got the phone call of this number "877-827-2921" number. I googled it and was directed here.
Gary said on 12/21/04 @ 06:38 PM: Hey folks...get call block...I have not been bothered since. Dave ( 12-14-04) has found piece of mind by getting call block as well. Doug said on 12/22/04 @ 12:55 AM: I was just wondering if this JAK Productions outfit is for real cause I have heard so many bad things about the company is it even for real or not, cause there is a JAK callin center just opened in west virginia. Jeff said on 12/22/04 @ 01:00 AM: I work for JAK Productions in west virginia and I was wanting to know is this company for real or not I just started working for them and I want to know if I am even going to get paid or not or is it going to be like it was with Powertel am I just wasteing my time even working for these people?? Amanda Marino said on 12/22/04 @ 12:18 PM: I just wanted to let everyone know how JAK Productions treats their employees. I have been working for JAK Productions in Westy Virginia for just over a week. I have already been suspended and I'm still in my first training week. I called the owner to ask him a question, his response: he was rude, arrogant and told me that from talking to me, for only 15 seconds, that I shouldn't be suspended, but fired. Gary said on 12/22/04 @ 04:41 PM: To Amanda: who is the owner? It would be nice to get a name so maybe several of us people who have been harrassed by his outfit can band together and maybe get some sharp attorney to assist in filing a class action law suit. How about a name please. Marian said on 12/23/04 @ 10:58 AM: I have received 5 calls in 2 days from 800-379-8414. Everyone claims they are from the CIA to a porn website. The first time I answered it was a quick speaking recording claiming to be some Cancer Fund and gave a toll free 888 number. The next time I answered, I got a man asking for me, and I responded. He asked for me by first name and maiden name. I told him one was correct the other was not. He then asked for my 87 year old mother. I told him she did not take any calls. Here we go again, he asked for me by first name. I responded that the first name was correct, but not the last name. Quickly, he said he would call when he could talk to someone else, and hung up before I could tell him to take us off the list. If anyone knows what Cancer organization this is please post the information. Thank you Amanda Marino said on 12/23/04 @ 12:26 PM: To Gary: The owner of JAK Productions is John Aberham Keller in Atlanta Ga. so feel free to sue him from what I have read and heard he is a millionare. David said on 12/28/04 @ 06:58 PM: Have received calls from 800-279-4041 and 800-704-1645. That was only today. I just pick up and tell them to stop calling. I have googled a couple of the numbers and there seems to be a theme for Police Organizations. Another 800 I recieved was from Men's Health Magazine selling my information to Runner's World??? They found a way to avoid the caller ID block feature on your phone. Bob said on 12/28/04 @ 07:37 PM: I've been tormented by calls from 800-990-1906. If you call this number you will not get a live answer, but a recorded message answering "youth development fund". If anyone knows more about this, or if it is related to JAK, please post. Thank you. Jo Freeman said on 01/04/05 @ 07:21 AM: Youth Development Fund's info: dba A Child's Dream 8 Canberra Drive Knoxville, TN 37923 Rick Bowen, President 865-690-8521 501(c)(3) charity Per 2003 financial report: Contributions rec'd: $4,080,467 Total Revenue: $4,080,467 Fundraising costs: $3,447,714 (84%) Admin. costs: $ 175,088 (4%) Spent on programs: $ 350,515 (8.5%) Solicitor: Associated Community Services 24681 Northwestern, #250 Southfield, MI 48075 Robert W. Burland, President 248-352-2600 Contract terms: YDF gets 18% of contributions raised. Avg. donation of $25: $4.50 to YDF, $20.50 to ACS Complaints: Virginia consumers can contact Investigator Sheerie Ayres at sheerie.ayres@vdacs.virginia.gov Registration information for any charity soliciting in Virginia can be found at www.vdacs.virginia.gov or www.guidestar.org and many other state regulatory agency Web sites. This is NOT a paid advertisement. State Charity Officials regularly provide public education about charities and their fundraisers as part of your state government at work. For links to your state regulatory agencies, visit www.NASCOnet.org and click on "US State Charity Offices." Our thanks to the Technorati who provide this space. kim said on 01/06/05 @ 01:06 PM: As in the post of 10/31/2004, from the guy from Harrisonburg, VA, I also am in Harrisonburg and received a call from "mobile alabama" from 251-666-7633 and googled to this site. These people have called before and I usually don't answer, but sometimes people calling using phone cards will show up as numbers from cities all over the country. So I answered this and was immediately hung up on. What's their point?? Just to test to see if I'm a "live" number?? kim said on 01/06/05 @ 01:08 PM: Oops, I meant the guy from 10/30/2004, who is also in Harrisonburg, VA. Claire said on 01/09/05 @ 09:02 PM: I live in Northern Virginia, and have been harassed for several months now by nearly every number being posted here. I have filed a written complaint as Jo Freeman suggested, and hope that every single one of you do the same. And Jo Freeman- it would be terrific if you could keep us updated on any progress that is made! TSR said on 01/11/05 @ 10:22 PM: i work for jak productions, i understand the frustration that can arise from phone calls while either trying to eat dinner, conduct business, or even take time to relax. jak is a company set up to run a thirteen hour shift, comprised of two lunch breaks and three ten minute breaks. it is like any other company conducting or selling thier product or service. i am not posting this to defend jak or to show any sympathy to those recieving the calls. i am asking for who ever may read this, when i call, or anyone calls trying to sell a product or service, to politely say, not interested, and hang up. is that so hard? why make a big deal and take the time to send e-mails, call back, threaten to sue, cost people thier job, and slow an economy even more than it already is. i also am an independent contractor, being able to call people would make my service a lot easier, but people filing complaints once again slowed the economy. now there is a national do not call pertaining to my service. if you arent interested, hang up. forget about it, and worry about things that are harmful and costing you money. or is that what it is all about? did you hear the owner of jak is rich, and you want a piece of the pie? sorry guys, all you are doing by complaining, is helping our good friend the FTC win a hard fought battle. they will prosper not any one person. you may no longer recieve phone calls. but the FTC will walk away with all the money, and put thousands if not millions out of work. we are trying to build a strong economy, and putting people out of work, charitable work for that matter, will weaken; if not cause a crumble in our economy as we know it. my point is, telemarketers are not there to try to ruin your day guys. they are brief, promote a product in less than two minutes, if you dont want it hang up if you do, pledge or sign up. dont cost a guy his job by calling the number on your id back, leaving a message saying he was rude to you. think about it, if he was rude, he hasnt been selling anything, hes frustrated. its not you hes mad at, there is a 99% chance hes been told no several times in a row. when you work in fundraising you are told every two hours at a meeting to be polite and courteous, if you arent you will be fired. so see jak is not so bad. its just some individuals do not follow the rules, and will be terminated for being rude. they know that but think they wont be caught. THEY WILL! i ask of you all one thing, dont promote do not call lists, it will cause jobs to be lost, and you guys would miss us calling you anyways, you wouldnt have anyone to cuss and let out frustration on and not feel bad about doing it. to colorado,indiana, and virginia, im sorry for calling so much, all i can say is i am raising money for people who must need it, and if you can find it in your heart to spare 10 maybe 20 dollars, please do. if you are tired of the calls, just say so, ill remove you from my list. just dont file complaints, its bad for the soul. thank you and goodnight! Chris said on 01/12/05 @ 09:50 AM: I got a call from 678-992-2430 that wasn't asking for money!!! it was actually from the company that distributes the local yellow-pages confirming that we got them. Gary said on 01/12/05 @ 04:01 PM: Dear TSR, Maybe you should have taken the time to read ALL the posts on this site. First of all, don't assume we would 'miss you guys calling' just so we could have someone to cuss etc. We did not ask for your calls to begin with. Secondly, most, if not all of us, don't normally cuss or otherwise act rude to callers...unless they happen to be from JAK and we tell them not to call us anymore but yet they continue to do so. Third, do your research...the majority of your funds raised go to cover the cost of your agency overhead and so called administrative costs. Our esteemed sage of this web site...Jo Freeman, has done the research and has graciously shared the gleaned information about cretin organizations such as the one you work for presently. Lastly,,,the economy would not even so much as hiccup or pass a little gas if telemarketers dissapeared altogether. Jake said on 01/13/05 @ 09:45 AM: Just an update to everybody still following this thread: I've updated the original post with cached or archived links to the long-dead fortune.com articles, in case you missed them the first time. J said on 01/17/05 @ 12:24 PM: I sent JAK a copy of the complaint form I sent to Virginia, and their lawyer at Copilevitz & Canter, just sent an e-mail and a letter back. In a nutshell, they promise never to call back (with some griping about how they tracked their calls to me but never hung up -- but for the hang ups, I would never have complained!). The lawyer is Greg Lam Copilevitz & Canter, LLC Kansas City, MO 64105 (816) 472-9000 GregLam@cckc-law.com The company defends nonprofits and telemarketers (check them out on their website). Good luck, Michele said on 01/21/05 @ 06:42 PM: I live just outside of Harrisonburg, VA and while we were out this evening, I got a phone call from 727-449-9646 and it said POL PROTCT FUND in the caller ID. Anyone ever heard of them? I called the number back and it just rang and rang. Dee said on 01/25/05 @ 08:36 PM: Add this number to the list: 703-863-9813. Calls from this number have been received morning through evening hours for months. No one at the other end. Voice mail box always full. Here is the twist. Caller ID reports Thomas Gardiner with the above number. The answering machine recording says Thomas Gardiner with Community Services asks for your contact info which you can't do because VM is full. No google hits so far for this company, his name or number. Believe the area code and prefix point to northern VA (Alexandria, Falls Church). Have initiated a trace twice and contacted the local police department. Also called Cox, my telco, to have the guy on the other end say he had received calls from the same number on his cell phone. Anyone else seem this number? Dee said on 01/25/05 @ 08:45 PM: Also Mobil AL Safty (as shown in caller ID) @ 251-666-7633 called tonight. No one at the other end. Found this forum by searching the phone number in Google. Ed said on 01/27/05 @ 02:10 PM: I got a call this afternoon from 251-666-7633. The guy asked for Mr. (my last name), I said this was him speaking and then he asked for my wife by her first name. As soon as I answered he hung up. Same as Dee, I googled the number and (shockingly) found it here. Bizzare.. Joe said on 02/04/05 @ 11:47 AM: I received a call from 800-650-3839. Some jackass who couldn't hardly speak English(like most telemarketers) spoke. I heard the usual one second pause then the guy comes on and says 'read this joke'. I hung up at that point. I read where you can buy a box that will screen all calls according to your own settings and even put in numbers to block. This eliminates the phone company block service and is way better. I guess the box answers the phone for you and obeys your preset commands before it actually rings your phone. If anyone has used or is using one please give us some feedback. I think its a great idea to eliminate these bastards once and for all and get these telemarketers to get off their asses and get a real job. Joe (me again) said on 02/04/05 @ 12:01 PM: I think the biggest reality about all this is that it's a shame that there are that many assholes invading our privacy everyday and knowing better but doing it anyway. It shows that many Americans are lazy cowards who would rather step on someone elses toes to make life easier for them. Dog eat dog. If you are not one of those kinds of Americans, GOD BLESS YOU. jay said on 02/07/05 @ 09:06 PM: we recieve calls frequently on our cell phones from 248-569-2247 and its crazy! I am surprised t see only 1 other person had this number listed. We live in NH, so I hope this problem isn't spreading....good luck 2 every1! Amy said on 02/08/05 @ 09:00 AM: I got a call from 877-300-3504 today and did not answer the call when I saw my caller id said "Out of Area". I'm really glad I googled this phone number and found this extremely informative and eye-opening message board. I am going to look into getting the toll-free call block installed now. I've gotten phone calls in the past soliciting for the Fraternal Order of Police, but I always thought they were real police officers talking to me. Now that I know Jak Productions and their idiotic employees are the true solicitors and that only 15% of the money goes to the FOP, I will never offer to give them money ever again. I hope the FCC cracks down hard on them very soon. Dallas said on 02/09/05 @ 07:35 AM: I've come across this site after searching for numbers such as 888-243-0573. We live in Virginia and are on the National Do Not Freakin Call list. I am amazed that so many people seem to be encountering the same crap! I may try to contact some of the folks at the organization (supplied by some of the other posts) ..but I'm not sure if I want to go through all the time and aggravation. Bob said on 02/13/05 @ 06:26 PM: FYI - JAK PRODUCTIONS, INC. (770) 612-1386 http://www.ganet.org/cgi-bin/pub/corp/corpsearch?corpid=J906601 ADDRESS: 4501 CIR 75 PKWY STE E5280 ATLANTA , GA 303393025 CEO: JOHN KELLER CFO: ABRAHAM KELLER SEC: SUSAN FRIED GOOD STUFF HERE. WAY TO GO CATHY COX! http://www.sos.state.ga.us/pressrel/020604.htm jerry said on 02/18/05 @ 05:04 PM: Some background on the spammer's firm: JAK PRODUCTIONS, INC. Corporate Officers Title Name Address CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER JOHN KELLER 2660 PEACHTREE RD NW APT 25 D ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30305 CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER ABRAHAM KELLER 46-3 JABOTINSKY ST. SHIKON G BEER SHEVA, ISREAL 00000 SECRETARY SUSAN FRIED 1016 HATEHNA NAVE PARDESIM PARDES HANNA, ISREAL 00000 Alan said on 02/21/05 @ 08:58 AM: I get these calls too, but much less frequently than previously; about 11 per month. I have caller ID, and if I don't recognize the caller, I don't answer. When in doubt, don't answer. If it's someone you know, they'll leave a message. If it's a telephone solicitor, they won't leave a message. If it's someone you know and they don't leave a message, it's not important or they'll call your mobile phone. (Mobile phones seem to be immune from telephone solicitors.) Never donate to a telephone solicitor. If they can't raise money for the organizations that hire them, they won't be rehired and their busniess will evaporate. Don't be affraid to be rude to these people. Regardless of what Jeff M says, they are going to harrass you anyway. Hang up. It's okay to be rude to someone rude enough to intrude on your privacy. I tried the complaint route; I don't think it's working. It would probably be more effective to file a class action suite against JAK Productions. By the way, the Virginia Fraternal Order of Police is not a charity; they are a union. That's why they are not tax-deductible. They usually identify some social program that your donation is intended to support, but they are not obligated to use your money for that program. Many police organizations seeking contributions are unions. They are not tax-deductible because they are not really charities. If someone solicits a donation from you (by phone, by mail, by e-mail, whatever) and they are not tax-deductible, don't donate. There is a reason they didn't qualify for tax-deductible status. Quality charitable organizations do not use telephone solicitors. My father was National Executive Director of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. My godfather is the current National Executive Director. They have a telemarketing center to receive donations, but they do not solicit donations. They do send donation requests by mail to donors, but they will remove you from that list at your request. I've looked through a few lists of the highest rated charitable organizations, and I've never received a call from any of them. Do yourselves a favor. Do not contribute to telephone solicitors. Do not buy from telephone solicitors. Jawinka Smith said on 02/27/05 @ 10:50 AM: I have been occasionally pestered by calls from 877-300-3504 & 866-785-0505. What complaint form do I use from the Virginia website? Cliff said on 03/03/05 @ 04:20 PM: The reason many people are getting repeat calls from different charities but with the same # is because the carities have hired an outside contractor to telemarket on their behalf. What you should also know is that the telemarketer keeps 90 cents of every dollar collected. I never donate to charities over the phone. I will only give directly to the organization I wish to support Mark said on 03/06/05 @ 11:12 AM: A couple of days ago I got a pre-recorded "May I speak to the lady of the house..." call from 877-291-7322. I don't know who it was from. I don't think any real charity would specifically ask for the female of the house. Today within a few minutes, I received calls from both 866-845-1834 and 866-785-0505. There was nobody on the line from the first call. Just silence. The second came about 15 minutes later and was the Fraternal Order of Police. Donna said on 03/08/05 @ 09:10 AM: I have been receiving calls from 866-785-0505 and also found this site as a result. I contacted the VFOP and let's see how that goes. Thanks all for the information. cant say said on 03/08/05 @ 03:47 PM: I actually work for the so called virginia F.O.P. or the firefighters chairatable foundation. I can feel the hate you all express. I never realized how much we actually recall people. Actually the calls originate from W.Va. from: cant say cant say said on 03/08/05 @ 03:53 PM: Actually I call on behalf of a lot of orginizations including: Va. F.O.P. , junior police academy of denver , fire fighters f. f. , gwinette co. F.O.P. of Ga. and a few others. I live in W.Va. Think about it!!!!!!!!!!! cant say said on 03/08/05 @ 04:00 PM: I can be reached thru nitro-nut-9@hotmail remember only serious may call Gary said on 03/08/05 @ 07:12 PM: To Cant say: Whats your point? Your post, like a few others who claim to work for JAK and or some others who work on behalf of an F.O.P, is replete with grammatical errors and poor logic. Reference posts by 'jeff' and or 'TSR'. Did you guys not graduate from High School or did you just skip English classes? Do us all a favor and go away! Michele said on 03/10/05 @ 04:40 PM: I received a call today from 877-291-7322 and when I answered, the man wanted to speak to the lady of the house. When I asked who it was and what it was in regards to, he got quiet for a second or two then said "This is D.O.V.E. and we're not selling anything but conducting an interview with people who have small children or grandchildren living with or near them. Does this fit you? I didn't say anything and he said well obviously this doesn't apply to your household so there is no need to continue this call or call you again." And he hung up. They called again an hour later but I didnt answer. Anyone ever heard of D.O.V.E.? Bill Sullivan said on 03/12/05 @ 07:34 AM: I have contacted Virginia FOP, both senators, my congressman,my state AG, the Georgia AG, and Give.org. Who does marketing by p***ing people off? That is a paradox, isn't it? I'm at the point where I'm ready to change my phone number. 40 % of the calls on my phone this past week have been from that JAK Productions company. My borther lives in Atlanta, I wonder if he can do anything about it for me. Betty said on 03/16/05 @ 11:37 AM: i am getting these stupid calls too and through my research, as I run a non profit, I have been told that these companies will use and reuse existing phone lists to haunt you in order to find the right charity for people to give to. This is not right at all. Plus I have call intercept on my lines because I hate telemarketing calls. These companies are slick, they have their autodialers call all day until you pick up, thats how they know you are home at a specific time. If you do not know the number, DO NOT ANSWER THE PHONE.. eventually they will take you off their list as a dead end number. Oh one final note.. you know those little cards we use for the grocery store in order to rack up the points for something free later on and to save right now, if you use your telephone number in the machine because you forgot your card.. they are selling your phone number to these nice little companies to haunt you even more on products you just bought so do not forget that little card. In fact, change your phone number to 555-1212 on your registration card. Have also been told that you can contact the Association of Direct Marketing and send them a letter requesting that all mail and phone call be haulted. I plan to send them a letter registered mail in order to be taken off their damn lists. Also you can legally ask to be taken off thier list.. I just tell them that I am broke and out of work so not to bother me again. I know its rude to say that to someone but it seems to be working.... try it and maybe they will stop calling you too. Good luck everyone... and lets pray this madness stops once and for all! Telemarkers and spam really need to be outlawed! B:) TP said on 03/18/05 @ 06:09 PM: I found this site because I, too live in Northern VA. the (727) 449-9646 just called me, rang 3 times and hung up. So I star six nined it and found this site. Verizon allows you to change your phone number ONCE for free. I did that last May of 2004 and since then I have been delightfully telemarketer free...well until this stuff began about a month ago. It's a phishing call. It's trying to see if anyone answers. I did. Now i'm a Positivie call for charity I guess, from what I'm reading up above. Thanks for all the help! DENISE said on 03/21/05 @ 10:48 AM: I HAVE BEEN RECIEVING CALLS FROM THE NUMBER 1-800-990-1906 AND ITS GETTING REDICULUS. I RUN A BUSINESS AND DONT HAVE TIME TO ANSWER THESE CALLS. HAS ANYONE ELSE RECIEVED A CALL FROM THAT SPECIFIC NUMBER? AND IF SO WHO DOES THAT NUMBER BELONG TO? LET ME KNOW. THANKS! Pat said on 03/21/05 @ 12:02 PM: I saw that a there were a few other complaints about someone calling from 877-291-7322 so I figured I may as well report whoever it is to donotcall.gov. So, a complaint has been submitted. Sure hope they do something about this "company". YOUR COMPLAINT HAS BEEN ACCEPTED Thank you for filing your complaint with the National Do Not Call Registry. Do not call complaints will be entered into a secure online database available to civil and criminal law enforcement agencies. While the FTC does not resolve individual consumer problems, your complaint will help the agency investigate the company, and could lead to law enforcement action. Rob R said on 03/22/05 @ 10:47 AM: Im in the Richmond VA area. Just got a call from 877-291-7732 (the DOVE organization) and got the same hang up treatment. They apparently also use several other numbers, some display DOVE foundation on the caller ID display, most do not. Wonderful Marketing Ploy. Maybe Girlscout cookie sales would increase if they sold them by the "knock on the door and then run away method?" Jamie said on 03/23/05 @ 07:37 AM: I got a call twice today at my work number from 877-300-3504. I have registered all 3 of my work phone lines with the Do Not Call registry. I sent the complaint to them today via their internet address: ftc.gov/donotcall. It only took a couple of minutes and you don't have to leave your personal info unless you want to. I suggest we all continue to do this. At some point someone will have to do something. Shelly said on 03/28/05 @ 12:59 PM: I found this site the same way everyone else did. I was so tired of 888-243-0573 calling my house and hanging up on me I googled it to find out who it belongs to. Looks like I will report them to the FTC to add to the number of complaints. (P.S. I also live in No VA.) Shelly said on 03/28/05 @ 05:08 PM: 866-845-1834 Add this number to the list it is the FOP in VA REBECCA V said on 03/30/05 @ 09:25 AM: 877-291-7732 DOVE is some kind of right-wing group that targets people and groups that they hate under the guise of protecting children and families. It's a hate group. nodolyn said on 03/30/05 @ 05:47 PM: I found this site by googling 877-291-7732 also. I just received a call from them -- 8:30 p.m. I'm in southeast Ohio. As I was double-checking what name it gave (unknown was on my callerID), I noticed I received a call from the DOVE foundation on 3/25 at 7:15 p.m. I didn't answer either call. Risa said on 03/31/05 @ 10:05 AM: Caller blocking usually does work, but it doesn't deter the most ruthless of telemarketers, they enter *82 and re enter the phone number. I'm in Massachusetts and I recieved a total of 6 calls in 5 days from unavailable callers from these numbers: (3x ) 800-679-0336 (3x ) 877-291-7322 I was told these calls were from Dove by the people I spoke with. I called one of the numbers back because I had recieved two phone calls from this number in a very short time. I wanted to find out who it was--the woman who picked up the phone was startled. She didn't care about the do not call list and said they were a charity so those rules didn't apply to them. I knew they were going to keep calling me back. I let the phone ring a few days, then I picked up a call from a number everyone is getting calls from for the " lady in the house". I believe this was a prerecorded call but it was also live monitered. I frustrated this caller by turning the tables on him and asking questions, so he hung up. It seemed to me the calls were fishing for information about my family composition--the first caller asked if I had kids or grandchildren living with me, the second caller wanted to know if I had been to the video store with a child under 16. I asked them "how is that your business?" That's how I got the name Dove. They don't like it when you ask them questions, refuse to give them information, or confront them . I asked a really good question from the second caller why the same firm was calling me from two different numbers. That's when he hung up. I asked around and I'm the only one in my area who got this phone call, that confirmed that I was being targeted. Does anyone know where this charity is? I went to their site and I was surprised to find it was down. According to their notice they are moving. This is another information broker : Wilkerson and Associates. They state they are an investment firm. I was really puzzled when I got their call demanding information for a survey. They scoffed at the do not call list. I wouldn't even talk to them. The phone company is different down there so I couldn't pin point which company they were. They operate in the Kentucky area. Does anyone have any information about them? 502-753-0430 I am going to complain to the FTC as well. The law should be changed. Jo Freeman said on 04/01/05 @ 01:52 PM: Hi, folks. Thought I'd see if postings had resumed about JAK, since their phone calls to Virginia have resumed, according to some of my complainants. Just to update you, I'm still working on these complaints. I cannot provide any details, due to the nature of my job, but I want to thank all those Virginians that filed complaints with my office and have updated me via e-mail from time to time. I see several posts about Police Protective Fund. Here is some information for you about that organization: Police Protective Fund 1114 W. 7th St. , Suite 3 Austin, TX 78703 Also: 2020 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 949 Washington, DC - 20006 Contact: Phil LeConte, President David Dierks, Chief Fiscal Officer Phone: 512-476-1042; 800-227-1042 URL: www.policeprotectivefund.org Org. hires in-house solicitors instead of contracting with professional solicitors, according to their registration form. However, their financial report states the names of 5 professional solicitors that they paid over $50,000 each in 2003. 2003 Financial report (2004 due May 15, 2005, unless extended up to Nov. 15): Contributions rec'd: $4,838,012 Total Revenue: $4,842,738 Program expenses: $ 350,436 Administration: $ 107,623 Fundraising: $4,262,760 % of contributions spent on fundraising: 88% % of Total Revenue spent on Programs: 7% These percentages are NOT violations of law. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled more than once that laws cannot set limits on fundraising expenses or require certain minimums spent on programs, but that it is the mission of offices like mine to provide information to the public for the purposes of wise giving. That's why I'm posting this information here. Also I see remarks about the Dove Foundation, which is also registered with my office: The Dove Foundation 245 State Street S.E., Suite 104 Grand Rapids, MI 49503-4245 Contact: Mr. David Lukens, Executive Director Phone: 616-454-5024 Financial report for FYE 4/30/04: Contributions received: $ 61,497 Total Revenue: $124,958 Program Expenses: $ 61,106 Administration: $ 44,869 Fundraising expense: $ 0 I, too, received a call at my home. They explained that they were conducting a survey and after they asked if I had any children under 16 yrs or dependent senior citizens in my home ("No"), they thanked me for my time and hung up. I also fielded in inquiry about them that included 2 phone numbers. I called both numbers and each answered as The Dove Foundation. I talked to the person who answered and asked if they hire another company to phone consumers. They said that they did not, that it was all done in house. Their registration also reflects that answer. I'd like to reiterate what others have found to be true. If it's a phone call, most of the time it will be a paid solicitor calling (but not always). Paid solicitors are paid, on average, 70% of donations collected; some are paid more, some are paid less. These payments cover the costs of phones, overhead, and salaries (commissions) as well as their profit. If the call is for a police, sheriffs, or any other kind of law enforcement group, your local police or sheriffs department does NOT benefit. I have interviewed police and sheriffs departments in VA and have been told that it strictly against their internal policy to allow their officers to solicit contributions from the public, due to the potential intimidation factor. In general, the following groups are NOT 501(c)(3), and therefore donations are not tax deductible: Fraternal Orders of Police Police Associations Police Unions Benevolent Police Associations These are types of fraternities, labor organizations, trade associations, and insurance benefit associations. There are many, many 501(c)(3) organizations that use the words police, sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, law enforcement, peace officers, firefighters, veterans, and children in their titles, because they know that these words touch people's heartstrings the most. Any organization that solicits contributions in Virginia (except churches, political groups that file with the State Board of Elections, or the Red Cross) are required to file with our office prior to soliciting contributions. Our office is a public information office. Any information filed here is public information, available by written request (copies) or a phone call (verbal information) to 800-552-9963 (VA only). There are 40 states that require filing prior to solicitations. Most reside in either the Secretary of State's office or the Office of the Attorney General. Search online for your state's charities office. Many have information available online about the organizations that register. Keep filing those complaints. The process may not be swift, but it is thorough. Thanks, Jo Freeman Senior Investigator VA Office of Consumer Affairs Carol said on 04/01/05 @ 02:33 PM: I have been called 4 times in the past 4 hours by 877-291-7322. Finally, I googled it, which brought me to this site. In addtion to listing my phone # with the DNC registry, I have written to the Direct Marketing Association - apparently charities don't spend the donations we give them to join this association. I do usually answer calls from #'s I do not recognize, but occasionally I forget to look before answereing. For those who are concerned that their favorite charity may be denied their donations, I tell them that I only donate to responses sent by mail. Bob said on 04/01/05 @ 05:20 PM: Called three times in the past 16 hours by 877-827-2921 and 866-785-0505. Called them back and got a recording that the company is "Charitable Fundraising Offices". But fits the profile of JAK. And for all of you regulatory folks, like Jo Freeman and Jody Wahl, your intentions are good, but why can't we email our complaints to you? You force us to download, print, fill out and mail a form to you. Why not bring your agencies into the 21st Century and give us an online fillable form or email. Then you'd see more responses. Deb said on 04/01/05 @ 05:51 PM: I too am getting calls from 248-569-2247. My caller ID shows "minac" I called it and of course no one spoke after picking up. I put Minac into google and found a sight for some kind of resort village in Canada. The area code for this place was 250, so I'm thinking that's where I called. So I guess now I will have this on my phone bill (which I will call the phone company about) Could this be a scam to get you to call the number? Has anyone else called the number back? Rob R said on 04/04/05 @ 04:41 PM: Thanks for the info on the Dove Foundation. I am still getting multiple calls from them. I also am getting daily calls from a 800-378-8616. Anyone know who this number is? Sarah said on 04/04/05 @ 09:34 PM: Just a note that I live in the Chicago-land 'burbs and received within a four-hour timeframe four calls from 877-291-7322. I do not have Caller ID, but got the number from doing a *69 after each hang up. I then Googled the number and found this site. Sigh...don't these people have lives (other than ticking off the general public during pri |