A federal district court judge has ruled that ringless voicemails and voicemail drops are in fact “calls” and fall within the purview of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA) allowing the lawsuit of Saunders v. Dyck O’Neal, 17-cv-335, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 121076 in the Western District of Michigan to proceed. The Court’s Opinion Defendant Dyck O’Neal argued that “direct drop” voicemails are not “calls” under the TCPA. His argument was based on the contention that: 1) it did … [Read more...]
Getting Consent to Text a Consumer
In 2013, the FTC released additional rules regarding the Telecommunication Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and in these rules reaffirmed that text messages were subject to the TCPA. As text messages are sent to wireless numbers, any company sending text messages must comply with the rules regarding calls to wireless numbers, including having consent in writing from the owner of the wireless number (with a few exceptions where a text to the company may act as consent as further discussed herein). … [Read more...]
What Qualifies as Consent for Automated Calls and SMS Messages?
To help companies who are in the business of finding people, we've put together a first of its kind ebook that illuminates how rules and regulations regarding telemarketing apply to their business. In other words, if you thought that because you're not a telemarketer, telemarketing rules and regulations don't apply, you're wrong. BellesLink has put together an ebook of eighteen common questions and answers regarding best practices use of SMS messaging and automated calling. The ebook covers … [Read more...]
BellesLink vs. Google Voice and Caller ID Spoofing
Every month BellesLink does a customer webinar to share product news, tips and techniques. During a recent webinar two big questions came up: Why would I pay for BellesLink when I can get Google Voice for free? What’s the difference? Why not use caller ID spoofing? Paul Kulas took the chance to highlight the reasons caller ID spoofing and free phone services, like Google Voice, won't get you good results. We thought we’d share his answer with you. According to Paul, beside being … [Read more...]
Cell Phone Pinging and Caller ID Spoofing are Dead. Really Dead.
If you ever had any doubts about the legality of cell phone pinging and caller ID spoofing, the matter has been settled. Recently the FCC has re-asserted that both practices, once common in skip tracing and investigations, are something they not only frown on but will most likely take action on. In an July 2015 declaration the agency hardened its position on these non-compliant practices. From Page 111 of the declaration: "Finally, I want to note that we have more work to do. Just last week, … [Read more...]
