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Demand by consumers for protection from unwanted calls and spam has significantly increased over the years. Verizon provides tools that our customers can use to help decide whether or not to answer phone calls that may be unwanted, annoying, or fraudulent, and other third-party services are also available in the marketplace. Verizon is committed to helping consumers and calling parties navigate the robocalling landscape.

In addition to helping consumers, tools that restore trust in telephone calls will benefit legitimate businesses who want to communicate efficiently with their customers for pro-consumer purposes. Continued and growing frustration with unwanted and illegal robocalls can cause consumers to be less likely to answer calls, which in turn can reduce the contact rates of legitimate callers who follow the rules while using autodialers to contact their customers.

Calling parties can benefit from greater knowledge of the constantly-evolving robocalling landscape, including an understanding of what calling practices can affect how their calls may be scored or categorized. Verizon's robocall analytics vendor, TNS/Cequint, considers feedback from consumers (such as complaints filed and crowdsourcing data) as well as information about calling patterns, among other factors, in determining how to categorize or score calls being made to Verizon's customers.

Here are some recommended industry best practices that are typically followed by legitimate callers who successfully avoid being categorized as spam (both by Verizon's spam protection services and from those provided by competitors):

Follow practices known to constitute good call center hygiene.

  1. Provide a consistent, real, and user-dialable telephone number with every call you make. Calls from a calling party number that is invalid or not assigned to the caller are often associated with spam. You may want to consult your account representative at your service provider if you are unsure about this best practice.
  2. Do not "random wardial" and do not call unassigned numbers frequently. Unreasonable answer and completion rates are often associated with spam.
  3. Align the context and content of your calls to a specific traceable calling party number for the duration of that number's assignment to a particular campaign. Avoid using the same telephone number for multiple purposes. For example, using the same number for marketing, surveys, and support callbacks would typically increase the likelihood of being categorized as spam. It is recommended that numbers that are re-assigned for other purposes or allocated to other providers go through a 45-day waiting period.
  4. Avoid unusual spikes in traffic volumes, and follow and document your expected and normative call pattern description (e.g. 10,000 callers per day).
  5. Comply with "Do Not Call" lists and other TCPA requirements, and provide a number/contact information that called parties can use to prosecute or report any alleged violations of law.
  6. Provide and document a consistent Calling Name profile that matches the context of the calls you are making and your callback information.

Use common sense to minimize the risk that consumers report your calls as spam or file complaints about you with government agencies.

  1. Legitimate calling parties should never use abusive language, call too frequently, have perceptible delays in the quality or reliability of connection, or make unsolicited calls at odd hours.
  2. Legitimate callers should always provide clear identification of the calling party, along with clear-and-easy opt-out directions.

Visit https://www.verizon.com/about/responsibility/robocalls for more information on Verizon's spam protection solutions.

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