Warning: New York’s Most Prolific Robocallers In October

Robocalls have become such an incessant annoyance that many Americans are wary of picking up the phone. In October alone, 5.7 billion robocalls were placed, and of those, 331.4 million were in New York, according to YouMail’s most recent robocall index.

Nationwide, robocalls are made at a rate of 182.7 million per day, 7.6 million per hour and 2,100 per second. The average U.S. resident received 17.3 robocalls in October.

The October tally is up significantly from September, when about 4.5 billion robocalls were detected, according to Alex Quilici, the CEO of the robocall blocking and tracking company YouMail.

The previous high was in March, when 5.2 billion robocalls were reported. Why the big jump? The answer is simple, Quilici told Patch. The people behind robocalls are getting smarter.

“It has been declining,” he said. “We think it’s a couple of things. It’s harder to get through because of blocking apps, so they have to keep making more calls to get through. And a lot of people respond to them.”

In New York, residents received 10.7 million robocalls per day in October. That breaks down to 12.6 robocalls per person for the month.

The top 10 robocallers here were (Caller ID; Phone number; Caller type):

1. Substitute Teacher Alert; 718-935-6740; School announcement
2. Capital One; 800-955-6600; Bank/credit card payment reminder
3. Spectrum, 844-206-9035; Payment reminder
4. Synchrony Bank; 855-885-5834; Bank/credit card payment reminder
5. Payment Reminder; 844-206-8573; Service payment reminder
6. Generic Robocaller; 800-947-6229; Bank/credit card payment reminder
7. Spectrum; 800-892-2253; TV provider spam
8. Verizon; 888-423-0900; Payment reminder
9. AT&T; 800-947-5096; Service payment reminder
10. Prison Call Consent; 585-902-3207; Prison call consent

The 10 cities that received the most robocalls in October were:

1. Atlanta: 221,085,300 robocalls, up 27 percent from September
2. Dallas: 205,081,200 robocalls, up 24 percent from September
3. New York City: 175,637,400 robocalls, up 21 percent from September
4. Los Angeles: 175,623,400 robocalls, up 29 percent from September
5. Chicago: 171,866,400 robocalls, up 23 percent from September
6. Houston: 169,378,100 robocalls, up 25 percent from September
7. Baltimore: 122,852,700 robocalls, up 23 percent from September
8. Newark, New Jersey: 112,404,500 robocalls, up 26 percent from September
9. Phoenix: 108,903,500 robocalls, up 26 percent from September
10. San Francisco Bay area: 103,622,700 robocalls, up 23 percent from September

Nationally, about 47 percent of robocalls were scam calls, according to the report. The rest were legitimate — 11 percent were telemarketers, 20 percent were payment reminders, and 22 percent were alerts and other reminders.

Related: Scammers Are Scaring, Extorting Millions From Your Aging Parents

Many robocalls direct people to press “1” on their phone keypads if they want more information, or to press “9” to be taken off the calling list. Both actions are counterproductive, signaling to the caller that a real person has been reached, Quilici said.

“It’s pointless to press a number,” he said. “It just tells them it’s an active number, so you’re going to get more calls.”

The calls aren’t just annoying. The blocking and tracking firm Truecaller estimates that consumers have lost $10.5 billion to phone scams so far this year, with an average loss of $244.

Both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives have passed legislation cracking down on annoying and unsolicited robocalls, but the two bills need to be reconciled before sending them to President Trump for his signature.

The bills give Federal Communications Commission regulators stronger enforcement tools. The House version requires phone carriers to implement caller identification technology, and it requires the FCC to report annually to Congress on the state of robocalls.

But Quilici said the legislation “isn’t a panacea,” and he doesn’t think tougher laws will make robocalls disappear entirely.

The increased frequency of robocalls in October proves that blocking apps are effective, Quilici said.

“On your computer, you run anti-virus software,” he said. “Now you need to run YouMail or another app on your cell phone to block the calls. Consumers have to protect themselves. You lock your door, you need to run a robocall blocking apps and services. It’s the new normal.”

The latest operating system for Apple’s iPhone includes the ability to detect and block spam phone calls. Users need to turn on “Silence Unknown Callers” in phone settings. For more, go here.

Some other robocall blocking apps include:

• Nomorobo
• Hiya
• RoboKiller
• Call Control Home
• Trucaller
• YouMail
• Trapcall
• Sentry 3.1
• CPR Call Blocker
• Digitone Pro Series Call Blocker

Some strategies:

• Be leery about anyone calling on the phone about any emergency. Get a phone number to call back, and verify the whereabouts and safety of the person the call is about.
• Never give out Social Security, Medicare or financial account information over the phone.
• In general, avoid answering calls from numbers you don't recognize.
• Don't confirm any personal information. Avoid saying "yes" to any question, as calls may be recorded and the answer can be used as consent for a purchase you didn't request.