FTC Ends Rulemaking On Caller ID Falsification Issues

After reviewing the public comments received on a December 2010 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the caller identification (Caller ID) requirements of the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), as well as technical presentations at the FTC’s 2012 Robocall Summit, the Commission has closed the proceeding.

The FTC has determined that amendments to the TSR would not reduce the incidence of falsification, or “spoofing,” of Caller ID information in telemarketing calls.

When the FTC amended the TSR in 2003, it added a requirement that telemarketers transmit information to Caller ID services. New technologies, however, allow telemarketers to mask their information by spoofing the number and name that appear on Caller ID displays. The Commission will continue to vigorously enforce the TSR’s prohibition on caller ID spoofing and its ban on the vast majority of commercial robocalls. The FTC, however, has determined that no additions or modifications of the TSR would effectively prevent Caller ID spoofing. As a result, the rulemaking proceeding has been closed.

The Commission vote to approve the Federal Register notice closing the proceeding was 4-0. It will be published in the Federal Register shortly, and is available now on the FTC’s website. (FTC File No. P104405, the staff contact is Craig Tregillus, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 202-326-2970)