The Federal Communications Commission has imposed a record $ 225 million fine on two Texas telemarketing companies for “counterfeit” phone calls, the agency said Wednesday.
Rising Eagle and JSquared Telecom were fined after placing nearly a billion phone calls in 2019 for falsely selling short-term health insurance plans.
“John C. Spiller and Jakob A. Mears, who used trade names, including Rising Eagle and JSquared Telecom, transmitted counterfeit robot calls nationwide in the first four and a half months of 2019,” the FCC said in a statement. .
“Mr. Spiller admitted to the USTelecom Industry Traceback Group that he made millions of fake calls a day and knowingly called consumers on the Do Not Call list because he thought it was more profitable to target those consumers.”
According to an anti-spam application, Robokiller, spam calls have increased by 26% in the last year.
The FCC also announced Wednesday that it will assign 51 employees to form a “Robocall Response Team” in response to larger calls. The DOJ, the FTC and state attorneys general were also asked to help with the issue.
Letters of termination and termination were sent to all companies that violated FCC rules or that the FCC considers to have violated them.
“Today’s termination and waiver letters should serve as a warning to other entities that believe the FCC has turned a blind eye to this issue. We certainly didn’t come and we’re coming for you, “FCC interim president Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement.
The FCC has issued fines of more than $ 450 million in recent years.