The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has begun to publish data about consumer complaints levied against suspected robocalls—unsolicited automated telephone calls, typically with sales messages—to spur the development of tools that can protect consumers from this illegal practice. The data set includes complaint information such as the telephone number of a suspected robocall, the type of message, and the time a call occurred. FCC will update the data set on a weekly basis with newly submitted complaints and encourages developers and cellular providers to use this data to improve how they shield consumers from these unwanted messages.
Image: Seattle Municipal Archives.