The Federal Communications Commission imposed a record $ 225 million fine on two Texas-based telemarketing companies for “counterfeit” calls, the agency said Wednesday.
Rising Eagle and JSquared Telecom received a fine 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 like Rising Eagle and JSquared Telecom, transmitted the fake calls nationwide during the first four and a half months of 2019,” says a statement issued by the FCC.
“Mr. Spiller admitted to the USTelecom Industry Traceback group that he made millions of fake calls a day and consciously called consumers on the Don’t Call list, as he believed it was more profitable to target those consumers. ”
According to an anti-spam app, Robokiller, spam calls have risen 26 percent over the past year.
The FCC also announced Wednesday that it will deploy 51 employees to form a “Robocall Response Team” in response to increased calls. The DOJ, the FTC and state attorneys general have also been asked to help with the problem.
Cessation and termination letters have been sent to all companies that have violated FCC rules or that the FCC believes have been violated.
“Today’s cessation and cessation letters should serve as a warning sign to other entities that believe the FCC has turned a blind eye to this issue. We certainly haven’t done so and we’re coming to pick you up,” he said. say FCC Acting President Jessica Rosenworcel in a statement.
The FCC has issued fines of more than $ 450 million in recent years.