Nuisance automated calls purporting to be from TalkTalk technical department

[#1]

We have recently started to get a barrage of automated scam calls purporting to be from TalkTalk technical department calling to terminate telephone line. These are constant throughout the day and night. I've enabled Plusnet Call Protect so am blocking them as I go along but no sooner do a block the last number than a new telephone number starts calling - here are just a few from the last few days; 

01367149607, 01367160622, 01365484732, 01364500744, 01365727461, 01360101712, 01366326795. 01362113364, 01367830806, 01362500498, 01367700314, 01360681922, 01364758435, 01366006994, 01363190931

Plusnet customer services were unable to offer any help apart from setting up Plusnet call protect. But why are they not doing more to stop these calls getting through. As they are the telephone provider surely they have a responsibility to ensure customers do not have to tolerate this. Any help would be appreciated.  

[#2]

Indeed Ofcom have (stupidly) placed the responsibility for managing this problem on the shoulders of Communion Providers (CPs) the service resellers - rather than the network operators such as BT Openreach, Sky, Talk Talk and Virgin Media. Ofcom revised service condition C6 requires CPs to ENSURE that the number presented by CLI is valid and dialable.

The numbers you listed are all on a sequence of valid STD numbers (01360-7) applicable to places all over the UK. It would be fair to assume that these CLIs are being generated randomly to obfuscate the true identity of the calling party. If dialling any if those numbers reports an invalid number then BT should not be routing those calls if they were acting in compliance with condition C6.

The reason I said ‘stupidly’ in respect of Ofcom’s regulations is that majority of CPs simply use a network provided by another party and gave zero control over the routing (or inhibition thereof) phone calls presenting an invalid CLI.

Having coincidentally just raised this question in the SU discussion forum i am advised that at present the best option is for users to ‘report’ the number using the facilities of call protect on their handset.

I would also recommend writing to your MP to complain about the incompetence of Ofcom placing desirable requirements on the wrong party, rather than getting to grips with the party which universally needs to perform better - BT core services.

[#3]

Sorry to hear this @zep

I'm afraid that we don't have any control over what numbers can call you, bar advising you to add caller protect.

If the nuisance calls still continue then it may be worth looking into a handset that has features such as call guardian

[#4]

@MatthewWheeler

Under Ofcom service condition C6 CPs have obligation to ENDURE that Presented CLI is a valid number and not route calls which present an invalid CLI. I recognise that as a CP there is not much PlusNET can do themselves, however I would hope that the business’ regulatory compliance deportment is putting pressure on your ‘supplier’ to facilitate compliance by, not routing calls from a caller who presents false CLI?

[#5]

So...if Plusnet is failing C6 then surely it's not fit to provide this communication service. Why are Plusnet allowed to offer a telephony service if it's not fulfiling the General Conditions of Entitlement?

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/information-for-industry/telecoms-competition-...

General Conditions of Entitlement

15 February 2019

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The General Conditions of Entitlement are the regulatory conditions that all providers of electronic communications networks and services must comply with if they want to provide services in the UK. 

C6 Calling line identification facilities

This condition requires communications providers to provide calling line identification facilities by default wherever technically feasible and economically viable, so that call recipients can identify the person calling them and choose whether or not to accept the call.

To assist with the identification of callers and reduce the incidence of nuisance calls, all communications providers should ensure that any telephone number associated with a call at the network level and/or presented to a call recipient is a valid, diallable number which enables the calling party to be identified, so that the call recipient can make a return call to that person.

[#6]

Unfortunately Ofcom (yet again) have written cock-eyed requirements.  The requirements have been placed on the seller of the service (Communication Providers), not the supplier of the service BT Openreach and Network Services.  Only the party responsible for the engineering of the service can implement this requirement.

Plusnet, BT Retail and any other retail CP using the BT Telephony service can only provide what that service delivers.  It seems that at present the only thing which comes close to fulfilling C6 arises out of users signed up to call protect 'reporting' spam phone numbers much like people reporting spam emails.  When there are enough notifications the BT network starts to block the number.

That however does not fulfil the Ofcom requirement and that requirement is not going to be fulfilled until Ofcom are influenced to place the requirement on the party which has the means of implementing this - BT Network Services.

If any party is not fit for purpose around here, it is Ofcom.  Much like the new rules on appointment attendance, guaranteed speeds, service repair times and more, the obligations have been placed on the retail CP/ISP not the body which does all of the work and lets everyone down - BT.

Having put a Whitehall mandarin in charge of Ofcom, I guess that we are foolish for expecting better.  I heard that they are moving on to run JLP - many be now we will get someone who know something about delivering telecommunications services.  This - https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/06/06/ofcom_ceo_quits_for_john_lewis_partnership/ - is quite scathing, but not as much as the comments - not the derisory comment about the Universal Service Obligation.  JLP really have not got good bargain at nearly £1m - I now rear for JLP!

The Ofcom space needs a root and branch review, because it really is not delivering for consumers - it says the right things, but does not put the obligation to deliver on to those who run the engineering.  That will only come about by influencing government.