<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=331510594798275&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Skip to Content Oregonians Credit Union Oregonians Credit Union
  • Save & Spend
    Save & Spend See an Overview
    • Current Rates
    • Disclosures
    • Fee Schedule
    • Credit Calculators
    • Savings
      • Regular Share Accounts
      • Youth Savings
      • Homebuyer Savings
      • Money Market Accounts
      • Club Accounts
      • Share Certificates
      • IRA Accounts
    • Checking
      • My Rewards Checking
      • My Interest Checking
      • Checking Comparison
    • Credit
      • Credit Cards
      • Overdraft Line of Credit
    • Digital
      • Digital Banking Online
      • Mobile App
      • Digital Payments
      • Mobile Wallets
  • Borrow
    Borrow See an Overview
    • Current Rates
    • Mortgage Rates
    • Loan Calculators
    • Mortgage Calculators
    • Auto
      • New & Used
      • First Time Auto Buyer
      • Local Car Search
    • Home
      • HELOCs
      • Fixed Rate Equity
      • Mortgages
      • Home Improvement
    • Personal
      • Personal Loans
      • Line of Credit
      • Share Secured Loans
    • Recreational
      • Bicycles & Electric Bikes
      • RVs & ATVs
      • Motorcycles
  • Plan
    Plan See an Overview
    • Retirement Calculators
    • Financial Planning
    • Insurance
      • Auto
      • Home
      • AD&D
      • Life
    • Protections
      • Guaranteed Auto Protection (GAP)
      • Mechanical Repair Coverage (MRC)
      • Debt Protection

    Featured Program

    Oregonians Financial Planning image with father and baby walking

    Oregonians Financial Planning

    Plan for the road ahead and manage your wealth along the way.

    Learn more
  • Business
    Business
    • Current Rates
    • Disclosures
    • Fee Schedule
    • Business Checking
      • Business Membership
      • Small Business Checking
      • Business Interest Checking
    • Business Loans
      • Commercial Real Estate
      • Investment & Rental Property
      • Equipment Loans
      • Term Loans
      • Credit Cards
      • Line of Credit
    • Business Resources
      • See all
  • Learn
    Learn See an Overview
    • Education Explore videos, blogs, fraud prevention tips, and our knowledge base of information..
      • InfORmed Blog
      • FAQs Knowledge Base
      • Fraud Watch
    • Financial Tools Browse calculators, applications, disclosures, and apply for hardship assistance.
      • Resources & Disclosures
      • Calculators
      • Hardship Assistance

    Featured Resource

    It’s a Money Thing

    Get money savvy fast with fun videos and lesson plans on earning, saving, and more!

    Learn more
  • About
    About
    • About Us
      • Who Can Join
      • Community Involvement
      • Scholarships
      • Latest Annual Report
      • Careers
    • Locations
      • Beaverton
      • Gresham
      • Milwaukie
      • NE Portland
      • Oregon City
      • Prineville
      • St. Johns

    CO-OP logo

    30,000+ fee-free ATMs

    Get cash at 30,000 fee-free ATMs nationwide, many of which will take deposits into your Oregonians accounts.

    Find an ATM
  • I want to...
    • Become a Member
    • Talk to Someone
    • Apply for a Loan
    • Open an Account
    • Check Loan Status
    • See Current Rates
Account Access
  • Forgot Password
  • Forgot User Name

Don't have an account?

Enroll
Routing #: 323075709
  • Locations
  • Rates
  • Contact
Call or Text: 503-239-5336
Join
  • I want to...
    • Become a Member
    • Talk to Someone
    • Apply for a Loan
    • Open an Account
    • Check Loan Status
    • See Current Rates
  • Locations
  • Rates
  • Contact
Account Access
  • Forgot Password
  • Forgot User Name

Don't have an account?

Enroll
Blog
    • Everyday Finance
    • Budgeting
    • Fraud Prevention
    • Finances
    • Savings
    • Holidays
    • Scams
    • Home Financing
    • Debt
    • Saving
    • Credit Cards
    • Investing
    • Car Buying
    • Fraud Watch
    • Home Improvement
    • Community
    • Homeownership
    • identity theft
    • Taxes
    • bills
    • Insurance
    • Travel Tips
    • Financial Wellness
    • Mortgage
    • retirement
    • vacation
    • Financial Security
    • shopping
    • Credit
    • General Health
    • Home Loans
    • car
    • house
    • investment
    • marriage
    • school
    • summer
    • 401(k)
    • Cash
    • frugal living
    • heloc
    • interest
    • job hunting
    • parenting
    • thanksgiving
    • winter
    • Auto Loans
    • DIY
    • Debit
    • First-Time Homeowner
    • Home Equity Loan
    • Home Inspection
    • Housing Market
    • Mobile Wallets
    • Mortgages
    • Personal Loans
    • Scholarships
    • Selling Your Home
    • Share Secured Loans
    • Spending
    • Student Loan
    • Telemarketing
    • Your Credit
    • camping
    • credit card
    • financing
    • gas
    • goals
    • grant
    • hacker
    • health insurance
    • heritage
    • insurance myths
    • insurance policy
    • kids and money
    • life insurance
    • malware
    • medical history
    • money management
    • mother's day
    • motorcycle
    • mutual funds
    • rv
    • samsung pay
    • security
    • single parents
    • skip payment
    • skipapay
    • spanish
    • stimulus
    • technology
    • thriving
    • trade in
    • wellness

What Can I Do About Robocalls?

Oregonians Credit Union Oregonians Credit Union Aug 15, 2018 5 min

Are you sick of grabbing your ringing phone 25 times a day only to find yet another robocaller on the other end?

If robocalls are getting to you, you’re not alone. Those super-annoying automatic calls have recently exploded, and it’s enough to make anyone go bonkers. More than 30 billion robocalls were made in the United States in 2017, and the Federal Trade Commission answered a whopping 375,000 complaints about robocalls each month.

Unfortunately, those numbers are only rising.

If you feel like your phone is ringing off the hook from robocalls and you’re just about ready to throw it against the wall, read on. We’ll give you the inside scoop on these dreaded calls and show you what you can do to put a stop to them once and for all.


How do they have my number?

Many people ask how so many businesses and scammers have their number. It’s because robocallers are becoming increasingly more sophisticated and the internet is making their job easier. Scammers and telemarketers can scrape almost anyone’s phone number off the web.

They might find it on your Facebook page, another social media platform you frequent, or even drag it off your business’s website. Robocallers also buy phone numbers from popular companies or websites that require visitors to log in by submitting some basic personal information that includes their landline and cellphone numbers.

Or, robocallers may simply be dialing thousands and thousands of numbers at random, with no rhyme or reason at all.


Who’s on the other end of the line?

Robocalls come in many forms. Sometimes they’ll be trying to sell you a product or urge you into signing up for a service. Other times, they’ll try to scam you by appearing to represent a government agency, like the IRS.

You might think no one’s buying the marketed product, or that whoever actually believes the robotic voice telling them they’re about to be arrested is super naïve. Remember, though, that even if just a few people agree to buy the product or are taken in by the scam, the minimal cost of running the calls is more than worth it for the person behind the calls.

Here’s how the robocalls take a stab at appearing authentic:

Spoofing.Using software, the robocaller can tweak the way their number shows up on caller ID. They can make it look like the IRS is on the phone, that your electric service company is calling you or like a representative from Apple is seeking you.

Recently, scammers have been using neighbor-spoofing, in which their caller ID looks like a local number. This throws victims off and can help robocallers gain their misplaced trust.

Disguised identity. Robocallers may also choose to appear mysterious and show up on your caller ID as “private number,” “unavailable” or “unknown.”


Steps you can take

Thankfully, you don’t have to be bombarded by those irksome calls for the rest of your life. Here are several steps you can take to keep most robocalls from reaching your landline or cellphone:

  1. Don’t answer calls from unfamiliar numbers. If you don’t recognize the number on your caller ID, let it go to voicemail. If the ID shows a local number or the name of a recognized company you have no reason to believe is calling you, ignore it as well.
  2. Block unwanted numbers. It’s time to get offensive and start intercepting those numbers before they reach your phone. If there’s any specific number that calls you persistently, use your phone to block it and you won’t have to hear from them again. Check with your phone service provider about possible technologies you can download to block anonymous calls or those from specific area codes. Some systems allow you to create your own blacklist of numbers that will be blocked or sent directly to voicemail. You can also create a “white list” of numbers you allow to go through and stop every other number from reaching you. You may also want to enlist the help of a robocall-blocking app that can offer you a stronger defense against unwanted calls. Here are some apps that provide this service along with their prices:
  3. Require caller input. To keep all automatic calls from reaching your phone, you can set up a call-blocking technology, such as the Sentry Active Call Blocker, that greets all callers with a message requiring them to enter a number before the call can proceed. That’s something robots can’t yet do.
  4. Don’t share your number. Never share your phone number on your social media profiles or pages. If a business asks for your number, do not give it out unless you absolutely must.
  5. Sign up for the Do Not Call Registry. Visit www.donotcall.gov to add your landline and cellphone numbers to the list of registered callers who don’t want to be bothered by telemarketers. Scammers won’t pay much attention to this list, but law-abiding companies that ignore the listed numbers risk being fined and will usually abide by the registry’s rules. This service is free and your number will never be taken off the list.
  6. File a complaint. If you’ve signed up for the Do Not Call Registry and, after a month, you are still receiving robocalls from specific companies, file a complaint with the FTC at ftc.gov. When the agency receives enough complaints about a number, it will take action. If you’re constantly receiving unwanted calls from a known business after signing up for the Do Not Call Registry, you can file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.

Topics Covered

  • Fraud Prevention
  • Scams
  • Telemarketing

Subscribe to our Blog

Get the latest insights sent directly to your inbox.

Related Posts

Woman on a phone call
Jan 17, 2025 5 min
How to Avoid Elder Abuse Scams
Scams
Jan 17, 2025 5 min
Don’t Get Caught in a Weight-Loss Scam
Scams
Jul 24, 2024 5 min
How to Report Fraud
Fraud Prevention
Feb 14, 2024 5 min
Avoiding Mortgage Closing Scams
Mortgage
Oregonians Credit Union

6915 SE Lake Road, Milwaukie, OR 97267 

Call or Text

503-239-5336

Out of Area

800-982-2974

Routing #

323075709

Download our App

  • App Store Download
  • Google Play Store Download
  • Save & Spend
    • Open a New Account
    • Savings
    • Checking
    • Credit
    • Digital Banking
  • Borrow
    • Apply for a Loan
    • Vehicle Loans
    • Home Loans
    • Recreational Loans
    • Personal Loans
    • Business Loans
  • Plan
    • Insurance
    • Protections
    • Financial Planning
  • Learn
    • Informed Blog
    • Fraud Watch
    • It's a Money Thing
    • Calculators
    • Hardship Assistance
  • Business
    • Business Accounts
    • Business Loans
    • Business Resources
  • About
    • Become a Member
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Locations
    • Careers
    • Privacy & Disclosures
    • Accessibility Policy
    • Site Map
    • Digital Banking Login

  • NCUA
  • Equal Housing Opportunity
©2025 Oregonians Credit Union All rights reserved.

You are leaving OregoniansCU.com

By accessing this link, you will be leaving Oregonian Credit Union's website and entering a website hosted by another party. Please be advised that you will no longer be subject to, or under the protection of, the privacy and security policies of Oregonian Credit Union's website. We encourage you to read and evaluate the privacy and security policies of the site you are entering, which may be different than those of Oregonian Credit Union.

 

Subscribe