Ohio Senate bill cracks down on robocalls, spoofing

Oct. 26—COLUMBUS — A bill making it a state crime to use robocalls or fake phone numbers to defraud someone into picking up a call is headed for a full House vote.

The Ohio House Criminal Justice Committee on Tuesday approved Senate Bill 54, sponsored by Sen. Theresa Gavarone (R., Bowling Green). It has already cleared the Senate.

The bill would add individuals, entities, and merchants to those already covered under consumer protection and telecommunications fraud law. It would also prohibit third parties, such as internet voice services, from knowingly or blindly allowing their services to be used in this way to commit fraud.

It targets attempts by telemarketers to get around caller screening by "spoofing" the true source of a call with a local area code, familiar phone number, or other means to make it more likely the call's recipient will pick up and trust whatever fraudulent pitch is about to follow.

Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/ohio-senate-bill-cracks-down-183100227.html