FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, May 7, 2020
PIERRE, S.D. – Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg recently joined a bipartisan coalition of 52 Attorneys General in calling on USTelecom – the leading organization representing telecommunications providers – and its Industry Traceback Group (ITG) to continue working with state attorneys general by bolstering technological capabilities to improve enforcement against illegal robocallers.
In a letter sent to USTelecom, cosponsored by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, the coalition is urging the association to further develop robocall traceback and other tools suited to law enforcement needs.
“Illegal robocalls continue to annoy and harass us all, but this is another step in the proper direction,” said Ravnsborg. “I will always fight to protect consumers in South Dakota from being scammed out of their hard-earned money.”
The letter asks USTelecom to advance the ITG’s abilities in identifying robocall campaigns, trends and business ecosystems; conducting automated traceback investigations; and coordinating with relevant law enforcement agencies.
A key part of that action would be for USTelecom to develop and roll out an online platform to collect live data from carriers and robocall-blocking apps. When USTelecom or a law enforcement agency detects an illegal robocall campaign, the law enforcement agency would then be able to submit a subpoena to USTelecom in a streamlined online portal. In turn relevant data would be quickly retrieved, this would bolster law enforcement investigations and could potentially lead to attorneys general offices issuing temporary restraining orders that could stop a live robocall campaign in its tracks.
The coalition believes these measures would strengthen the partnership between the USTelecom-backed ITG and Attorneys General, a relationship that led to the creation of the Anti-Robocall Principles. It will also build on the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (TRACED) Act was signed into law by the federal government and supported by all the state attorneys general.
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CONTACT: Tim Bormann, Chief of Staff, (605) 773-3215
