I'm sick of telemarketers how do I block them?

Question

I get 4-5 calls a night and during the day, it's way too much what's worse is I have a private number and we are getting more calls each day. I'm from Australia and it doesn't look like we have a do-not-call list here, I have already changed my phone number once and it only continued is there something else I can do?

I have caller id it comes up as private

thanks guys there is some great answers in here but please remember I'm from Australia, these websites will only register us numbers

Answer 1

OMG, i get the same thing and had to change my number
I made it completely silent and if they got your number then i would be complaining to your phone company

also lodge a complaint with Australian Advertising Bureau or
Federal Privacy Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
SYDNEY NSW 2001

or directly with the company

Answer 2

I'm from Australia, too, and I also hate telemarketers. If you have caller ID, which I do, most of these callers come up as overseas- unless you have a private number. To find out whether it's telemarketers or your mates, you'll need to have an open number.
However, Telstra do offer, for a price, a caller barring service which doesn't allow anyone to call unless they are on the list. Works a treat!

Answer 3

I once heard a joke played on a telemarketer. It was a radio DJ... He recorded the conversation and played it on the air...

The radio DJ pretended to be a cop and told the telemarketer that he had just called a murder scene and he was now a suspect in the murder case becuase he was calling the muder scene

The radio DJ then proceeded to interrogate the telemarketer on the phone and was trying to get the telemarketer to come in for questioning.

the telemarketer wanted so bad to get of the phone with the DJ pretending to be the cop.

but the DJ wouldn't let him hang up, he just kept asking him question about where he was what he was doing... who he was with an hour or 2 ago... why was he calling this number... etc... it was really funny. =o)

Answer 4

forget it, you're in Australia, I didn't read all the way through...don't want to delete (lose points)

Given to me by mother in law, it has worked, I'd say about 98%

www.donotcall.gov

give the phone # and e-mail address to receive confirmation or call 1 888 382 1222 on the phone you don't want those calls on. Real easy; takes only a minute.

Answer 5

They get your number by people in the malls that ask you to fill out forms to win something and then theses people sell your info to telemarketers when they call you ask them to take you off there list, and tell them they have all ready called you, it worked for me, it took a week or so but it did stop and I never fill out any more papers in stores or malls that say you can win something. you never win they just us your info to sell.

Answer 6

There's a way to have your phone company do it, Well it doesn't block them completely but, it will give a message whenever someone calls that says "This number does not allow solicitation, if you are a solicitor please hang up and take this number off your call list. If you are not please dial 1 and you will be connected" Something along those lines anyways. ; )

Answer 7

Tell them in a soft voice that you're sad and have no one to talk to. Then ask them if they will talk to you for awhile. They will for a bit, but they'll get in trouble if they stay on there too long without making a sale. Just play the game with them.

Answer 8

Best way is to just waste their time, along the lines of, " tell me all about your product" then put the phone down and do something else, they'll get bored eventually

Answer 9

Ever heard of caller ID?

Answer 10

I got a cell phone and took out the land line. I haven't been bothered since.