PLEASE upgrade your phone number blocking feature!
When our phone service was recently upgraded with new equipment (a modem specifically for the phone) we were promised that there would be a new, easier method to block incoming calls by phone number (sales calls, etc.). Well this is apparently not the case (big surprise)! We are being harassed day and night by call after call; sales calls, scams, and so on. I know I'm not the only Cox customer experiencing this and I know that we have been after Cox for years to give us something better than their outdated "Selective Call Rejection" which is limited to 30 numbers and requires manual input of every number we want to block. I need to maintain an Excel spreadsheet just to keep track of the numbers I've blocked! Please don't tell me about the "Do Not Call" registry. It's a joke as most businesses ignore it. If Cox spent as much money on upgrading their phone services as they do on commercials trying to convince us that they are our "Friend in the digital age" then this wouldn't be an issue and they would have more happy customers. So how about it, Cox?14KViews0likes16Comments
RoboCalls, Spam, Telemarketing frequency increasing
In the past 3 months, our number of unwanted calls has increased by 150%. Cox solutions to address these annoying callers are anemic. And YES, I have registered at the DoNotCall website (another joke). I painfully tried the Call Blocking feature that was presented as $1 / month / line. Upon reviewing my bill, I was charged $4 / month for each of my home lines. I attempted to give it a try and quickly reached the 30 call number limit. The 30 number limit was not shared with me during my registration with Cox... Not only is the limit ridiculously low, trying to manipulate the service on a phone is a nightmare. Cox is far behind the times / technology on addressing Spam, RoboCalls, Telemarketing and Spoofing issues plaguing their customers. This is my first post to Cox, but I see that I am far from alone in my frustration with the lack of tools to block unwanted calls on my home lines. My next step will likely be to drop my home phones and use cellular phones that do address this more effectively. This has been a very successful, less expensive solution used by many of my friends and family. Cox, please listen and do something! Sagianite4.1KViews0likes2CommentsCOX Communication ISP VOIP
What is COX Communication policy regarding use of its services both as a ISP and VOIP provider? What can be expected from it should its services be determined as being used fraudently? Have been receiving unsolicited tele marketers who use VOIP tractable to cable providers.2.6KViews0likes1CommentManaging unwanted numbers / blocked callers?
It is 2016 and I find it really hard to believe that I need to go to the phone keypad to manage the blocked numbers on my account. I had to open a new post since the other ones about blocking robocalls and unwanted numbers seem to have been locked. Can we not have a web interface -- maybe even a simple selection of the unwanted numbers from our call history and a "Block it" button? The insanity of having to manage this list (of max 30 numbers!) *manually* is bad enough, but requiring us to do it via the handset is truly sadistic. More than half of the time, I give up since I just can't deal with waiting through the prompts. No, you CANNOT dial during the prompts without the system getting confused and having to start all over. And, no, you cannot add multiple numbers in a row. You get to do them one at a time. Other phone and internet services are sending us email all the time about switching and consolidating. I have been a Cox customer for a long time and have been happy with the other services, but managing all of these unsolicited calls is driving me to look elsewhere. It looks from this forum that I am not alone. Can Cox personnel comment on any plans for fixing these issues and making this service actually usable?8.1KViews0likes7Comments
Caller ID City, ST-no one there. Multiple calls a day
We receive 5-15 calls a day where the caller ID is a city and state only, and sometimes just The Hartford (up to three times a day). No one is ever there or leaves a message. I have tried to answer to find out who they are, but no answer, just empty air. I ignore them, but it is a time waster and interrupter and leaves us scrambling when it is a wanted caller. Most calls are daytime/evening. They come from all over the country, NV, CA, FL, SD and most common is CT where we are located. Is this a condition of internet phone, spamming, robo calls? Is there anyway to combat it or report it?8.2KViews0likes2Comments
Unwanted calls, robo calls, etc
I have been reading many comments from people who are co thmplaining about unwanted calls and how to stop them. Many people are registered with the DNS (myself included) and this is not working for anyone. There is a really easy solution which I am surprised nobody has even mentioned. My phone announces whomever is calling by voice, caller ID, etc. If it is someone I know I can answer it. If it is someone that I do not recognize but when they start to leave a message and I do want to talk to this person then again I answer it. In this way I am not talking to sales persons or scammers. END OF THE PROBLEM. A very easy solution to a never ending problem. I always have said that if someone wants to talk to me they will leave me a message and if not then just hang up like to many of these callers always do anyway. So it is not taking up my time answering calls that I do not want.6.9KViews0likes4Comments
VM Prices & Blocked Calls
Hi- I hate that we don't have voice mail on our phone. Is there an additional price to have voice mail? My second question is: I am SUPPOSED to NOT have our phone number listed on anything as well as I have blocked it on the DNC Registry, yet I still come home daily to at least 8 missed calls... all from businesses or telemarketing. If I have to pay additionally every month for my number to be blocked, then I expect not to be getting these types of calls on a daily basis. Where did I go wrong with this ? Also, am I able to block specific numbers from calling our home?3.4KViews0likes1Commentrobocalls
I received an email from Consumer Reports regarding software that blocks Robocalls. With the 2016 election coming I would be very interested in this as in 2014 we were inundated by political robocalls. Even with "Do not Call" we are still inundated by junk calls. Does Cox have this or are you planning to install this in the future?9.4KViews0likes14Comments
How to end robocalls
I saw a number of inquiries here expressing frustration with robocalls and political pollsters. Here's my solution which was born out of frustration with the telcos inability to regulate themselves and the FCCs feeble attempts at enforcement. I've always been registered with the DNC registry, but I re-registered all my numbers with the DNC registry and waited the prescribed amount of time just to be sure. Then I started talking to every telemarketer and robocaller who dares to call me. Yes, I actually talk to them. I think of it as taking one for the team. For every second I keep them engaged, I'm saving someone out there from a ringing phone. Rather than be upset, I just let them go through their script while injecting comments and questions to make them think I'm interested. I let them think that they are going to close the deal of a lifetime and hit their quota with a single call. In the end, I make up some excuse like, "hang on, my daughter is calling me". I set the phone down and walk away. My kids know what's up when they see the phone sitting on the kitchen counter with the line still active because they have been properly trained. In other cases I just stop them short after 5 minutes and explain that I was never interested and that they should honor the DNC registry. I've had a car insurance quote get to 4 vehicles before the guy asked me if they were for real... I take a long time to decide if I want to plunk down $89 for a trip to Hawaii, because as much as I want to go there, I need to make sure the accommodations are what I am used to... you get the idea. If it's a political polling organization, I can usually figure out their agenda after a couple questions and then answer completely opposite to what they are trying to "steer" me towards. I have to laugh when they go "off script" to try to sway me and I have to remind them that they are polling me and to go to the next question. And finally, if they get upset with you, just politely let them know they would not have wasted their time if they honored the DNC registry. They can be mad as ***, but the DNC list is really easy for them to access and they have no excuse for not using it. Just imagine if everyone did this? In the end it's a numbers game for the robocallers. They need to hit a lot of numbers in as short amount of time as possible. If they get tripped up on just a few percent of those calls their profit model falls apart and they start looking for a different line of work. So next time your phone rings... Smile and take one for the team! Cheers P.S. The thing that really disgusts me is when I hear of the elderly or handicapped being taken advantage of by these people. I honestly don't know how those people sleep at night.4KViews0likes1Comment