Attorney General Todd Rokita publicly announced his settlement on October 20th, after a yearlong battle against Startel Communications LLC and its CEO, Wanda Hall. In October 2021 Rokita filed a suit against Startel, an Indiana firm, along with other perpetrators involved with aiding and abetting foreign robocallers. Although the robocallers operating out of India, Phillipines and Singapore named in the original suit were not named in the settlement, it is still a massive win for telecommunication safety.

The settlement prohibits both Startel and Hall from the telecommunications industry all together, indefinity. Both Startel and its CEO agreed to never operate or work with a voice service provider to any degree. The lawsuit stated that Startel acted as a gateway provider for over 4.8 million illegal robocalls to Indiana alone and hundreds of millions of calls across the U.S.¹ Scams included but are not limited to: IRS and Social Security Administration imposter scams, legal action or arrest scams, computer support scams, Apple support scams and Amazon subscription scams. This historic win sets precedence for other telecom companies who enable robocalls flooding into the U.S.

Tips to avoid scams and unwanted calls:

1. If you are unsure of whether a call is legitimate or not, enter the phone number in Whois by SIPSTACK. This will provide you with instant information to help you determine the validity of the incoming caller.
2. Don't feel obligated to answer or return calls from unfamiliar numbers. Most legitimate callers trying to reach you will leave a voicemail.
3. If you are receiving a lot of robocalls, report it to your phone provider.
4. If you are a victims of telecom fraud, report the crime to the police. ²
5. Inform yourself on the prevalent scams both in the US and Canada. Increased awareness helps protect ourselves and loved ones against fraud.

References

^{1 https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/wdrb.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/1/c6/1c6cd438-2d36-11ec-aad5-9358140365cf/6168a1c73b66f.pdf
2 https://www.europol.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/wangiri_final_2.pdf}