“This is this is the second notice that your vehicle’s factory warranty is about to expire,” or so says the automated voice at the other end of the phone, regardless of whether or not you actually own a car in the first place. An annoyance that has hit a nerve with the American public and recently some are starting to strike back with hassling calls of their own. The Wall Street Journal examines the ethical and legal ambiguities involved with this brand of consumer vigilantism following a thread that appeared on the popular link sharing website Reddit.com, outing one of the warranty companies allegedly involved, complete with the company name and contact information.
And while this particular company might be partially to blame, the real guilty parties are the third-party marketing firms hired out to make the calls, many of whom are purchasing and using phone lists that include numbers for cellphones and individuals signed up on “do not call” registries – both of which are illegal to contact. With so many layers to the scheme, the situation is murky at best and as a result, difficult to litigate against. As of last week the FTC filed a complaint against three such companies in an attempt to put a temporary restraining order on their actions, but given the nature of the legal system, it will most likely be some time before the general public notices a difference, if ever.
A fact that hasn’t escaped some consumers, who would rather take matters into their own hands and increasingly are, thanks to the internet. Now, they’re not only connecting with one another, but raising their voices in unison as well. In light of the recent call back stunt that flooded one company’s phone lines and brought business to a standstill, we’re able to understand how loud that can sound, but considering the virtual anonymity afforded online, who is leading the rallying cry isn’t always so clear.
As powerful a tool as the web might be, we’re still in mostly uncharted territory and things can quickly go from crowdsourced to mob ruled in the span of an instant message. Which is to say that we need to be that much more vigilant with monitoring our own actions as well as the digital voice’s at the other end of the line and not be content with hiding behind our collective computer screens. After all, the internet may have changed the rules, but it hasn’t changed what’s right.
[via Wall Street Journal]
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