FCC Proposes $82 Million Fine For Spoofed Robocalls

The Federal Communications Commission proposed an $82,106,000 fine against an individual who apparently made more than 21 million illegally spoofed robocalls in violation of the Truth in Caller ID Act. The law prohibits callers from deliberately falsifying caller ID information – a practice called “spoofing” – to disguise their identity with the intent to harm, defraud consumers, or wrongfully obtain anything of value. The FCC found that Best Insurance Contracts and its owner/operator, Mr. Philip Roesel (doing business as Wilmington Insurance Quotes) apparently made millions of illegally spoofed robocalls consumers around the country. Roesel of Wilmington (NC) displayed inaccurate caller ID information when making robocalls in an effort to sell health insurance, which especially targeted vulnerable consumers, including the elderly, the infirm, and low-income families.