O&I Hearing: Stopping Illegal Robocalls and Robotexts: Progress, Challenges, and Next Steps

House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations

2025-06-04

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Summary

This meeting discusses the escalating problem of illegal robocalls and robotexts, their profound impact on American consumers, and the ongoing efforts by industry and federal agencies to combat them[ 00:00:27-00:00:33 ] [ 00:06:52-00:06:52 ]

. Participants highlighted both the progress made through technological advancements and legislative action, as well as significant challenges posed by evolving scam tactics, foreign actors, and potential federal agency underfunding and political interference. The dialogue emphasized the need for continued collaboration, enhanced enforcement, and adequate resources to protect vulnerable populations from financial and emotional harm[ 00:09:35-00:09:39 ] [ 00:43:31-00:43:52 ] .

Themes

The Persistent Threat of Robocalls and Robotexts

Unwanted calls remain the top consumer complaint, with Americans receiving over 52 billion robocalls in 2024, nearly half of which were scams or telemarketing[ 00:06:52-00:06:52 ]

[ 00:55:11-00:55:11 ] . These scams defrauded Americans of $25 billion in 2023, causing real financial and emotional harm[ 00:17:52 ] . The threat landscape has evolved, with scammers shifting from mass robocalls to more targeted and sophisticated attacks[ 00:07:47 ] . Foreign entities originate a significant portion of these fraudulent calls, often spinning out U.S.-based LLCs to obscure their origin. Medical professionals are particularly impacted, with frequent robocalls disrupting their ability to respond to emergencies.

Industry Solutions and Progress

The implementation of the TRACED Act and the STIR/SHAKEN call authentication framework has led to progress, reducing scam robocalls by about 50% from previous highs[ 00:07:22 ]

. The Broadband Association's Industry Traceback Group (ITG) has conducted over 3,600 tracebacks of suspected unlawful robocalls in 2024, tracing calls globally and providing crucial data for enforcement actions[ 00:03:05 ] . CTIA's Secure Messaging Initiative facilitates information sharing among industry stakeholders and law enforcement, leading to over 172,000 robotext tracebacks and packages focusing on various scams[ 00:03:33 ] . Industry efforts also include call blocking, labeling, filtering tools, and the development of "branded calling" (BCID) to provide consumers with more information about incoming calls. Consumers are encouraged to report suspicious texts to 7726 (SPAM) to aid these systems.

Challenges in Enforcement and Agency Resources

A key challenge is the origin of many scams from abroad, making criminal prosecution difficult unless actors operate within the country[ 01:26:04 ]

. Speakers expressed concern that the Trump administration's actions, such as attempts to remove Senate-confirmed commissioners, dissolve the DOJ's Consumer Protection Branch, and implement budget cuts, undermine the ability of agencies like the FCC, FTC, and CFPB to combat scams. These agencies are viewed as under-resourced, lacking sufficient personnel and direct authority to collect fines or automatically suspend repeat bad actors from the robocall mitigation database[ 00:09:29-00:09:35 ] . The current private right of action under TCPA is criticized for fostering a "cottage industry" of lawsuits against legitimate companies rather than targeting actual bad actors, with no caps on recovery or attorney fees. The proliferation of over 9,500 intermediary service providers makes tracing calls difficult, with low barriers to entry and insufficient consequences for non-compliance in the robocall mitigation database[ 01:00:30 ] .

The Evolving Threat of AI-Enhanced Scams

Artificial intelligence (AI) is significantly enhancing the sophistication of robocall and robotext scams[ 00:26:27-00:26:28 ]

. Scammers use AI for realistic text generation, allowing for rapid creation of grammatically correct and plausible messages connected to fraudulent links. More alarmingly, AI enables voice and video impersonation (deepfakes), leading to highly convincing scams that exploit emotional connections, such as mimicking a child's voice to solicit money. These AI-generated scams are much harder for consumers to identify, even for educated individuals, making prevention at the source critical[ 00:27:16-00:27:16 ] . Industry is countering this by using AI and machine learning to detect and block these advanced scams.

Protecting Vulnerable Populations

Seniors are a primary target for scammers, losing $4.9 billion to fraud last year alone[ 00:55:36 ]

. Scammers exploit uncertainty and fear, using tactics like Medicare fraud, unpaid bill threats, or impersonating family members in distress[ 00:44:01 ] . Small businesses also face unique vulnerabilities as their personal phones often double as business lines, making them susceptible to scams and predatory lawsuits. The wireless industry partners with organizations like AARP and participates in initiatives like the FTC's Stop Senior Scams Working Group to protect older Americans through education and law enforcement collaboration.

Tone of the Meeting

The tone of the meeting was largely urgent and concerned, reflecting the pervasive and damaging nature of robocalls and robotexts across the country[ 00:17:34-00:17:49 ]

[ 00:36:53-00:37:10 ] . There was a strong sense of frustration regarding the evolving sophistication of scams, particularly with AI, and the perceived undermining of federal enforcement agencies through budget cuts and political interference[ 00:26:27 ] . Despite acknowledgements of industry efforts and some successes, speakers emphasized that much more needs to be done, calling for increased resources, stronger enforcement, and updated legal frameworks[ 00:07:22 ] [ 00:08:26 ] . The urgency was amplified by personal anecdotes of constituents, especially seniors, being targeted and the critical disruptions to essential services[ 00:43:20-00:43:52 ] .