Sign Up to Reduce Annoying Telemarketers

This is an interesting piece in the Toronto Star from Michael Geist.

In creating the Do-Not-Call regime to take effect later this year, our federal government in its wisdom allowed for quite a few exemptions - actually some of the worst culprits like banks and charities.

Geist has created a website that allows you to register your withdrawal of consent to these organisations - a sort of pre-emptive strike against these exemptions using federal privacy law (PIPEDA).

I signed up - it's easy and takes about a minute.

Comments

[Brock]

I absolutely despise telemarketing. I despise any agency trying to phone you at home asking for something. I reserve all of my hate though for a certain collection agency that called me continuously looking for a Mr. James "x." Apparently this guy used to have the phone number I have (or something to that effect), and now that he's pilfered the market and left a massive amount of debt, I was left to be harrassed by Canadian Bonded Credit Limited.

It only took me about 10 phone calls (over the course of 3 months) to their "managers" and "supervisors" before I finally received relief (this was on top of receiving a daily phone call from their automated dialers and "agents" looking to collect). I gave every agent and supervisor an earful 'cause I have never in my life been talked to in such a rude way. Apparently I'm on their international "do not call registry" now after finally getting through to someone with some sense of "normalcy". Ridiculous.

[it's best to read the various comments on the blog I'm posting if you're bored of course]

http://www.angryman.ca/blog/2005/11/another-angry-man-jim-stanford-vs.html

[Brock]

...ps: Thanks prof. Hutchison, I was more than pleased to sign up for this service.

[Cameron Hutchison]

Yes, I share your disdain for telemarketing. I was thinking of some self help measures this morning. One thing my father used to do in his retirement when Jehovah's Witnesses came to the door, was to invite them in and try to convert them to atheism. He had great fun doing this, and they were often ready to leave before he was able to finish.

I wonder if I should try to counter-sell telemarketers on the phone e.g. it must be tough doing this for a living, why dont you apply to U of A law? Perhaps next time, if I am in the mood, I will try this.

[Russ Brown]

I checked off everything. The confirming email advised that this meant the following organizations (the first one is among my least favorite entities, so I'm happy):

- Air Canada
- BC SPCA
- Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
- Canadian Cancer Society (British Columbia)
- Canadian Cancer Society (Ontario)
- Canadian Cancer Society (Prince Edward Island)
- Canadian Cancer Society (Yukon)
- Canadian Feed the Children
- Canadian Red Cross
- Childrens Emergency Foundation
- Childrens Health Foundation
- Greenpeace Canada
- Heart and Stroke Foundation
- Médecins Sans Frontières Canada
- Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada
- Save the Children Canada
- UNICEF Canada
- Alberta Liberal Party
- Amtelecom
- Bank of Montreal
- Barrie Examiner
- Bell Canada
- Belleville Intelligencer
- Brantford Expositor
- Brick, The
- British Columbia Libertarian Party
- Calgary Herald
- Canadian Diabetes Association
- Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
- Canadian North Airlines
- Canadian Western Bank
- Capital One Canada
- Central Mountain Air
- Chapters/Indigo Books
- Chatham Daily News
- Chronicle Herald
- Columbia House Canada
- Conservative Party of Canada
- Cornwall Standard Freeholder
- Edmonton Journal
- Fido Solutions
- First Nations Bank of Canada
- Globe and Mail, The
- Green Party of Alberta
- Green Party of Canada
- Green Party of Manitoba
- Green Party of Ontario
- Guelph Mercury
- Hamilton Spectator
- Kingston Whig-Standard
- La Presse
- La Tribune
- La Voix de l\\\'Est
- Le Droit
- Le Nouvelliste
- Le Quotidien
- Le Soleil
- Liberal Party of Canada
- Libertarian Party of Canada
- Lindsay Daily Post
- Montreal Gazette
- Mountain Equipment Co-Op
- National Post
- New Democratic Party of British Columbia
- New Democratic Party of Canada
- New Democratic Party of Nova Scotia
- New Democratic Party of Ontario
- Niagara Falls Review
- North Bay Nugget
- Northumberland Today
- Orillia Packet & Times
- Ottawa Citizen
- Ottawa Sun
- Owen Sound Sun Times
- Pembroke Daily Observer
- Peterborough Examiner
- Prince George Citizen
- Regina Leader-Post
- Rogers
- Sarnia Observer
- Saskatchewan Party
- Sault Star
- Seaside Communications
- Shaw Communications
- Source Cable
- St. Catharines Standard
- Sudbury Star
- TD Canada Trust
- Thunder Bay Chronicle Journal
- Timmins Daily Press
- Toronto Star
- Vancouver Province
- Videotron
- Welland Tribune
- Yukon Liberal Party
- Advitek
- Antima Group, The
- BBM Canada
- Bristol Omnifacts Research
- Compas
- Consumer Contact
- Crop
- Ekos
- Environics Research Group
- Forum Research
- Gallup Canada
- Gemma Communications
- GoalLine Solutions
- Ipsos Canada
- J.D. Power and Associates
- Lang Research
- Leger Marketing
- Matrix Research
- MD Analytics
- Mountain West Research Center
- Mustel Group
- Norsask Consumer Interviewing Services
- NRG Research Group
- Pollara
- R.A. Malatest & Associates
- SOM
- Teleperformance Canada
- Telus Mobility
- Vector Research + Development

[mac insleads]

I work directly with the elderly and this is a service they need to be made aware of. It is crazy to see these seniors bombarded with incoming calls and how it confuses a lot of them.

Thanks for the excellent resource.

[hypotheek ontwikkeling]

I think it is actually mood elevating site with great report. Yes, you are doing absolutely fine job.