"214-555-Something. Must be the landlord." You pick up. Same funding pitch as yesterday. Different digits. Same first six as your shop line.
Today: neighbor spoofing and local-looking caller ID, what the FCC says is illegal, and a spoof-aware log so you stop chasing every number.
New here? Script, written stop, call log, filing map, and more: https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/stop-the-calls
General information, not legal advice.
What you are seeing on the screen
Merchants keep describing the same pattern: a displayed number that matches your area code or exchange, a bank or brand-looking label that does not match the voice, or a rotating block of near-identical numbers while the opening line stays word for word.
The FCC calls the local look-alike neighbor spoofing: caller ID built to look nearby so you pick up. Source: https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/spoofing
Spoofing is not always illegal. A doctor showing the office number from a personal cell, or a shop showing its toll-free callback, can be lawful. Illegal spoofing under the Truth in Caller ID Act is transmitting misleading or inaccurate caller ID with intent to defraud, cause harm, or wrongly obtain something of value (47 U.S.C. 227(e); 47 CFR 64.1604). Your phone cannot prove intent. Your log only records what you saw. Same FCC guide; rule text: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-64/subpart-P/section-64.1604
Business lines are not on the National Do Not Call Registry. That list is for personal numbers. You can still report what you get. Source: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/national-do-not-call-registry-faqs
What STIR/SHAKEN changes (and what it does not)
Carriers use STIR/SHAKEN to authenticate caller ID on IP networks so the terminating provider can check whether the displayed number was signed as legitimate. The FCC requires that framework on IP voice networks: https://www.fcc.gov/call-authentication
In the standards, providers attach an attestation level (often A, B, or C) about how much they know about the caller and the number. Full (A) is strongest; partial (B) and gateway (C) are weaker. Most handsets do not show those letters. What you often see instead is a carrier or device label such as "Scam Likely" or "Spam." Treat those as a hint from analytics, not a final judgment. Part 13 covered blocking and labeling without locking out real customers.
Honest limit: a spoofed local number can still ring. Blocking one displayed number does little when the next call uses a fresh look-alike. The pitch and the pattern matter more than the digits.
The tactic: a spoof-aware call log
Extend the Part 3 log (https://mcafax.com/notebook/toolkit/call-log-template). Keep the six core columns. Add these four when caller ID looks local or branded:
- Displayed CID. Exactly as shown, including any brand name on the screen.
- Label note. Write "Scam Likely," "Spam," "Verified," or "none." Do not invent a letter grade your phone never displays.
- Pitch fingerprint. First line, word for word. "Calling about your approval" is the identity.
- Same-pitch cluster ID. Matching pitches get one label ("Shop A - funding department") even when numbers differ.
Once a week, sort by pitch fingerprint, then by cluster ID. Five "local" numbers with one opening line are one shop, not five neighbors.
Three-line end script (no argument about the number)
Say this and hang up. Do not debate whether the digits are real.
- "I did not request this call. Put this number on your do-not-call list."
- "Do not call this business again."
- Hang up. Log the displayed CID, time, pitch fingerprint, and cluster ID.
That pairs with the Part 1 stop script when you need the fuller version: https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/stop-the-calls
Then file with the Part 12 map: no money lost at https://www.donotcall.gov/report.html; money lost or company details at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov; robocalls, robotexts, and spoofing at https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov
Your checklist
- Treat local look-alikes with the same skepticism you give unknown toll-free lines.
- Log displayed CID, any on-screen label, pitch fingerprint, and cluster ID.
- End with the three-line script. Do not chase every new number.
- Report clusters, not one-off digits, using the Part 12 filing map.
- Starting from zero? https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/stop-the-calls
More: https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/know-your-rights and https://mcafax.com/notebook/stop-mca-broker-calls
Coming in Part 15: when an AI receptionist answers the broker so you never have to, and what to put in its stop script.
More in the Stop the Calls series.
Sources:
- FCC, Caller ID Spoofing: https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/spoofing
- ECFR, 47 CFR 64.1604: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-64/subpart-P/section-64.1604
- FTC, National Do Not Call Registry FAQs: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/national-do-not-call-registry-faqs
- FCC, Call Authentication (STIR/SHAKEN): https://www.fcc.gov/call-authentication