Stop the Calls, Part 6: who sold them your number?

"I'm calling because you filled out a funding request online last week."

You didn't. You haven't filled out anything since you signed your last advance. But the caller has your name, your cell, and your business name, and he's the fourth this week. Somebody sold that list. Today you ask who, and you ask them to take you off it.

This is Part 6 of Stop the Calls. Part 1 gave you the script, Part 2 the written stop, Part 3 the call log, Part 4 the UCC filing behind the list, and Part 5 the screener. Blocking stops the ring. This part goes after the source.

General information, not legal advice.

Three questions before you hang up

The next time a broker gets through, skip the argument. Ask these three things, in order, and write each answer in your log:

1. "Who are you calling on behalf of, and what's a phone number or address for them?"
2. "Where did you get my number? What's the name of the list or the vendor?"
3. "Put me on your do-not-call list. You have my permission to pass this request to whoever sold or shared my number."

Then hang up. Plenty of callers will dodge question 2. Write "won't say" and move on. When one does name a vendor, that name is worth more than the call.

Why question 3 has that odd second sentence

The FCC's do-not-call rules have a detail that's easy to miss. A telemarketer that gets your do-not-call request needs your prior express permission before it shares that request with anyone other than the company it calls for or an affiliate (47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(d)(3)). So give the permission out loud. It doesn't force anyone to forward your request. It just takes away the excuse.

The same rule says a telemarketer must give you the caller's name, the name of the company it's calling for, and a phone number or address for that company (§ 64.1200(d)(4)). Question 1 only asks for what the rule already says they owe you. A do-not-call request must be honored within a reasonable time, no more than 10 business days, and kept for 5 years.

Scope check: those rules are written for residential lines, and the FCC extends them to wireless numbers as described in its 2003 order (§ 64.1200(e)). A shop landline gets less protection. Ask the questions anyway. The answers go in the log either way.

The email to the list seller

When a caller names a vendor, send this from an email you control:

Subject: Delete my information and stop selling it

Your company appears to have sold or shared my contact information, including [phone numbers], with telemarketers. Please delete my personal information, stop selling or sharing it, and tell me where you got it. Please also add [phone numbers] to your internal do-not-call list. Reply in writing to confirm.

Keep the sent copy next to your log, the same way you did in Part 2. Can't find the vendor's address? Search its name in California's public data broker registry. Each listing has a view with the broker's contact information.

If you live in California: one request, 600-plus brokers

California's Delete Request and Opt-out Platform (DROP) lets a resident send one free deletion request to over 600 registered data brokers. Brokers had to start processing requests on August 1, 2026, and must check DROP at least once every 45 days. Status updates can take up to 90 days. Add every phone number brokers call you on.

Know the limits. CalPrivacy's DROP FAQ says information that's publicly available, like information from a public record, can be exempt from deletion. Your UCC filing is a public record, so DROP won't erase it (Part 4 covers the paid-off filing). What it may reach is the other half of the lead: registered brokers holding your name and cell from other sources.

Outside California, send the seller email anyway and check your state attorney general's site for privacy rights where you live.

The rights that don't change

• The National Do Not Call Registry covers personal numbers, not business lines. (FTC: National Do Not Call Registry FAQs)
• FCC rules say a caller needs your consent before an autodialed or prerecorded call or text to your wireless number, and you can revoke it in any reasonable way. (FCC: Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts)
• Whether the TCPA (47 U.S.C. § 227) covers a given call depends on the call and the line. (47 U.S.C. § 227 at Cornell LII)

A vendor name, a dated email and your call log are a record you can use to report calls at DoNotCall.gov or bring to a lawyer. For the bigger map, see Know Your Rights.

This week

1. Add the three questions to your Part 1 script shortcut.
2. Add a seventh column to your call log: "Source they named."
3. Send the seller email the same day a caller names a vendor.
4. In California? Submit your DROP request tonight.
5. No log yet? Grab the free call log CSV.

Next part: the texts. What to reply when the pitch moves to SMS, and why one word beats a paragraph.

Sources:

• 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200 (eCFR)
• California Data Broker Registry (CPPA)
• CalPrivacy: DROP
• CalPrivacy: DROP FAQ
• FTC: National Do Not Call Registry FAQs
• FCC: Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts
• 47 U.S.C. § 227 (Cornell LII)