US Congress seeks to identify foreign sources of scam calls

US lawmakers want to determine which foreign countries send the largest share of illegal robocalls to Americans, as Congress increases its efforts against phone scams.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Communications and Technology Subcommittee passed the bipartisan Foreign Robocall Elimination Act on Tuesday. The measure would direct the Federal Communications Commission to create an inter-agency task force focused on unlawful calls originating outside the United States.

“Everyone with a phone has received a robocall or scam call,” Representative Tom Kean Jr., a New Jersey Republican, said. “Robocalls originating from overseas pose an especially nefarious threat. Congress has taken strides to identify and to trace back illegal robocalls.”

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Everyone with a phone has received a robocall or scam call.

The proposed task force would study the volume of unlawful robocalls from inside and outside the United States. It would also determine which countries serve as the main departure points for calls entering the country.

The bill calls for an assessment of financial losses and identity theft linked to foreign-originating robocalls. It would examine how countries could cooperate to authenticate international calls and consider incentives for foreign governments to work with US law enforcement. The inquiry follows a series of US government reports that linked much of the financial damage from scams to Chinese criminal networks based in Southeast Asia.

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Robocalls originating from overseas pose an especially nefarious threat. Congress has taken strides to identify and to trace back illegal robocalls.