Are you a resident or employee in the 510 service area? If so, as of last Saturday, you now must dial 11 digits to make a local call (1+area code + number).
This is because the 510 area code has run out of numbers and requires a new area code overlay (area code 341) to meet the demand of new telephone numbers.
Going forward, when a new number is assigned to the area, recipients may get either a 510 or a 341 number.
The 510 area code was created in 1991 when 415 was split between the East Bay and the Peninsula / Marin County.
Apparently, America is number one in the world for number of robocalls received. Not a verify satisfying statistic, I know. Last year, 48 billion of them arrived on our phones, and I think I received more than my fair share! Voice messages left on my phone in computerized voices threatened me with law suits and, very recently, that a warrant would be put out for my arrest if I don't call them back. Note, they never used my name or told me who they were. They just left threatening messages and a phone number which were promptly deleted.
The FCC states that their number one customer complaint is unwanted calls. They also provide some good information about the problem and recommendations on how to handle unwanted calls and phone scams and on registering with the Do Not Call List.
Fortune.com predicts 60 billion robocalls to Americans for 2019 in an article on FCC plans to get aggressive. FCC is pushing it's plan to get telephone service providers to implement a new technology standard known as STIR/SHAKEN to combat the scourge.
Verizon is supposedly offering a free call filter to help block the incoming flow. I have yet to give this a try but it can't hurt. In it's article announcing the call filter, USA today also describes Verizon's call verification feature and T-Mobile's similar offering.
With these new standards being implemented and new features coming from providers, I am staying optimistic that and end to the problem, or at least a big reduction in it is forthcoming.
Let us know your experiences and keep up the fight against these unwanted intrusions.