New notices target four providers as multistate task force pushes to curb fraudulent call traffic

Organ Mountain News report

ALBUQUERQUE - Attorney General Raúl Torrez has issued warning notices to four telecom companies identified as routing significant volumes of suspected illegal and fraudulent robocalls across the United States.

The notices were sent as part of the Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force, a coalition of 51 attorneys general formed in 2022. The task force is led by North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.

“Robocalls aren’t just a daily nuisance — they create real vulnerability for people who are simply trying to go about their lives,” Torrez said. “These calls are intentionally designed to mislead and exploit, making it harder for individuals to distinguish a scam from a legitimate call. The sheer volume of illegal robocalls is unacceptable, and this task force is committed to holding companies accountable for allowing this traffic to flow through their networks. Telecom carriers and the FCC must do more to protect consumers and reduce the burden these calls place on our communities.”

The task force reviews call traffic data from industry and law enforcement sources to identify providers involved in transmitting high-volume illegal or suspicious robocall campaigns. When a company appears to be routing those calls, the task force issues a warning notice outlining potential violations of state and federal consumer protection and telemarketing laws.

The latest letters were sent to Bandwidth, Inteliquent, Lumen and Peerless. With these notices, 65 companies have been warned since November 2023.

Last year, the task force urged the Federal Communications Commission to strengthen its Robocall Mitigation Database, saying stronger oversight is needed to reduce fraudulent call traffic nationwide.

The New Mexico Department of Justice maintains consumer information about scams, robocalls and identity theft at NMDOJ.gov to help residents spot and avoid fraudulent activity.