House moves to stop caller ID fraud         

[June 14, 2007]  WASHINGTON -- Using fake caller IDs to defraud or cause harm to people would be illegal under a bill the House passed by voice vote Tuesday.

The measure is aimed at the practice of "spoofing," where scammers falsify the name and phone number appearing on caller ID. A scammer, for example, might trick a person into thinking he is getting a call from a bank with the intention of obtaining personal information such as Social Security or credit card numbers.

"This is another example of technology being misused by the unscrupulous to scam the unsuspecting," said Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., sponsor of the measure.

He said caller ID tampering can also be used by stalkers, and noted that some congressional offices have been flooded with complaints from constituents after a "spoofer" sent out nasty messages identified by caller ID as coming from member of Congress.

The bill was crafted to protect people with legitimate reasons to alter the caller ID, such as a victim of domestic violence not wanting to disclose her phone number.

The bill, which now goes to the Senate, gives the Federal Communications Commission authority to develop regulations to enforce the new law. It keeps intact penalties already in the 1934 Communications Act that sets penalties for fraud at up to $10,000 or a year in prison.

The House last March passed similar legislation that made spoofing a felony subject to up to five years in prison.

The bill is H.R. 251.

On the Net:

• Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov

[Associated Press]