FCC Seeks Advice on Rules for E-911 Calls from Retired Cellphones
The FCC released a notice of inquiry on E-911 calls from “uninitialized” phones - discarded handsets without service plans -- a growing problem for public safety answering points. National and state public safety groups called attention to the matter. PSAP officials have complained of myriad prank 911 calls made from old, untraceable phones. APCO, the National Emergency Number Association and the National Association of State 9-1-1 Administrators filed a petition at the FCC seeking action (CD March 5 p5).
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“Fraudulent 911 calls can waste valuable public safety resources,” FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said. “I look forward to developing additional data on this issue, and examining recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of our 911 system.”
“These huge numbers of fraudulent calls distract our nation’s public safety officials, which in turn makes it that much more difficult for these public servants to fulfill their life-saving mission,” said Commissioner Deborah Tate.
The notice raises three questions: the “nature and extent” of fraudulent 911 calls from retired cellphones, concerns about blocking the phones “and suggestions for making this a more viable option for carriers” and “other possible solutions” to the problem.
“The Petition offers evidence that nuisance 911 calls from [the] devices are a significant challenge for PSAPs,” the FCC notice said, noting that late in 2006 Tennessee PSAPs reported receiving more than 10,000 fraudulent 911 calls from NSI devices. In December 2006, Florida PSAPs covering about half that state’s population reported more than 8,400 such calls that month alone. In each of four places that officials studied, less than 3 percent of 911 calls from retired phones involved actual emergencies, the FCC said.
A phone blocked on one network simply can roam on another, the notice said. Carriers “would need to coordinate in order to fully stop harassing calls” from a handset, the notice said. “Should the caller be connected to an answering center, or simply be provided with a recorded message instructing use of a different phone in the case of an actual emergency?”
The petition raises concerns about liabilities to PSAPS and carriers that block calls, it said. “It is unclear from petitioners’ filing whether the carriers and PSAPs’ liability concerns are limited only to potential violations of Commission policy and rules, or also to civil liability,” the notice said.