Topic: Gizmo puts cold callers on hold

[Clive]

A device which claims to alleviate the problem of cold calling has been launched by two British inventors.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7682111.stm

[Simon]

It looks good, but I wonder about privacy issues?  Who's to say that calls aren't logged, etc?

[Sandra]

I meant to ask if anyone had received a call like I got one day last week.
I answered the phone with my usual "Hello" and got a recorded message saying "That is an invalid response, please press 1 to speak to an operator".
I just hung up, assuming that I would have been billed by pressing 1 somehow but I am not sure how, naturally the number was withheld when I dialled 1471 

[Clive]

I've not heard about that one before Sandra.  Hanging up is always the right thing to do. 

[Simon]

I think the machines just dial random numbers, so even if yours is withheld, you could still get picked, and the software could presumably then bill the connected number.

[Sandra]

Mines not withheld Simon, it was the callers number that was.

[Clive]

I're had two this morning despite being on the Telephone Preference Service.  The first showed "Out of Area" on the caller display and when I picked it up all I could hear was a loud buzzing noise.  The second was an 0800 number but a silent call.