Where do calls starting with 09-48 or 01-62 come from? Understanding the rules of cold calling

Almost every day, these numbers that start with 09-48 or 01-62 try to reach us to sell us a new telephone plan, windows, hearing tests. To prospect potential customers, companies use different telephone numbers each time, which makes it difficult to identify the people behind these calls. Despite the existence of legislative texts since 2020, many direct sellers manage to slip through the cracks to sell their products, while others take advantage of this to set up scams.

How is cold calling regulated in France?

Telephone canvassing and the fight against fraudulent calls are regulated by the Naegelen law of July 2020 and by a decree of October 2022, which entered into force in March 2023, which specifies the times and days when canvassing is possible. From Monday to Friday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., companies can contact potential customers by telephone to sell their services – the practice is therefore prohibited in the evenings, weekends and public holidays. Another restriction: canvassing companies are not allowed to call more than four times within a month.

For calls concerning energy renovations, the rule is even stricter. It is strictly forbidden to make cold calls on this subject. In the event of violation of one of these rules, the direct seller is liable to a fine of 75,000 euros, according to article L. 242-16 of the Consumer Code, and up to 375,000 euros if the offense is committed by a legal person.

Concerning advertising canvassing by automatic machine (or pre-recorded telephone messages), the law only authorizes it if the consumer has previously given his consent to receive this type of calls – for example by having checked on the company’s website the option “I accept that my information is used for commercial prospecting”.

Which numbers are authorized to canvass?

Since 1^er January 2023, direct sellers can no longer use mobile numbers starting with 06 or 07, now reserved for “interpersonal communication services”. The Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (Arcep) has reserved series of numbers for professionals wishing to canvass legally – which also allows people who receive these calls to identify the origin of the numbers seeking to contact them.

Depending on the region, the first four or five digits vary according to the Arcep numbering plan:

• In mainland France, numbers start with 01-62, with 01-63, with 02-70, with 02-71, with 03-77, with 03-78, with 04-24, with 04-25, with 05- 68, by 05-69, by 09-48 and by 09-49.
• Overseas, the numbers start with 09475 (in Guadeloupe, Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy), with 09476 (in Guyana), with 09477 (in Martinique), with 09478 and with 09479 (in Réunion and with Mayotte).

Even if they look similar, these number roots should not be confused with those of delivery people, VTC drivers and other after-sales services, whose numbers start with 09-37, 09-38 and 09-39.

How to block or report these phone numbers?

The government has set up the Bloctel platform, allowing individuals to no longer be contacted by telephone by direct sellers. All you have to do is enter, on the site, up to ten landline or mobile phone numbers that you want to block. Before making calls, sellers must in principle check whether they are not registered on the Bloctel lists. These numbers, even if blocked, can call for non-commercial and advertising purposes.

If a direct seller does not comply with one of its rules, he or she is liable to a fine under article L.522-1 of the Consumer Code. In 2022, for example, EDF was fined 600,000 euros by the National Commission for Informatics and Liberties (CNIL) for non-compliance with its obligations in terms of commercial prospecting and rights of people. The Canal+ television channel was inflicted with the same sanction in 2023.

However, registering on this platform does not seem to be enough in practice. “Not all companies go through Bloctel even though it is mandatorydeplores Hélène Lebon, lawyer in digital law contacted by The world. The DGCCRF [direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes] has already sanctioned direct sellers for this. »

For me^e Lebon, we should also sanction more data brokersthese companies which collect and sell databases to large companies so that they can conduct telephone prospecting. “Despite the CNIL fines against EDF and Canal+, very few sanctions are taken against data brokers. I was surprised when I saw that the CNIL had only ordered the Tagadamedia company to better collect data, even though it falsely claims to have collected twelve million prospects without circumventing the law. »

To protect yourself from these advertising calls, it is also possible to go to the I alert Arcep website to report fraudulent numbers. You can also report doubtful written and voice messages as part of the fight against spam, by SMS to 33-700.

Why should we be wary of direct sellers who call with 06 or 07?

The law strongly limits commercial canvassing using codes corresponding to mobile numbers (06 and 07). However, it is not uncommon to receive them. Caution is recommended with regard to these calls, which can lead to scams: the callers can pose as bankers or insurers to extract sensitive data.

These fraudulent direct sellers use a technique called spoofing (usurpation). To display a number starting with 06 or 07, they use software like IPBX, initially used by companies to call securely. These mobile phone numbers may already exist and belong to people in good faith, who are unaware of these maneuvers.

The Naegelen law requires telephone operators to set up a “authentication device” For “confirm the authenticity of a call or message intended for one of its end-user customers or passing through its network”. Without this certification, the operator must interrupt “routing the call or message”.

In an e-mail, communicated to WorldArcep ensures that it is “in charge of ensuring the implementation of the MAN (number authentication mechanism) by operators”. Even if this law could reduce the nuisance for users whose number has been stolen, “Arcep would like to clarify (…) that the entry into force of the Naegelen law, and in particular of the MAN, is not an end in itself” and encourages victims to report problems “on the I alert Arcep platform” and to “file a complaint against X for identity theft”. According to article L.226-4-1 of the penal code, this offense provides for a penalty of up to one year of imprisonment and a fine of 15,000 euros.

Despite these measures, spoofing remains attractive for scammers, who can still call with 06 and 07 from abroad without being worried. To counter these fraudulent actions, lawyer Hélène Lebon specifies that “companies that are victims of these thefts, such as banks, have had to increase their level of security with more authentication on applications and awareness campaigns for their customers”.

In an awareness campaign, the French Banking Federation reminds us of a reflex to adopt to avoid fraud: “Never give your banking codes, passwords and identifiers, even to your bank, which will never ask for them. »