-- Kate - if this reply seems like boilerplate, I confess that it sort of is. Being on this site as a Regular for a while now, the method that often works what I outline below. Talking to them does not work at all. Nor does yelling or playing with them. Sure, there are some scams you can fight more creatively, but most of the calls people get are coming from scams that are not targeted, or only loosely targeted, so call blocking works pretty well. It does take some time, but you can get the number of calls down. I went from about 4-5 a day to about 3 a week, sometimes less. Good Luck!
One of the hallmarks of crooks is they do not obey the law. Most of these calls are from scammers and crooks, and many of those are run outside of the USA. The DNA is what it is, but it is not going to stop crooks from calling. Try this:
- Do not answer or call back numbers or names you do not recognize.
- Block those numbers.
Most phone carriers offer some sort of call blocking, and nowadays, many phones have call blocking features. Or you can buy a separate call blocking device.
It is tempting to engage the callers, but that is not the way to go unless you want more calls, or you plan some legal action. Legal actions are a whole other question.