Phone scams: the new government strategy

Expired CPF account, fake cop, voice spam… Do you roll your eyes every time your phone rings, so tired of the scams on the other end of the line? You have every reason to be exasperated! When we are not trying to scam you out of money by encouraging you to call a premium rate number, we are asking you to sell you telephone subscriptions, energy contracts…

Thursday, July 7, 2022, the Minister of Economy, Finance and Recovery, Bruno Le Maire, presented the purchasing power bill. In particular, he unveiled the plan to eliminate, or at least contain, the scams and cold calling that bother you at all hours of the day and night. This involves, for example, toughening the penalty for companies that practice misleading or aggressive commercial strategies. The latter would no longer risk two, but three years of imprisonment, and up to seven in the event of fraud mounted in an organized gang. And that’s not all !

The Minister insisted on the very captive nature of certain contracts, which prevent consumers from canceling. Thus, the bill will contain a clause requiring professionals who sign contracts online to provide a simple and readable termination mechanism. “The idea is to strengthen the power to bring competition into play and facilitate the choice of the most interesting commercial offers”, writes the site actu.fr. If the law is passed, it should apply from the beginning of 2023.