Marsha Blackburn: “I include in the Record the committee report for this legislation from the last Congress. H.R. 423, Anti-Spoofing Act of…”

“I include in the Record the committee report for this legislation from the last Congress. H.R. 423, Anti-Spoofing Act of 2017 background and need for legislation Spoofing is a practice in which a phone number shown on a phone or caller identification device is deliberately falsified, often to portray an official entity such as a government agency or credit card company, typically with malicious intent. Spoofing is a commonly used tool for a number of illegal practices, including phishing for personal information and swatting--calling in a fictitious crime in progress in order to generate a police response. The original Truth in Caller ID Act of 2009 prohibits spoofing voice caller identification. However, as communications methods and consumer habits continue to evolve, so too do the attempts by third parties to fraudulently gain personal information for criminal use. Many Americans are now relying on text messaging to stay connected, and this method of communication has become a target for spoofing in much the same way voice calls have been. H.R. 423 extends the provisions of the Truth in Caller ID Act to include text messaging as well as Voice over Internet Protocol services. The legislation, introduced by Rep. Barton, Rep. Lance, and Rep. Meng, also addresses the growth of services that allow users to knowingly transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information by adding a definition of ``spoofing service'' to the Truth in Caller ID Act.…”