The service does not appear to violate any federal criminal law, says Orin Kerr, a law professor at the George Washington University Law School, and a former Justice Department computer crime lawyer. "It doesn't violate the Wiretap Act or the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act or anything like that," say Kerr.
But Rozanne Andersen, general counsel at the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, believes collection agencies would be barred from using a Caller I.D. spoofing service under two federal civil laws: the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which prohibits false or misleading representations and unfair practices in collecting debts, and the FTC Act, which outlaws deceptive trade practices in general.
"I would say that the concept would be very attractive to the industry, but the practice would be prohibited," says Andersen. "If that consumer calls that number, and does not reach the collector, that's a very serious problem. Certainly the use of what I'll call a 'dummy number' or a 'substitute number' would be a prohibited practice, because it is deceptive in its nature."
Jepson says his own attorney has advised him that the practice is permissible. He plans on launching Star38.com on September 1st.
Originally Posted by ceb
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