North Carolina Prohibits Caller ID Spoofing by Telemarketers and Establishes Civil Fines and Criminal Penalties

Original title: Abuse and Deception by Telemarketers.

Last action · May 7, 2025: Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate (Senate action)Sponsors: Mark Brody and 36 others

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What This Bill Would Do

North Carolina prohibits telemarketers from transmitting misleading caller identification information or blocking their true origin, effective December 1, 2025. The measure allows affected telephone subscribers to bring civil actions for statutory damages ranging from $500 to $5,000, imposes an additional $10,000 civil fine per knowing violation of caller ID rules, and makes knowing violations a .

Why it matters

Residents whose phone numbers are wrongfully displayed or who receive deceptive marketing calls gain direct authority to sue callers in civil court and collect statutory damages or seek court injunctions, while telephone carriers face restrictions on knowingly sharing subscriber numbers for unlawful calls.

Who It Would Affect

Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

Telephone subscribers in North Carolina

Subscribers gain explicit property rights over their phone numbers and acquire the authority to file civil lawsuits and collect statutory damages for deceptive calls.

Directly affected

Telephone solicitors

Solicitors are prohibited from spoofing caller ID data and face mandatory civil fines, potential injunctions, and criminal felony charges for knowing violations.

Directly affected

Telephone carriers

Carriers are barred from knowingly selling or providing subscriber numbers to entities violating the act while being shielded from direct liability for telemarketer violations.

Key Facts

A telephone number is legally defined as the property of the telephone subscriber, subject to their contract terms with a telephone carrier.
Telephone solicitors and their agents are prohibited from causing misleading information to be transmitted via caller identification technologies or otherwise blocking or misrepresenting the origin of a solicitation.
Telephone solicitors are permitted to use the name and number of the entity on whose behalf the solicitation is made rather than the solicitor's own name and number.
Telephone carriers are prohibited from knowingly and intentionally transmitting, selling, or providing subscriber numbers to any entity known to use them in violation of this Act.

Show all 9 facts

Telephone carriers are explicitly exempt from liability for a telemarketer's violation of caller identification restrictions.
Subscribers receiving unlawful solicitations may bring a civil action to enjoin further violations and recover statutory damages of $500 for the first violation, $1,000 for the second, and $5,000 for any subsequent violation occurring within two years.
Subscribers who receive illegal calls or whose numbers were wrongfully displayed to give the perception that a call originated from them may bring civil actions and trigger an additional civil fine of $10,000 for each call placed in knowing violation.
Any person who knowingly violates the caller ID restriction provisions is guilty of a Class H felony.
The act becomes effective on December 1, 2025, and applies to phone calls placed on or after that date.

Frequently Asked Questions

What damages can a subscriber recover if they receive an illegal telemarketing call?

A subscriber may recover $500 for the first violation, $1,000 for the second violation, and $5,000 for any other violation occurring within two years of the first violation.

Are telephone carriers liable if a telemarketer violates caller ID rules?

No, telephone carriers are explicitly held not liable for a telemarketer's violation of G.S. 75-102(i).

What criminal penalty applies to knowing violations of the caller ID rules?

Any person who knowingly violates the caller ID prohibition is guilty of a .

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Where This Stands

Currently passed chamber. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Law.

Procedural history

14 actions

May 7, 2025Senate
Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate
May 7, 2025Senate
Passed 1st Reading
May 7, 2025Senate
Special Message Received From House
May 7, 2025House
Special Message Sent To Senate
May 7, 2025House
Passed 3rd Reading
May 7, 2025House
Passed 2nd Reading

Show 8 earlier actions

May 6, 2025House
Placed On Cal For 05/07/2025
May 6, 2025House
Cal Pursuant Rule 36(b)
May 6, 2025House
Reptd Fav
May 6, 2025House
Re-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
May 6, 2025House
Reptd Fav Com Substitute
Mar 27, 2025House
Ref to the Com on Judiciary 2, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
Mar 27, 2025House
Passed 1st Reading
Mar 25, 2025HouseIntroduced
Filed

Version history

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