Be Careful When You List Your Phone Number
FIRST RULE: Don’t list your telephone in such a manner that anyone going through the telephone book can immediately determine that you are a woman. Do not use “Miss” or “Mrs.” with your phone listing, and do not give your first name. Instead, play it safe: Use your last name and your initial(s) only.
How to List Your Phone:
THIS
Jones C. R.
NOT THIS
Jones Carolyn R. Miss
More Tips on Listing Your Phone:
1 As a further precaution, don’t list your home telephone number in your company’s personnel directory. Limit the accessibility of your number to your immediate superior
and the personnel department.
2 Under no circumstances should you list your phone number on stationery or on name-and-address stickers.
3 Don’t be generous about giving your phone number to new acquaintances or other casual contacts.
Do’s and Don’ts about “Crank” Calls and “Wrong Numbers”
1 Never volunteer your name, address, or phone number to someone who calls and asks, “Who is this?”
2 Do not engage in conversation with crank callers. If they are legitimate, they should be able to be direct about their business, identify themselves, and not be evasive or
“mysterious.”
3 If you have a rash of “strange calls” or “wrong numbers,” report the incidents to both the police department and the telephone company.
4 If you answer your phone and are met with a torrent of obscene language, foul words, indecent suggestions, etc., do just one thing - HANG UP! Don’t utter a word of any kind. It is more than likely that your number was dialed at random, and the warped individual at
the other end will probably not be able to ring you again. So, your best bet is to
disconnect the call.
5 If you receive “wrong number” calls, do not volunteer your number
if the caller asks, “Is this 269-3876?” Just say, “No!” Similarly, if the caller asks, “What number is this?” don’t give your number in reply; instead, ask him what number he is calling.
REMEMBER; Crank calls (but not those which appear to be legitimate wrong numbers
or other reasonable errors) should be reported to the telephone company and to the
police, giving complete details.
If You Are Persistently Annoyed by “Crank” Calls:
1 Consider having an unlisted phone number which you give only to friends. That way, you will know that a stranger is not calling you, or, if he is, it is only a random dialing that put him through to you. The telephone company will arrange to change ;your number and give you an unlisted one on request. The nominal monthly charge is well worth the peace of mind it will bring. Also, in this way, you can rigidly control the availability of your number-giving it only to close family and trusted friends.
2 Have an answering service take all your calls when you are at home, as well as when you’re away. The service can attempt to hold the “crank” in conversation and alert the police on another line, and the police can attempt to trace the call.
Some Hints and Ruses to Scare Off Persistent Undesirable Calls
When you have the “crank” on the phone:
1 Tap a ring or some other hard object such as a pencil tip against the mouthpiece of the phone, to make it sound as if you were connecting a wire or tape recorder to take down the caller’s words.
2 Half cover the mouthpiece, and say audibly, so that the crank can hear, “It’s the same man again, officer” (as if there were a policeman present).
3 When you are speaking, act as though someone else were with you in the room and you were turning the phone over to them.
4 There is a harsh way of giving a crank his just desserts. Buy, and keep handy a standard police whistle. When the crank bothers you, hold the whistle close to the mouthpiece, and blow it vigorously.
Additional Common-Sense Tips about Telephones
1 Never give a caller the impression that you are alone ( even if you are).
2 If someone calls and asks to speak to your husband, never say that he isn’t home or is out of town (or that you don’t have a husband-if you are unmarried or widowed). Instead, say that your husband is busy at the moment but that he will call back, if the caller will
leave his number.
3 Have a bedside telephone. And don’t let it be an extension, which can be rendered inoperable by someone’s taking the receiver off the hook of the “companion” phone in
another room. In other words, have the bedroom phone be an extra line, or even a separately listed telephone, so that it can always be used to call for help.
4 Do not have your phone “temporarily disconnected” when away from home on vacation or the like. The “interrupt message” given by the telephone company is a sure tip-off to potential house breakers that your home is vacant and a target for burglary. (The minor amount you save on monthly charges is hardly worth it.)
5 If your apartment has an intercom system-one by which you can speak with someone at the downstairs entrance door-make sure it is in working order. And use it!
6 Never let yourself be lured out of your home by a phone call to meet someone. It is easy enough to make sure of the legitimacy of a call by saying that you are busy at the moment and will have to call back. Get the number, and do call back. Any legitimate business will not hesitate to give you the number of their offices. If the caller tries to be evasive, have nothing further to do with him.
A Piece of Sound Advice:
Arrange with one or two good friends-who live near you-to have telephone “code words.”
These should be innocent-sounding words, which, when used in a conversation, mean,
“Help! Come quickly! I am in trouble!”
Thus, if you are ever in trouble and it is possible to make a call -even in the presence of a
criminal-you may be able to use the code words to summon help.