Using social media tool to get back at those dreadful calls

The Wall Street Journal has a story that anyone who wonders why using sites like Twitter, Delicious or, in this case, Reddit is worth the bother should read.

First, how many of those "Your auto warranty has expired" calls have you gotten?

Do you know what swarming means?

Catch up with the way people can organize with the Wall Street Journal article and know that not all agree with how people tracked down and then shared the phone number and other details about the firm where some of the calls started.

"They played judge, jury and executioner on a company that they haven't even proven has done anything wrong."

That's a quote in The Journal from David Tabb, the 42-year-old president of Auto One, an Irvine, Calif., warranty company with 60 employees.

He says Reddit users overloaded his phone lines with computerized calls, changed voice-mail greetings on his company's system, and even threatened arson.

This may not mean the end of calls. Auto One is one of many firms making these calls - not even
one of the three that a federal court in Chicago issued an immediate restraining order on Friday afternoon. The three companies are accused of aggressively making robocalls selling car warranties across the country, the Federal Trade Commission announced.

Yes, I'm getting the calls so that's why I sent a link out on the court order Friday over Twitter.