A representative with the Federal Trade Commission, home of the Do Not Call list, appeared in front of Congress to give a progress report on the fight against horrible spam robocallers — a modern-day battle of good and evil.

Lois Greisman, associate director of the FTC’s Division of Marketing Practices, told a Senate Special Committee that the problem is intensifying, noting that “consumers are justifiably frustrated.”

“In 2016 the FTC received more than 3.4 million robocall complaints,” she said. “In 2017 the
FTC received more than 3.5 million robocall complaints just between January and August.”

With the problem getting worse, pressure is mounting on various government agencies — mainly the FTC and the Federal Communications Commission — to fight robocalls. (The problem, however, remains a partisan issue.) The aggravation stemming from these calls goes past mere annoyance. Many of these robocalls aren’t simply illegal marketing tactics but rather scams that cost the American public hundreds of millions of dollars a year, according to Consumer Reports.

What the FTC is doing to fight these calls

In front of the committee, Greisman outlined the agency’s progress thus far. The FTC has been slapping the wrists of various offenders, most notably DISH Network (DISH) which was hit with a $280 million penalty after making tens of millions of calls to customers.

But the bad news is the problem doesn’t stem from legitimate companies like DISH, but rather scam artists who are much more difficult to track. Thanks to VoIP technology and computer automatic dialing, millions of calls can cheaply and easily go out to consumers, often from foreign countries that are out of the FTC’s jurisdiction.

To combat this, the FTC has had some luck cooperating with some foreign agencies, and the agency has strategically targeted U.S.-based enablers. But it’s a tough process. These companies are “operated through a tangle of related individuals and entities to avoid detection by law enforcement,” Greisman said.

The amount of effort it takes to untangle the global web of calls is immense, and many communication companies do not have the records to track the offenders. Enforcement is downright sisyphean: With every head cut off, many take their place, to mix Greek metaphors.

Tech solutions are the key

The agency understands the limits of enforcement, and has tried to solve the problem by sponsoring tech solutions and apps to improve things. Technology hasn’t, however, made much of a dent yet.

From the phone side, device companies like Apple and Google may be able to provide a solution — they told Yahoo Finance they are addressing the problem though didn’t specify the means.