46 States Act on Fraudulent ‘900’ Numbers : Communications: The three major long-distance phone companies will help in the effort.

State law enforcement officials announced procedures Wednesday to combat bogus sweepstakes operators and other con artists who use “900” telephone numbers to bilk consumers out of millions of dollars.

The “voluntary procedures” provide for swift exchange of information on possibly fraudulent “900” services among the 46 participating states and the nation’s three biggest long-distance carriers: AT&T; Co., MCI Communications Corp. and Sprint Corp.

Tennessee Atty. Gen. Charles Burson, head of the National Assn. of Attorneys General Consumer Protection Committee, said the new system is “bad news for telemarketing hucksters.”

“It’s good news for victims of their ploys. It’s good news for the ‘900’ service industry,” he said.

Unlike “800” numbers, in which the called party pays for the call, “900” numbers are a “pay-per-call” service billed to the person who places the call.

Some “900” numbers carry charges of $25 a call or higher, making them a magnet for unscrupulous operators who use them to defraud.

The advent of “900” numbers has spawned a range of scams, among them phony sweepstakes, bogus job lines, credit repair clinics, fake credit cards and travel rip-offs.

Pay-per-call is also increasingly used legitimately to provide such services as electronic listings, advice and technical support.

The new system--covering every state but New York, Maine, Georgia and Montana--was designed to let an attorney general’s office recover fraudulently collected funds for quick restitution to consumers.

Burson said the four states not participating apparently believed that they already had adequate laws on the books to combat telemarketing fraud.

Under the new system, the phone companies agreed to consider withholding funds owed to a client who operates a “900” number if an attorney general reports possible fraud.

The phone companies also agreed that if a fraud charge led to a formal legal request, they would provide detailed information on consumers so they could get their money back.

New Jersey Atty. Gen. Robert Del Tufo, chairman of the association’s “900” number subcommittee, said that pursuing traditional criminal or civil remedies let too many swindlers escape with ill-gotten gains.

“By the time that occurs, millions of people may already have been ripped off,” he said.

The procedures are modeled on regulations in Wisconsin, which pioneered such a system with the three phone companies and put it into effect in October.

Wisconsin Atty. Gen. James Doyle said the agreement and aggressive prosecution helped slash the number of “900” consumer complaints statewide by two-thirds.

One major “900” market component--dating services and explicit-talk sex lines--are not particularly targeted by the new procedures.