§ 47-18-2302 — Offense of caller identification spoofing

(a) Except as provided in § 47-18-2303 , it is an offense for: (1) A person, in connection with a telecommunications service or an interconnected VoIP service, to knowingly cause any caller identification service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information to a subscriber with the intent to defraud or cause harm to another person or to wrongfully obtain anything of value; or (2) A person, on behalf of a debt collector or inbound telemarketer service, to knowingly cause any caller identification service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information, including caller identification information that does not match the area code of the person or the debt collector or inbound telemarketer service the person is calling on behalf of, or that is not a toll-free phone number, to a subscriber with the intent to defraud or cause harm to another person or to wrongfully obtain anything of value. (b) A violation of subdivision (a)(1) or (a)(2) is a Class A misdemeanor. (c) Nothing in this section prohibits: (1) Criminal prosecution under any other law; (2) A civil action brought by the attorney general and reporter pursuant to § 47-18-2304 ; or (3) A civil action brought by an aggrieved person pursuant to § 47-18-2305 . (d) The transmission of misleading or inaccurate caller identification information to a subscriber is an element of the offense under subsection (a) and occurs where the subscriber's place of primary use for the caller identification service is located. (e) Pursuant to § 39-11-103 and subsection (d), if a subscriber's place of primary use for the caller identification service is located in this state, an essential element of the offense under subsection (a) is committed in this state and a defendant is subject to prosecution in this state, regardless of whether the defendant was actually physically present in this state when the offense occurred. (f) Venue for the offense under subdivision (a)(1) or (a)(2) shall be in any county where an essential element of the offense was committed, regardless of whether the defendant was actually physically present in the county when the offense occurred. (g) This section shall not apply to a provider; except that, a provider shall remain liable pursuant to this section if the provider acts with the intent to assist, aid, or abet, in the commission or concealment of any person planning or causing a caller identification service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information to a subscriber while the person has the intent to defraud, cause harm to another person, or wrongfully obtain anything of value.

Legislative History

Amended by 2024 Tenn. Acts, ch. 758,s 3, eff. 7/1/2024. Amended by 2024 Tenn. Acts, ch. 758,s 2, eff. 7/1/2024. Amended by 2024 Tenn. Acts, ch. 758,s 1, eff. 7/1/2024. Added by 2017 Tenn. Acts, ch. 257, s 1, eff. 7/1/2017.