One media leader says Louisville has seen 20% more robocalls than the national average.(Priscilla du Preez / Usplash)It’s a familiar scenario. Your phone rings. You glance at the screen, but instead of answering, you hesitate.Who's on the other end?Day after day, the calls and text messages keep coming. Strangers claiming you've been approved for loans you never applied for. Some even urge you to act fast before the offer expires.Americans receive billions of robocalls each year. And in Louisville, the problem is especially noticeable.Alex Quilici is the CEO of YouMail, a company that tracks robocall activity nationwide."So in general, Louisville is pretty similar. Right now it's getting about 20% more robocalls than on average in the country,” said Alex Quilici, CEO of YouMail, a company that tracks robocall activity nationwide. “So we take the number of robocalls in the area and divide it by the population and we know roughly how many robocalls there are per person.”These automated calls and texts can include personal information that makes the correspondence feel plausible.William Maxson, with the Federal Trade Commission, said scammers can access individual numbers in several ways. Sometimes it's through information you've shared online. Other times, your personal information may have been exposed without your knowledge in a data breach.That information can end up on lists that are sold and shared repeatedly, triggering countless unwanted calls from a single breach.Quilici, with YouMail, said scammers can buy phone lists and target specific ZIP codes, including financially vulnerable communities.And while the National Do Not Call Registry can help reduce telemarketing calls, it often doesn’t have the same impact on robocalls. Quilici describes it like a no trespassing sign. Legitimate callers might abide by it, but scammers won’t stop.How to stop itBoth experts agree: It’s best to let unknown numbers go unanswered and to report scam texts. They also recommend using call screening and blocking features offered from the phone or wireless carrier.And Maxson said reporting suspicious calls to the FTC can help investigators identify who's responsible."The more information that you can give us, the better. And then that helps our investigators, our attorneys, other federal agencies, other state agencies to try to track down who made that call and then hopefully bring an enforcement action against them."The FTC reports it has brought more than 170 law enforcement cases involving violations of robocall and Do Not Call rules.Consumers can report unwanted calls at FTC.gov. ...read more read less