The following guidelines provide information as to what you can do to help prevent harassing phone calls and what you should do in the event that you do receive such a call.

• Do not list your telephone number in the telephone directory or with directory assistance. If you live on campus, you may contact the housing office and ask that your number is made unavailable. You may also contact the registrar’s office, during the first three weeks of the Fall Semester, and ask that your address and phone number be made unavailable for the campus phone directory and NMSU web page. These requests must be done every year to ensure your information is kept confidential. If you do chose to list your number in the telephone directory, use only your first initial and ask that your address not be listed.
• Do not give information out to callers who claim they have dialed the wrong number. Ask them what number they are trying to reach, don’t give them your name, number, or other personal information.
• Consider using an answering machine or caller ID box to identify all in-coming calls. If you do not recognize the caller, do not pick up the phone.
• When using an answering machine, be sure your message does not include any personal information. Your message should indicate that you are unavailable to come to the phone and not that you are gone. If you live alone, do not indicate that on your message. It is always best to imply that you are not alone. This is also true if someone is calling and asks for someone who isn’t home. Tell the caller that the person is busy and will have to call them back. Don’t tell them that the person isn’t home.
• If you do receive a harassing phone call, hang up immediately. Do not listen to the caller and do not show any emotional response. Log down the date and time of the call, what the caller said and make note of any unusual background noises or other information you feel may be useful in identifying the caller. If you live on campus, log down whether or not the call came from on or off campus. If you live off-campus, dial *69 and you may be able to get the telephone number of the caller. If you are able to obtain this information, log it down and give the information to the police; do not call the person back. Chronic harassing phone calls should be reported to the appropriate Police Agency so a police report can be filed.

While it is impossible to guarantee that you will never receive an annoying or harassing phone call, these steps will help reduce the likelihood of such calls occurring.

Check out our website for past crime tips by logging onto www.nmsupolice.com.