9
$\begingroup$

I've been contacted by others who want to verify a DX with me, but I was not operating at that time! It appears that someone made several contacts using my callsign for a short window of time one day.

I've been keeping my ears open, but haven't seen it myself, and the only information those who contacted me have are the dates, times, and frequencies of the contacts.

What should I do once I find my call being used by someone else? Is there any reporting I should perform to the FCC?

Is there anything else I can do besides listening to catch them? If I do hear them, is there a method I can use to at least narrow down their location?

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
4
  • $\begingroup$ I'd use the contacts they made to apply for free awards! Thanks, stranger! $\endgroup$
    – Phil Frost - W8II
    Jan 22, 2014 at 21:35
  • $\begingroup$ @PhilFrost Ha! Nice. $\endgroup$
    – Adam Davis
    Jan 22, 2014 at 21:39
  • 3
    $\begingroup$ While there may be unlicensed/pirates that are using arbitrary call signs, there is no benefit for them to make DX contacts. It could also simply be mistaken identity or poorly received/copied by the DX station, transposed letter, missing or added letter, etc. Pirates usually cause disruption with bogus call signs - if that is the case I think the FCC should be notified so YOU don't get blamed for it. $\endgroup$
    – Ron J. KD2EQS
    Jan 23, 2014 at 15:13
  • 3
    $\begingroup$ Assume another's callsign was misunderstood over the air to be yours. This is very common. $\endgroup$
    – Paul
    Jan 23, 2014 at 18:39

5 Answers 5

Reset to default
4
$\begingroup$

If it continues to happen I would report it to the FCC via the FCC's website here. http://www.fcc.gov/complaints

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
13
$\begingroup$

Were the contacts on the day of a major contest? Chances are that some other station with a callsign close to yours was operating and several operators misread his call as yours. I, too, get the occasional QSL card or eQSL for a time when I wasn't operating (and they are usually during a major contest). Unless you have definitive proof that someone else was operating with your call sign, at most you might want to return a NIL (Not In Log) response to the operators requesting the confirmation.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
3
$\begingroup$

I agree, don't report till you witness it. Keep your logs but don't claim the contacts in case the FCC contacts you. It works as testimony that you didn't make the contacts. There are several possibilities here. The person has a call close to yours and was not pronouncing it well. Or, the receiving stations didn't copy well and went to web for correction and got yours. or, they were trolls, heard you on the air logged you and then asked for add to your log, hoping you wouldn't catch it. I check my log... if they are not there, I don't add them and they get nothing,if I find an error I fix it. If it's a troll they get nothing. If a bootlegger, you've contemporaneous evidence that it's not you.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
2
$\begingroup$

One time is an error, multiple times seems on purpose. Report it to the FCC in case they violate any laws or frequency uses.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
-1
$\begingroup$

Wait until you actually witness it yourself. It will look bad on you if you falsely report. I would just listen and if and when you hear it, report it to the FCC.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
1
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ This isn't a very complete answer and is fairly general advice. Could you add more detail? $\endgroup$
    – Kevin Reid AG6YO ♦
    May 3, 2015 at 2:07

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .