Definitely a scam.  Said they were doing research for the FDA on vaccinations.  Said I would be paid for my participation.  So naturally I hung up immediately as they were obviously pandering to greed.

Googled them and they came up as being in Salt Lake City.  Google search of "Mark Research" did find a company with that name in Ogden, Utah, but the number given had been disconnected.  They most likely insert themselves into search engines to add legitimacy.  

I just wonder what these idjits are actually trying to accomplish...

Called and hung up

There they go again!

I do not answer unrecognizable numbers as a policy as well;

Check out the time patterns...
They called me once again on Thursday, July 2nd, at 7:37PM PT that I did not answer.

They did not call on Friday the 3rd, Saturday the 4th, and not on Sunday the 5th. So it appears like they took the weekend off, for me, at least.

Then they called again on Monday, July 6th., 2009 at 7:48PM PT; and then again on Tuesday, July 7th at 6:21PM PT; and then again today - Wednesday, July 8th, 2009 at 7:47PM PT.

As for myself, I did not answer any of these calls.

I have received several calls, all not answered, about the same time each day (today 5:55pm EDT) I do not answer unrecognizeable numbers as a policy; they never leave voicemail.

I answered, because they called here just now (9:04 PM Eastern) and said they were with "marketing research" and I just cut her off and said "first off, it's after 9 and you're not supposed to call after 9, and second, don't call this number again." And hung up.

My daughter told me they've called 3+ times today.  I'm off work tomorrow, so if they call again, I'm getting info.

Based on my iPhone call log I received a phone call this past Monday (06-29-09) at approx. 6:12PM PT that I did not answer. Then I was called by this same number yesterday (06-30-09) at approx. 6:16PM PT and that I did not answer either.

Then I received two more calls again today (07-01-09). One at approx. 6:50PM PT and the other again at approx. 7:38PM PT and by that estimate these two phone calls were 48 minutes apart. And each of these calls I did not answer as well.

Not answering and calls several times a day...it's getting old thus the google of the 712-941-2323 number; finding several others being bothered by this.

Leaves no message. Calls several times a day.

Thankfully, and annoyingly, I'm not alone here. They are calling me 3-4x/day. No messages - the caller ID says "Research" - this too shall pass. Don't answer and just ignore. It's there dime.

Sergeant Blu IA, they started calling this week, they call 3x's a day. It started at the end of April. I have been avoiding answering since I am on the DND list (little that does!) & it annoys me how many MORE calls I get since getting on it! I called the number, blocking mine but I doubt that works given FedEx always knows where I live I call them. So, why wouldn't these people? Anyway. I noticed they always calls 3 times a day. So after the phone rang today I called back, it is busy and not connecting. So, then he just called again, Mark he says with some kind of long named research none marketing non selling supposedly company who claims to just want to know what people are doing to prepare for the future. Once he stopped I asked how he got the number he said random dialing. I said, well, we are on the DND list for a reason. Please do not call this number again, we do not want to be bothered by anyone, thank you, have a nice day and I hung up. He did not say anything during that time. See, I have a neighbor who answered "questions" for something and they asked too much about her "plans" for her future. She talked too much and then her banked called, someone stole her ID. I don't care to trust that won't happen. If I want to plan my future and such with a stranger, that would be someone I hire not a cold call I answer from someone I never heard of from a number I cannot trace much less get answered.

I only answered since I could not find online where anyone had. I was trying to make sure it wasn't someone I did need to talk to and I want the calls to stop. If they call back I will note that here. We all know people can block and or foil their Caller ID so I never trust it anymore. I just wish I could block everyone I needed to with Comcastic!

They call EVERY day. At least 2 or 3 times. I don't answer & they hang up when they get the answering machine. Somebody needs to get them stopped. Any ideas???

They've been calling multiple times per day for at least two weeks now.

Received two calls about an hour apart from this number. The first time I answered, the caller hung up immediately. The second call was from a nervous-sounding woman named Emily, who claimed she was from Mark Research Company. As she was giving me her scripted schpeel, I Google'd "Mark Research Company" and came up with nothing. Big surprise. Emily asked if she was calling a landline or a cellular phone, said she didn't know what type of line it was because "we selected you at random".
Emily then asked if I was a parent. I said yes. She then asked if I was a parent of a child between the ages of 0 to 23 months. When I asked why, she stated that Mark Research Company was conducting a study to see how many parents in a certain area are vaccinating their children. When I said I wasn't a parent of a child in that age bracket, she said "Oh. Oh. (pause). Okay. Well. (another pause) Well, then you're not in this study because we're looking for children in that specific age range. That's when most kids are getting their vaccinations anyway." I corrected her - vaccinations don't stop at 23 months! She then became hostile and attempted to engage me in a debate about vaccination time lines. I bid her good evening and hung up.

I get calls from this number for last 3 days at same time in the evening. I havent been around to get them, but the firs time they called, I called back and all it did was ring and ring. I figure it is now one I want/need to speak with or they would have left me a message. So, I consider it a junk phone call. Additionally, I agree with poster Sargeant who saya the dnd list is worthless... I also registered on it and get plenty of "random" callers.

i never answer numbers i don't recognize.
they usually call at dinner time; i am on the dnd list.

Have received NUMEROUS calls from this number (1-712-941-2323) on a daily basis over the last few weeks. Caller ID says "RESEARCH" and it's always the same number. They just called again (Saturday afternoon) so I added the number to my "blocked numbers" list (AT&T CALL SCREEN service. It will not allow the call to ring through and they hear a recorded message that says, "We're sorry, the party you are calling is not accepting this call. Thank you.")

I cannot get the do not call request to work. It keeps telling me I am entering an invalid security code, which is bull stuffing.

Call all times of the day including weekends.  I ignore the calls but they are persistent and call back daily.  They do not leave a message.

Had a call from them on my caller id, didn't talk to anyone. It said, "Research"

Called my home around 8pm on 7/14/09 and asked my wife to take a survey.  Said they were with her bank (used the name) and started asking questions.  She gave no info since the first question was how long has she had the account and is it a joint account.  Wouldn't the bank have that info!  She told them she was done with the survey and hung up.  She said it sounded somewhat legit because she could hear the other operators.  Other BS artists and scammers I guess

DO NOT TALK TO THESE PEOPLE

Received a call from 712-941-2323 - no message left.  Area code shows Iowa... I don't know anyone in Iowa.  Most likely a bigtime SCAM...especially if all these other people are being called from the same number and haven't a clue.  Has anyone tried calling the operator and complaining?

Thanks for all the info, thes people are driving us crazy with all the calls. They phone at all times during the day & night.

Next time they call, I won't use any vulgarity, but am going to get a whistle and let them have it......

1. Used this link to get to contacts => http://www.diresearch.com/contact.htm
2. Searched listed contact names using Yahoo!
3. Got this profile in LinkedIn. http://www.linkedin.com/pub/pablo-smith-ogarrio/5/515/757
4. Lists "Directions In Research, Inc" in job profile.
5. I hope this is the right person...

Never answer calls unless I'm sure who it is or unless they leave a message and I know the person. Even with caller ID, I got one that said "Private Caller" and it turned out to be a commercial call. Why does being on the DNC registry not effective. We should all report these calls to the FTC. What is the number?

Got another number for this same company. Calls several times a day encluding weekends, never a message.

Originates from the NSA. Your keyword string during some phone call has inititated a temporary tap. The number calls to check service on the line and record time of day you are at home.

Keep getting calls from this number with "Research" as the name of the caller.

I noticed some of the posters attributing the call to "Directions in Research" so I looked up their website.  

On their website it states that they do data collection and statistics compilation for corporations.

It also states on their website that because they don't sell anything, they are not bound by the rules of the National Do Not Call Registry.

However, they do offer a do not call registry on their website.

http://www.diresearch.com/donotcall.htm

I answered by singing, "F*** You, F*** You, F*** You", the very first time they called, and immediately hung up when I was done. I think this may have given them the impression that calling me was a waste of their time. They haven't called back.

If you pick up the phone when it is "RINGING", it will more than likely be a collection agency on the other end looking for any kind of info to connect you to an account or create one.  If you see the number on your caller ID and "CALL THE NUMBER", you will actually connect to the actual party that the number was assigned to.

It's called phone spoofing.  This is mostly done by collection agencies.  They pretend to be someone else and getting enough info from you to create an account.  Next thing you will get is a paper threat to pay something in full or go to court.  Some of us have been dealing with these bottom feeders for months and years.  We have programs that track and trace these numbers and then match them to the time and dates with the phone company. None have matched the actual caller.  They also spoof themselves as your neighbors. Advice: take your bill or some proof to the phone provider and have them trace.  If you owe money or have ever in the past, you can bet places like these will be faking themselves as someone else to get the data they need. Make note that these collection agencies can get a lot of info on people by accessing credit reports. Type:"phone spoofing" in your browser or here's a site for a start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caller_ID_spoofing .  Everyone should be aware of these activities for their own protection. Also see: "predictive dialers" and "VOIP".
Note: Known collection agencies that were tracked: NCO Financial Systems, Law Offices of Joe Pezzuto - Collect America, Cavalry Portfolio, Southwest Credit, Lowery Law Group-CACV and  Portfolio Recovery Services.

If you pick up the phone when it is "RINGING", it will more than likely be a collection agency on the other end looking for any kind of info to connect you to an account or create one.  If you see the number on your caller ID and "CALL THE NUMBER", you will actually connect to the actual party that the number was assigned to.

It's called phone spoofing.  This is mostly done by collection agencies.  They pretend to be someone else and getting enough info from you to create an account.  Next thing you will get is a paper threat to pay something in full or go to court.  Some of us have been dealing with these bottom feeders for months and years.  We have programs that track and trace these numbers and then match them to the time and dates with the phone company. None have matched the actual caller.  They also spoof themselves as your neighbors. Advice: take your bill or some proof to the phone provider and have them trace.  If you owe money or have ever in the past, you can bet places like these will be faking themselves as someone else to get the data they need. Make note that these collection agencies can get a lot of info on people by accessing credit reports. Type:"phone spoofing" in your browser or here's a site for a start: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caller_ID_spoofing .  Everyone should be aware of these activities for their own protection. Also see: "predictive dialers" and "VOIP".
Note: Known collection agencies that were tracked: NCO Financial Systems, Law Offices of Joe Pezzuto - Collect America, Cavalry Portfolio, Southwest Credit, Lowery Law Group-CACV and  Portfolio Recovery Services.