It's time to ditch caller id and create telephone buddy lists

The Register has a story about a California firm (site opens to the public 9/1) that allows customers to bypass traditional caller id tools. If it looks like the White House, or Jenny 867-5309, is calling, chances are it's a company you didn't want to talk to in the first place. SecurityFocus (site is a little slow right now) tested it and it works.

The phone companies would do well to modify the IM software so customers can receive calls only from numbers they choose. The only problem with that? What if you put down your parents' phone number on your original credit app? oops...