My voice mail is inundated with messages from Boris of Best Price Movers.

My voice mail is inundated with messages from Boris of Best Price Movers. How do I get off his list?— Gina Kim, Forest Hill

Ah yes, we’ve all received calls from Boris—not to mention Janos, Reggie and various other amiable pseudo-ethnic characters. They may sound folksy, but don’t be fooled: they’re masters of “back-door ADAD technology” (automatic dialing-announcing devices), a computerized system capable of beaming spam to upwards of 450,000 voice mail accounts in a single day. Last fall, Ma Bell tried to have the phone spams banned, citing system bottlenecks and thousands of customer complaints. Alas, the CRTC decided the nuisance wasn’t sufficient to warrant a crackdown, which means there are currently no governing regulations whatsoever. If the messages are really driving you nuts, you can try calling the company and asking them to set you free. You might also get yourself onto the Canadian Marketing Association’s voluntary “do not call” list, which recently began handling complaints about voice mail spam. Unfortunately, the list (which has about 440,000 names on it) is far from a panacea—it only applies to companies in the CMA, and enforcement consists of kicking out offending members. Best Price wouldn’t comment on its marketing practices—a recent call elicited a hasty click. It must have been sweet old Boris’s day off.