For most businesses, it is a good thing when the phone rings off the hook. But a local insurance company recently got more than it could handle.

This week, Finger Lakes Associates Insurance in Auburn has received thousands of calls from an automated computer system. The calls have tied up the company's phone system and disrupted business, as clients could not get a hold of anyone at the location, co-owner Anthony Moran said.

Management reported the disturbance to the police, and Moran said he believes a competitor intentionally jammed his phone lines to sabotage their business. The problem started after Finger Lakes Associates was featured last week in a newspaper profile. As of Friday, the business' phone-service provider was able to temporarily block the incoming calls, Moran said.

New York State Police are currently investigating the calls, that Capt. Donald Swain said have been coming from a location in Florida. While the disturbance could be generated by a disgruntled customer or a competing business, it could also be coming from a computer-generated telemarketing system with some sort of glitch, Swain said.

“This is the first time I have ever run into something like this,” Swain said. “I will be interested to see how it comes out if we discover what it is.”

According to the FBI, businesses should report any of the following suspicious activity: system failure or disruption; unauthorized changes to software or hardware characteristics; suspicious questioning by phone, e-mail mail, etc. about network or Web site security; suspicious e-mails with unsolicited attachments; unauthorized use of your system.

Reports of technological sabotage can be made by calling local law enforcement or the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team at (888) 282-0870.