One of the first things they would have done was tap the home phone line in case the “kidnappers” call with a ransom demand.

So, when big Josh called his mom, pretending to be Josh’s kidnapper, to assure his mom that he was okay and would be home soon, they’d trace the call back to the toy company where Josh was working - using the name of the kidnapped boy. It was at this point in the movie that I realized I was watching fiction.