In the past, I have rarely answered calls from any number I don’t have in my contacts. I figure the person or company will either leave a message (if they’re old school) or will text me if I don’t answer. But now that I have children going to college and living outside of my home, I always wonder whether there is some problem causing one of them to call me from an unknown number. As I have started answering calls from random phone numbers, it has caused me much frustration as many are from real or fake companies trying to take my time and money.
So imagine my delight over the past several weeks, when caller IDs I had never seen started popping up on my phone. One time the call showed it was coming from “Telemarketer.” Another call came with the label “Fraud Alert” in the caller ID. I naturally did not answer either of these and smiled that someone had given me the heads up. But who? I wasn’t sure if this fantastic perk was coming from my my phone manufacturer, carrier or possibly even the government. Turns out it’s a combination of all three.
My carrier, AT&T, added fraud blocking and suspected spam call alerts last month at no additional charge and without my needing to download an app. Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile all have their own versions of spam filters with premium versions that cost a few dollars per month.
My phone manufacturer, Apple, will have a new feature in its next software update that will let me ban any number from ringing my phone unless it’s in my contacts. If I don’t have the number somewhere in my messages, contacts or mail, the call will go directly to my voicemail.
And in June, the government’s Federal Communications Commission ruled that phone service providers could automatically offer such tools (like blocking robocalls before they reach consumers) as long as customers have the option to opt out. The FCC demanded that major carriers have systems in place to fight caller ID spoofing by the end of 2019. The Commission is laying down the law with telemarketers too. For the first time, it fined three companies $240 million for caller ID spoofing, including using the tactic where it looks like a call is coming from a local number.
This tactic is called neighbor spoofing. The people behind all these robocalls are getting more tech savvy all the time. They can spoof a caller ID to look like it’s coming from your own area code or even your own phone number. Don’t be confused by these. If you want to avoid more of these calls in the future, never answer calls from unknown numbers and definitely don’t pick up if your own phone number shows up in the caller ID.
If you do accidentally answer, the moment you hear the recording start, hang up. Do not interact with the recording with your voice or by pressing a number. Doing so lets the spammer know your number is real. Then they can sell that information to another company or target your number more often.
You can also block the number from your phone, and file a complaint with the FCC so the agency can use the data in their investigations. Finally, sign up on the National Do Not Call Registry, since that list goes to all legitimate telemarketers who are following the law.
With carriers, manufacturers and the government working together and phone users getting more savvy, I’m hopeful it’s only a matter of time before scammers will never make their way onto our phone screens again.