Spam Telephone Calls
Remember
when every ring of the telephone was an exciting event? Who could it be on the
other end? You may have had multiple family members rushing to be the person to
pick up the phone.
Nowadays,
a ringing phone is often met with dread. And if you don’t recognize the number
on the other end? Forget about it. Nine times out of 10, that call is going
unanswered.
That’s
because the person on the other end likely isn’t a person at all--it’s a
robocall.
Telemarketing
started to take off in the 1990s, and robocalls were all the rage in the 2000s.
The latest trend is that the robocallers are spoofing local telephone numbers
to try to trick you into thinking you know the person calling. Or, if you’re
like me, you get non-stop calls from Latvia. A long-lost cousin, perhaps?
So
how can you stop the onslaught? You really can’t, but there are several ways to
control it.
The
first thing you should do is register your landline and cell phone numbers at
donotcall.gov. This should decrease the number of calls you get, and gives you
some legal standing if a particular caller gets out of control. Below are some
additional tips for saving yourself from voice spam.
Wireless
Some cell phone companies, like T-Mobile, AT&T,
and Sprint, either already have begun or will soon begin implementing the
STIR/SHAKEN standards, which are protocols that verify whether or not a call is
from a real person or a computer. T-Mobile has even taken the additional step
of building its own database of fake numbers. If you get a call from one, your
caller ID will display “spam likely.”
AT&T, meanwhile, provides its customers with a
free app called Call Protect, which blocks robocalls by identifying patterns in
the calls. Sprint also offers premium caller ID for a price, which identifies
every call that comes through your phone.
Verizon doesn't use STIR/SHAKEN on its
network, but does offer a free app, Call
Filter, that blocks robocalls. It'll also alert
customers of potential spam calls and will provide a caller ID on all calls.
There are also a number of independent apps that
perform similar functions, including Nomorobo, YouMail, and Trapcall. The
latter will pick up calls you decline and then ring them back to you with the
real number displayed. They’ll even give you a big red warning if the number is
on a known robocall or spam list. You can then decide to pick up, or blacklist
the number and never hear from it again.
Landlines
Those with traditional landlines will need to contact
their phone company and request service to block robocalls, which often comes
with a fee. If it does, it’s likely not worth it--scammers and robocallers
change numbers quicker than the phone companies can keep up.
One option that may prove more fruitful for
traditional landlines is to use a phone, like the Panasonic KX-TGE475S, that
lets you block numbers and also automatically blocks calls where a number is
not available for caller ID. Blocked numbers will no longer ring through and
are unable to leave a message.
VoIP service customers can also use apps like the
aforementioned Nomorobo, which blocks robocalls and also plays a message that
your phone number is disconnected. This hopefully results in your number being
removed from future call lists.
Beyond the
Block
So, what do you do if you want to do more than just
identify and hopefully block some robocallers? Well, if you have a sense of
humor, you could sign up for service from The Jolly Roger Telephone Company,
which roboanswers the robocallers.
You pick a computer robot (a themed “pirate”), who
picks up the call and pretty much just wastes the scammer’s time. The service
works either through conferencing via a traditional landline or the
“simultaneous ring” feature of your VoIP service.
And for mobile phones, you can “Summon a Pirate” with
a text when you get a call you don’t want to take. All options have full
reports on numbers intercepted, and a recording of calls answered by your robot
pirate. The reports will help you dial in your blacklist, and the recordings
are simply fun to listen to (or provide a notice of any legitimate callers who
you might owe an apology to).
Summary
While
progress is being made to combat robocalling, the calls keep coming. The steps
and tips above, however, can help to make your life on the phone a little less
annoying.