Hiya is a free app, so it’s worth trying. I use both Hiya and WideProtect (for neighbor spoofing only) on iOS and together they stop around 90% of spam calls. I still get 3-4 per day, but when I go to missed calls I see like 10 blocked ones every day.
It seems I get scam calls in waves, I guess after some unscrupulous company sells my data, for a while I get scam/marketing calls, then it dies down. Seems to have been this way for years.
We have laws against unsolicited calls, but only companies in the same country can be prosecuted, so doesn’t bother the call centres from abroad…
Since it kinda replaces the default dialer I’m guessing my wifi calling for Google fi is a no go?
I work for a VOIP carrier, and the way phone circuits work is rather archaic, and all features such as caller ID are tacked on. Simply put, just because a call appears to be coming from an area code does not mean that it is. It is rather simple for a malicious phone circuit to put phoney numbers on the call. I could even call you from my phone and put YOUR phone number on the call, so it looks like you’re calling yourself.
It’s a very old way of doing things, and frankly should be replaced entirely. This is why it’s easy for people in India to appear as though they are located in the USA/Europe. This is why blocking a number does nothing, because they can just spoof a different number.
It should still work with a non-default dialer. I’m on iOS myself so I can’t verify that though.
Welp, got a spam text from a horny single nearby. Shoot, my phone number must have ended up somewhere…dang I’m usually so careful.
At least this still pales in comparison to getting spam called by my university alumni center asking for money…when I was still in college.
Saw this thread and remembered a story I saw a couple days ago on the news. Apparently, people are getting calls, and when they call them back to see who it is, they get billed as if they dialed a 900 number. LOL. This cannot be that hard to track down and stop.
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From what I know, depending on the country, many people have 700/800/900 numbers blocked.
In some countries, sms is more popular for extorting money.
You get a text message that you are subscribed to some paid service and you have to do certain things to get it out. Sometimes it is sending an SMS (expensive) or entering the website and sending a certain amount of money as a penalty for giving up the service.
Some time ago, we also observed a fraud to transfer a number to the other operator.
You get a text message saying your transfer request is in progress. Then they call and ask for correction of personal data, and as someone says that no application was submitted, they inform that you can cancel the procedure but it costs so much and they give where to send money.
The attack is targeted strongly at the elderly. What makes us think that they operate on some customer base that someone stole from the telecommunications operator.
Similarly though another attack was a long time ago. The attack was aimed at the soldiers of one of the NATO countries. One day, about 10k numbers began to receive text messages and calls mainly from Russian numbers. Counterintendigence suggested that a database leaked at one of the telecoms.
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They made a movie about two guys who made a career out of making prank phone calls.
The Jerky Boys
I’ve gotten spam calls from Romania, China…
I am on Do Not Call, I have AT&T’s Call Protect, and I use Hiya on my phone.
Most spoofed numbers will come from the local area code regardless of where my number is from.
Service providers need to be pressured from above to cut the shit and ensure calls are legitimate.
That sucks. Amazingly, I do not have a cell phone, so I am missing out on most of this.
I have but I use the white list. If I do not have the number entered on the list which is known to me and clearly signed “who” I do not answer the phone / I do not even hear that it rings because every number that is not whitelist is simply ignored so I do not waste time checking the phone.
If someone wants to communicate with me, then text or email. I limit my voice calls to an absurd minimum.