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Ask HN: Why can’t I block all incoming calls that aren’t in my contact list?

319 points by tones411 8y ago

It’s pointless to block every single spam number that can call in. If we can’t end spam calls, why don’t phones let you at least block all except numbers in your contact list?

slater 8y ago
Or even maybe just a wildcard option, e.g. "block all calls from 555-*" would be nice
- kazinator 8y ago
  On Android, the Call Blocker app from embware does "starts with" and "ends with" matching. Blocker does a good job on dropping unwanted calls in such a way that they rarely have an opportunity to go to voicemail.
- koolba 8y ago
  The vast majority of junk calls I receive on my cell have my local area code so that wouldn’t work.
  - joe_the_user 8y ago
    Just get a number with an area code outside of your current location. I wound-up in this situation and it's a good junk filter. To their credit, T-Mobile also does decent spam filtering.
    - joshka 8y ago
      Same boat. Milking this until it's not :|
  - derekp7 8y ago
    For me, most of them have the same area code AND prefix as my cell phone (so obviously caller ID spoofed). I wish I could block those, without blocking the couple other phones in my calling plan that share the same prefix.
- vforgione 8y ago
  On iOS there’s an app called Exchange Blocker that does exactly this.
  - huxflux 8y ago
    That's exactly why I left Apple after six years of usage, I don't want to have to use an app for every single little task.
    - malshe 8y ago
      This whole comment thread is listing number of Android apps doing it...maybe you missed that
anigbrowl 8y ago
Because nobody wants to download a third party phone call app?
- kazinator 8y ago
  The carriers should pick up the ball a little bit and deal with the spam call problem at the network level, rather than leaving it to apps. How can the tech be broken that call display can be spoofed; like someone obviously from outside of your area spoofs a number in your area. I can't believe that can't be intercepted. They just don't care beyond collecting a monthly bill from you.
  - max76 8y ago
    T-Mobile is the front runner carrier for dealing with spam and fraud phone calls in the US. I'll link some official marketing about one of their features, but they are doing a lot in this space. I suspect they find that these features increase brand loyalty per dollar more than the coverage arms race, which they can never win against their deep pocketed opponents. https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection
    - bscphil 8y ago
      I've been on Google Fi for a few years, and I don't believe I have received a single spam call, ever. I don't know if that's because Google is just good at filtering, because they operate over T-Mobile's networks, or just a coincidence.
    - anigbrowl 8y ago
      I shudder to think what the others are like, because I use TM and get a ton of spam calls despite a fairly lowonline profile.
  - jimktrains2 8y ago
    Caller ID originates from the sender and has no authentication. (Bell 303 modem modulation between the 1st and 2nd rings iirc.) I don't believe there is any other data with the call to know the calling number either. (I don't work in Telecom, so take it with a grain of salt as that's just the research I've done as an outsider.)
mathewspolin 8y ago
iOS "do not disturb" does this.
- cimmanom 8y ago
  By only if you’re also willing to forgo every single other possible notification.
WestCoastJustin 8y ago
I just put my iphone on "do not disturb" full-time and use my favourites list to only allow calls though (from a selected list). People who double call are also allowed through. Then you are not constantly distracted by notifications, emails, texts, spam calls [1]. My thinking is, my phone should serve me, not the other way around, so I only check when I'm not focused on something else. Personally, I find useless notifications way worse than calls. [1] https://www.iphonelife.com/blog/32671/tip-day-how-let-favorite-contacts-call-you-when-do-not-disturb https://www.iphonelife.com/blog/32671/tip-day-how-let-favori...
- kylec 8y ago
  I want to do this, but only for calls. All other notifications should happen normally. It annoys me that iOS doesn't support that though, it's all or nothing.
  - IgorPartola 8y ago
    Custom ringtone that is silent and individual ring tones for the select few contacts?
    - tintor 8y ago
      That is genius!
      - EGreg 8y ago
        Well you know us HN crowd...
    - Meph504 8y ago
      Wonder if you could do a no vibration pattern also, I haven't turn my ring tone on in like 10 years.
      - DonHopkins 8y ago
        Yea, Crazy Frog "The Annoying Thing" permanently turned me off to ring tones.
pxeboot 8y ago
Just a guess, but I would expect carriers to be strongly against any feature that made it easy to block most calls.
- jonwachob91 8y ago
  Carriers no longer get paid per call, so you'd think they'd be incentivized to lower the load on their network by reducing the number of spam calls.
  - pxeboot 8y ago
    At least in the US, the carrier initiating the call still pays the receiving carrier. This is less then 1¢/minute in most cases, but still represents real money when multipled by millions of calls a day. Users just pay for 'Unlimited Calling' now, but all the legacy payment structures still exist on the back end.
  - vortico 8y ago
    But with less usage, their service is valued less by the customer, which would cause more unsubscribes/downgrades in service.
  - nikanj 8y ago
    The more people block most calls, the less useful the ability to make calls is. And making calls is rather important for telcos.
altmind 8y ago
Just checked, I got this feature on stock samsung s8(phone-settings-block numbers-block unknown callers)? Are you talking about iphone(as if it is a default phone vendor) ?
- jonwachob91 8y ago
  There is a difference between unknown callers and calls from numbers not in your contact list.
  - squirrelicus 8y ago
    Can you explain?
    - lashkari 8y ago
      An "unknown caller" is typically one that has no caller ID information provided (e.g., unlisted number). However, getting a random telemarketing call from a VoIP-provided (or spoofed) local number would still come through since the caller ID information is provided, even though the number is not in your contacts list.
    - bcyn 8y ago
      Unknown = caller who has chosen to hide their number, or their number is just unavailable for any other reason.
      - mamon 8y ago
        Fortunately, my carrier allows blocking such calls on NETWORK level, so they don't ever reach my phone.
- tones411 8y ago
  Thanks. I am using iphone but didn’t realize Samsung had that option. I couldn’t find that option on my Essential Android phone either so it must be a vendor thing.
undoware 8y ago
Oh, easy. Collection agencies. Collection agencies are a vital part of the capitalist financial apparatus. Banks rely on them to enforce loan term agreements, and in turn defend them when in negotiation with e.g. Apple, when e.g. negotiating agreements regarding e.g. Apple Pay. I suspect (but cannot prove) an elaborate leaning on mobile companies to keep nonconsensual cold calls possible. Look for this state-of-affairs to change abruptly when being in arrears can directly affect the state of your device. I expect, by 2025 at the latest, that mobile service and handset providers will begin kneecapping devices whose owners have displeased Equifax. When this occurs, it will no longer be necessary to allow nonconsensual calls, and there will be much touting of the new-and-improved DND. Probably court summons and legal stuff works similarly, so my second prediction is that, around the same time, it will be possible to serve you notice of a subpoena by unblockable alert.
- max76 8y ago
  > I expect, by 2025 at the latest, that mobile service and handset providers will begin kneecapping devices whose owners have displeased Equifax. What type of action could someone put on a device to deal with an owner that has bad credit?
- undoware 8y ago
  Downvoters, why do you disagree? I'm sincere and I believe myself to be correct.
  - GalacticDomin8r 8y ago
    They are vital in the same way mosquitoes are vital to the ecosystem. You try to assume they must serve some higher purpose greater than blood-sucking(eg food for fish), but nope that's it.
    - deleted 8y ago
      [deleted]
    - undoware 8y ago
      I fail to understand how I assume they serve a greater purpose -- they simply provide consequences for debtors, something increasingly difficult. I hate them, but it fascinates me that some folks can't even bear to discuss how the meat grinder actually works. Because grind it does.
Figs 8y ago
You can? I thought that was pretty standard on Android phones? On my phone, at least, there are do-not-disturb options for "priority only" (which can be set to either specific contacts or the whole contact list), "alarms only", and "total silence" (careful with that one).
- sagarm 8y ago
  I use priority only to only allow started contacts through at night. During the day, I want all contacts to come through but not unknown numbers.
- ryan-allen 8y ago
  Yep I'm pretty sure this is standard on Android phones. Not sure if it can be done on iPhones though!
  - russjr08 8y ago
    On iOS, you can do block everyone but favorites, or just all, with an option of allowing repeat callers through (they call X amount of times in a 5 minute duration). Unfortunately this also disables all other app notifications which is less than desirable.
- sliken 8y ago
  It's on my pixel 3 xl, if you turn on "do not disturb" you can allow calls from anyone, contacts, starred contacts, or nobody.
- tones411 8y ago
  Does it disable other notifications on android though?
- koheripbal 8y ago
  My challenge on Android is that Hangouts calls have zero ability to filter.
pmoriarty 8y ago
On Android, you can do exactly this with an app called "Should I Answer?" That app has a lot more features too, like blocking calls which are rated negatively in the community-curated database. Of course, you can rate numbers yourself as well, and block/whitelist those. It can also block hidden numbers or foreign numbers, and a whole bunch of other stuff as well. It's a pretty cool app. Check it out.
- zamalek 8y ago
  It's mostly built in for Pixel: it warns about spam calls under the caller ID and allows you to report spam. In addition, there's the new call screening functionality [1] (which also now works on the Pixel 2). [1]: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/google-call-screening-how-to-use/ https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/google-call-screening-h...
  - MarkSummer 8y ago
    > It's mostly built in for Pixel I this this "Pixel" reply is misplaced. I've been using "Should I Answer" for about a year on my Galaxy S6, and it does everything the OP was requesting and then some. I just donated to them yesterday for the first time in fact. Even if you don't choose to use your contacts as a white list (which I don't because I often have client/prospect calls coming in that aren't in my contacts yet), it still catches about 95% of calls thanks to thepower of the masses fighting back. If you don't have it, definitely worth a download
- SAI_Peregrinus 8y ago
  Agreed. And it does it by periodically downloading a ratings database and storing it on your phone, so the checking doesn't leak any personal info. That takes some space, but not very much.
- julienreszka 8y ago
  I will try this
aiyodev 8y ago
This is still possible with Google Voice but through the legacy menu. I hope they aren't planning to drop these features any time soon. You can screen calls or automatically send them to voicemail. You can create rules for groups of contacts that override the default. You can setup different voicemail messages for different groups. I have it setup to send everyone but friends and family to voicemail. The transcript of this message is emailed to me. If I get multiple spam voicemails from the same number, I add the number to a contact called "Block" which sends them to a custom voicemail message I recorded telling them the number has been disconnected. My number is posted on websites, I use it when signing up for shady things, but I hardly ever get spam. I remember having to add a lot of numbers the first month and then suddenly the torrent of spam calls abruptly stopped. I assume they blacklisted my number on their lists. I've been pretty much spam free for years.
TYPE_FASTER 8y ago
Get a Google Voice number. Give your cell number to people, the Google Voice number everywhere else. You can configure Google Voice to send all calls to voicemail if you want. And I think you can still configure it to send you a transcription via text. Spam calls won't leave a message.
- sagarm 8y ago
  Google voice can be configured to screen calls from anyone not in your contacts. It works pretty well in my experience.
- quarkral 8y ago
  Doesn't work. Spammers still manage to blind call my actual cell phone number even though I've given it to absolutely not a single person, dead or alive.
  - GalacticDomin8r 8y ago
    Your provider/mvno should allow you change that one easily. I just did with mine that some spammers had. Works great except new one is on the school districts notification list with no easy way to opt-out. But that one is easy to block.
  - jzl 8y ago
    Exactly. Robocallers just call every single phone number. There aren't that many.
- tones411 8y ago
  Yep. Even if I switch numbers they real number is still out in the wild. And even if it’s not in the wild my guess is they are just calling every combination of numbers.
Cactus2018 8y ago
Tangentially; T-Mobile tags suspect numbers with "Scam Likely" caller ID. Opt-in to block these calls by dialing #662# - https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection edit; T-Mobile accepts forwarded text message SPAM at 7726 - https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/privacy/fraud-spam/sms-spam https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/privacy/fraud-spam/s...
- fosco 8y ago
  Thank you trying this out now. Awesome.
- YeahSureWhyNot 8y ago
  I do report numbers all the time but I didn't know I can prevent them from calling me. Just did that 662 dial. thank you
- wj 8y ago
  Half of my spam calls these days are from numbers that are supposedly in the same area code as my phone (likely spoofed as I've called a couple back before and the person didn't know what I was talking about when I said they called me) but since I no longer live in that area code I am able to use that as an identifier.
  - magduf 8y ago
    It's the same for me. Any time I see a call from my phone's area code, I know it's 99% likely to be spam (the other 1% is a recruiter, who I also don't want to talk to because they're trying to get me to take a job back in that same area code). Having a phone with a far-away area code is actually really useful just for this reason, I've found.
- glitcher 8y ago
  Thank you, just activated this. And it is #632# to opt back out again (for my own future reference, I can probably find this thread faster than T-Mobile's documentation :)
- 8y ago
piyush_soni 8y ago
There are many apps that do the same, at least on Android I've personally tried, but i guess should be the case on iPhone too.
sys_64738 8y ago
I use callcentric for voip and it allows all non-whitelist numbers to fall through to ‘press random digit to connect’. That gets rid of spam calls for me.
- tuananh 8y ago
  nice !
stonogo 8y ago
They used to, before the Android/iOS takeover of the industry. Competition was nice.
- axaxs 8y ago
  I was going to say... I'm 90 percent sure my RAZR had that ability even...
- kregasaurusrex 8y ago
  Still sad that BB10 will have support ending at year's end... But does a market exist for users of a non-Android/IOS phone in 2019 and beyond?
  - kkarakk 8y ago
    KaiOS is the new up and comer
pdx6 8y ago
It is pretty annoying -- you'd think there would be an out of the box solution for this. We can block IPs, why not phone numbers? With the Galaxy 9, there are some Name ID features built in if you use T-Mobile. For iOS on T-Mobile, I do: 1. Pay for T-Mobile Plus to get Name ID. 2. Install the Name ID app and enable all the blocking features. 3. Manage Blocks, Go to VM, and whitelist contacts Another thread mentions Exchange Blocker, this also helps with exchange alias scams and is a light weight app that takes a minute to install.
lsllc 8y ago
This. It's a complete nightmare, I get 5-10 junk calls a day, all from "local" numbers. I gave up blocking them as they are seemingly random. Some of the calls are in Chinese! At this point I just don't answer a call that's not in my contacts, but I should be able to enable this as the default. If it's someone that really wants to talk to me, then they'll leave voicemail. I shouldn't have to use Do-Not-Disturb; that's for something else (don't ring my phone at all when I am sleeping), also I don't want to lose my other notifications. The telcos charge for a "blocking" service so they have no incentive to do anything about it ... but I don't understand why Apple hasn't addressed this (maybe today's 15% decline in iPhone sales is people saying f-it and switching to Android where you can get apps to block calls).
RileyJames 8y ago
I got a “new” number when I moved to Canada. The ONLY calls I receive (about 2 per week) are robo call spam / scams. The messages repeat once in English and then in mandarin. (It’s a Vancouver number.. only logic I can see). Most of the time they go straight to voicemail and leave the same message. All my real friends FaceTime, signal, iMessage, etc. It bewilders me that telcos haven’t done anything about this. It’s 100% of my incoming calls... and they only about 2 unique actual messages, pre recorded...
- avtar 8y ago
  The Mandarin spam is not specific to Vancouver numbers. I live in Toronto and receive daily calls.
wyred 8y ago
What if it was a legitimate emergency? Like if someone used your number as an emergency contact. Or some hospital in the world trying to contact you because someone you know got hospitalized (touch wood).
- kalleboo 8y ago
  This is a good reason for the telcos to actually fix their shit instead of slapping this bandaid on it. But until then people are just going to manually ignore calls from unknown numbers assuming they're spam calls and the result will be the same. In this case, maybe sending the calls to voicemail instead of outright blocking them will work. AFAIK robocallers disconnect when encountering voicemail, whereas in a real emergency they'd leave a message to call back.
- smelendez 8y ago
  That's absolutely an issue for some people but not for everyone.
- JauntyHatAngle 8y ago
  What happened 40 years ago when home phones were the only way to contact somebody? I'm not trying to say it's not an issue, but the mentality that you need to be connected and accessible at all times is a relatively new phenomenon. If you are in a caretaker role than sure, but if my best friend is sick in hospital and I miss it because I'm out hiking or have turned my phone off, that's just life. People are not supposed to be 24/7 contactable in my view.
  - jimrandomh 8y ago
    In those days, you would answer the phone when it rang because most calls were legitimate contact attempts. Then telemarketing came, but it was kept somewhat in check by the need to have a human make the call. Spam robocallers are a very recent phenomenon; but they've made it so that the overwhelming majority of unknown-number calls people get are spam.
  - blihp 8y ago
    To make matters worse, 40 years ago most people didn't even have answering machines... most of the time the phone just rang and rang. Somehow we muddled through. Your point is spot on re: not being reachable 24/7 by the entire world.
dingo_bat 8y ago
You can just select "Block unknown callers": http://i.thinimg.com/img/75sy.jpg http://i.thinimg.com/img/75sy.jpg
huxflux 8y ago
I use a Chinese Android phone called OPPO R17 Pro, and I have exactly this feature built into the stock-rom (ColorOS) and a bunch of other really cool once, such as block foreign numbers, numbers not in my contact list, numbers not on my VIP-list, service numbers etc.
proxygeek 8y ago
But you can! Mostly in Android though. I can confirm MIUI - the stock rom on Xiaomi phones - have this exact feature built in. You can block all hidden numbers, all numbers not in your address book, specific numbers, etc. Or one can use Tasker - an Android automation app to achieve the same functionality and more in any Android phone. I suppose these days, you can use Iphone's scripting functionality as well for the same, can't you? Privacy concerns regarding MIUI /Android can be handled by installing a firewall like Netguard.
- narag 8y ago
  I can confirm that. No need for me to block all except whitelisted numbers. Blocking the dozen or so worst offenders was more than enough. Also the feature of recording conversations is very nice.
- fdsak 8y ago
  Yes this is excellent feature and working very well
- marcosdumay 8y ago
  There is a "Blacklist Block" app on F-Droid that (despite the name) will do that on any Android phone.
wittedhaddock 8y ago
My name is James, I work for Community Phone, a nationwide cell phone company. Show of hands: if we opened up this feature for you to control this filter for yourself or your loved ones, holding all else constant (price and coverage), would that be sufficient to cause a switch to try out an alternate provider?
- meetuu 8y ago
  hi James, This filter is a filter i would love to have for my phone, there is a wish list that could accompany the desire to filter calls, a ^large^ list perhaps, but i think it would be summed up as another user has stated, I want my phone to serve me, not the other way around. I also believe the smart phone thing has been abused for far too long, to the point I will not operate a smart phone for reasons of security, privacy and the interruption of tasks with alerts popups updates, and feature bloating. baked in apps that depart radicly from the stated function of the app, unnessecary permisions and connectivity. These reasons and more are why i refuse to use anything other than a dinosaur flipphone, and e-mail. thanks for the ear James.
  - wittedhaddock 8y ago
    Hi meetuu, thanks very much for your thoughtful response. I totally can relate to your desire for that feature and I hope you do not feel ashamed for it. Your phone is a personal device, and it ought to exist to serve your personal preferences so that you may live the best possible life with the thing (toleration or enjoyment)! I think it can be confusing now, that they have become so impersonally social, that we can be made to feel strange for wanting them to behave in different ways. And I appreciate your desire for simplicity and wanting to get to the essence of your communications. At what point did you finally decide to leave your smartphone behind and how severe of a lifestyle change have you had to make in order to operate and function as you have come to expect of yourself? - We currently offer unlimited talking and texting for $15/month + state taxes and FCC fees, or ~$18.
    - WrtCdEvrydy 8y ago
      Interesting, got any family plans?
davidjnelson 8y ago
Are you on the do not call list? https://www.donotcall.gov https://www.donotcall.gov
- dredmorbius 8y ago
  That's minimally effective.
- ddebernardy 8y ago
  Bot operators apparently ignore that. https://art19.com/shows/today-explained/episodes/deb6329e-ad97-419f-b1a8-36c9abb312d7 https://art19.com/shows/today-explained/episodes/deb6329e-ad...
- tones411 8y ago
  Yes
randomacct3847 8y ago
Data only SIM + google voice?
- itake 8y ago
  I still get spam calls on Google Voice
baroffoos 8y ago
This doesn't sound like an ideal solution to me. Most of the legitimate calls I get are from numbers I have never seen before like delivery people asking where they should leave a package and such. I added my self to the Australian do not call list and have received virtually no spam calls in years.
- keyle 8y ago
  I am too on the "do not call list", and I have received numerous, almost fortnightly scam calls from 03 numbers. No point reporting them, they're just known as scam redirects from other countries. I'd love an iOS feature to prevent or snooze all unknown callers.
YeahSureWhyNot 8y ago
I wish there was no unlimited calling and texting. 1 cent per minute/text is ideal. cheap enough for everyone to afford and expensive enough to make massive scale spam calling business unprofitable. same for emails. make emails cost 1 cent per email that gets donated to whatever good cause and watch spam drop by 90%
- djohnston 8y ago
  i feel like it would be effective but i worry about requiring payment information for sending emails. it seems like a privacy nightmare
  - dest 8y ago
    Also, this gives a way to entities who control the payments control who can send emails. Might be a concern in authoritarian regimes. Weren't there a project with proof of work?
    - djohnston 8y ago
      blockchain-based emails would definitely be a zesty solution
stevenicr 8y ago
Assuming op is using an iPhone? I was looking into this for a friend and found something a couple of tutorials for making it happen with iphone, but they all said you had to use the interface from a computer (desktop/laptop) - that the call filtering and time block feature was not accessible via the phone's interface. (this was about a year ago?) - you could make your phone go silent, but let a selected set of contact be able to ring, or perhaps give another set of contacts the option to turn off your silent mode if they coded twice within 5 minutes or something? I think there is built in methods for this with do not disturb and assorted options with that feature on newish android without third party apps right? (I currently frequently use a "timed silent profile" app that I paid the premium for years ago, but I think I ran into these settings on base android in the past year.
Afforess 8y ago
I block all US calls now, using Hiya (I block +1 ) and warn new contacts to either text me, or use signal, whatsapp, discord, etc. Originally, it was just enough to block my own area code (+1 616 ), since I had moved and didn't have any contacts that would have been from the area. But in the last few months, robocalls kept increasing, and I'm at about 100 robocalls a week. I seem to have robocalls worse than most, most of my friends are still sufficing with spam detection, but it's not enough. It's a crying shame the FCC has allowed the telephone to become a tragedy of the commons, but none of the carriers have any interest in blocking robocallers, it's a secondary source of income. I have a smartphone that literally can not operate as a phone and take calls. It's dystopian.
jotux 8y ago
I use this android app (paid $1 for the ad-free version): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vladlee.callblocker https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vladlee.ca... It specifically has a setting to force all non-contact list calls to voicemail. I had to do this when I started getting 8-10 spam calls a day.
twodayslate 8y ago
I recently installed RoboKiller on my phone and the number of spam calls on my phone has dropped to zero
sliken 8y ago
Buy an android phone. Go to settings -> sound -> do not disturb -> exceptions/calls. Click on allow calls and select "from contacts only".
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
trixie_ 8y ago
I don't answer calls from unknown numbers as well, but still having my phone ring only to ignore it multiple times per day is annoying. Apple should really make this a first class feature for iPhone users at least.
DonHopkins 8y ago
I'm in the Netherlands and I hardly ever get any spam calls on my T-Mobile phone. Is there some reason like Dutch regulations, or are spam calls pandemic in the US because of American deregulation, or am I just unpopular with the spammers?
- TheRealPomax 8y ago
  I moved from NL to Canada. There. are. so. many. spam. calls. here. The idea of telcos by law being required to actively block reported spam numbers is literally foreign here.
- croisillon 8y ago
  Living in Austria I've never heard of phone spam either but my parents in France are plagued by it, I guess that's a regulation thing.
- dx034 8y ago
  UK also has them, Germany doesn't. I don't think it's the language barrier (UK calls are targeted for UK customers), so there's likely a difference in regulation or treatment by providers.
  - detaro 8y ago
    The fake "Microsoft Support" calls happen in Germany too, but appears to be mostly on land-line numbers.
    - dx034 8y ago
      But they're more targeted and low volume. Not robot calls that are easy to identify as fake after a second.
mgerdts 8y ago
I've been pretty happy with blacklist blocker. https://github.com/kaliturin/BlackList https://github.com/kaliturin/BlackList I had to work some magic (which I have since forgotten) to convince my S9+ to ignore this background process, else it would stop working after a few hours. The key thing that I wish it had was a quick way to allow unknown calls for a specified time. This would have been helpful when given the option of staying on hold for an extended period of time or receiving a callback - or when you get that "my connection is crap, let me call you back on another line."
- timbit42 8y ago
  Have you looked at the Should I Answer? app?
egypturnash 8y ago
Default ring: three seconds of silence, no vibration. People you actually want to talk to: custom ring/vibration. As a bonus you can assign different rings to people so you know “oh hey that’s Mom” or whatever.
deathanatos 8y ago
Or why isn't the law enforced? Why is the FCC and do-not-call.gov asleep on the job? Why are scammers even allowed to spoof caller IDs from local area-code numbers that don't even exist? (Thankfully, this makes them blissfully easy to spot. But I fear someday the fraudsters will get up to speed on that heuristic.) Don't get me wrong, I'm all for a technical measure like the one you suggest — it appears to be sorely needed. But I'm dismayed at how little the government and the carriers care. And for God's sake can we choose a more convincing scam than "the factory warranty on your vehicle is about to expire"? My car is over 20 years old. The warranty is gone.
- jonathanlb 8y ago
  > Why is the FCC and do-not-call.gov asleep on the job? I can't speak to the FCC's leadership under Ajit Pai, but donotcall.gov was shuttered during the latest government shutdown.
  - Evidlo 8y ago
    Here's a success story of the FCC busting someone last year: https://mashable.com/2018/05/13/fcc-fines-spam-robocalls-florida-man/#5Z2GbHJLqPqQ https://mashable.com/2018/05/13/fcc-fines-spam-robocalls-flo...
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
nik1aa5 8y ago
I use "Should I answer?" which serves this purpose very well: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.mistergroup.muzutozvednout https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.mistergrou... The main service the app offers is a community rating of phone numbers. Depending on the rating, calls can be muted automatically. You can also, however, tell the app to generally block all calls except those from contacts in your address book.
s17tnet 8y ago
Uh, I can do in my cheap old Moto G5 plus with almost-stock Android.
muraliSKDV 8y ago
It is better to make separate ringtone for your ringtone for both.
emayljames 8y ago
Xiaomi phones have a "Block Calls From Strangers" option in the security settings. Xiaomi phone's are awesome.
joshka 8y ago
I'm more inclined to say that the real solution to this is to make it expensive for the callers by having a service that answers the call every time and tries to keep the caller on the line wasting their time. There's obviously an asymmetric principal at play here. Imagine for a sec a situation where: 1. I receive a robocaller message. 2. I press a button on phone indicating spam 3. Software Agent takes over, presses the right DTMF to proceed (ML based analysis of what works and what doesn't) 4. Agent waits for human to come on, starts playing random conversational pieces that sound right (extension, the google thing that booked a hair dresser appointment takes this even further https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D-6mxb_Mu8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D-6mxb_Mu8). 5.
- est31 8y ago
  It's surprisingly easy to fool spam callers with a set of prerecorded messages: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0fj0vLJPE&list=PLduL71_GKzHHk4hLga0nOGWrXlhl-i_3g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0fj0vLJPE&list=PLduL71_GKz...
- askmike 8y ago
  Are you sure this is a problem you want to (try to) solve technically? - You'll make it very hard for genuine people to contact you. - You don't solve the problem, you only make it more expensive. As long as the benefit of calling you is bigger than the cost they will jump through whatever hoop to call you. For some context: this isn't a problem everywhere in the world. In my country there are strict laws about unsolicited phone calls (especially to people who have indicated they wan't to be called[1]). I never get a spam called (automated or otherwise). [1]: https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/wetten-en-regelingen/productbeschrijvingen/bel-me-niet-register https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/wetten-en-regelingen/productbes...
  - gwbas1c 8y ago
    Re-read the proposed solution. The recipient screens the call and pushes a button to redirect the spammer.
  - joshka 8y ago
Haitischmock 8y ago
I'm using a Moto X Play with Android 7.1.1. In the "do not disturb"-mode you can select "only important interruptions" which only lets through phone calls or notifications from your contacts.
simonCGN 8y ago
Seems to be a US problem. I als never get unsolicited calls in my country.
- avh02 8y ago
  Had plenty of robocalls during my year in the UK - mainly the same message that tries to get you to speak first then goes on a spiel about being involved in a car accident that wasn't my fault (given I don't have a car that was pretty moot)
  - 0db532a0 8y ago
    One of them got quite excited when I told her that I’d just wrecked my Lambo. Sadly I didn’t have a Lambo to wreck. They keep calling me, though. The callers, by their accent, seem to have moved to the vicinity of the Indian subcontinent since [1]. Bless their hearts, they still do check in on my once in a while. It just doesn’t make sense that they don’t organise and make a database of nuisance callees or callees with no vehicle. [1]https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/03/09/road_accident_nuisance_callers_fined_270000_for_being_absolute_bags/ https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/03/09/road_accident_nuisa...
- yoz-y 8y ago
  In France these calls are pretty common and come in waves.
crispytx 8y ago
Hey Tones411, I actually created an app that does this for Android called RoboStop. Check it out! Unfortunately Google will be removing the app from the Play Store on March 9th due to increased restrictions regarding access to user's data (call logs), but I plan on moving the app over to RoboStop.org in about a month from now.
Kiro 8y ago
I just want to block all calls, period.
- vincengomes 8y ago
  Try Flight Mode with Wifi On
  - Kiro 8y ago
    I want to use 4G though and get texts.
  - tones411 8y ago
    That just might do the trick
aws_ls 8y ago
I have felt it since long, that phone calls should be like emails. For example, the ring should include an (optional) recorded subject of the caller (of course, may be heard on demand, by the receiver of the call for privacy reasons). In fact anyone not in contact list, should be required to send a brief voice subject/purpose of calling, which may be limited to 10 seconds. Also we should be able to respond by pressing a 'Not interested' button. This will take the problem of spam away.
adim86 8y ago
Although at first glance this sounds like a no brainer and a little confusing why we are not given the power to have a whitelist system on our phones I think this feature is a terrible idea. This is the same as saying, why can we not bounce all emails that have not been stored in our email address book. This one feature has the ability to destroy modern communication as we know it. Hear me out. If you all have noticed, with every privacy feature released a significant amount of people migrate to it full-time. I currently cannot recognize my phone ring, because from the day I bought my last phone I switched off the ringing and never bothered to turn it back on, not because I hate ringtones, I just forgot and also there have been no dire consequences to do so. Someone on this thread also said he/she set her phone permanently on "do not disturb" and just deals with notifications when they want to. This is all well and good cause anyone who has tried to reach us has successfully done so and even if they did not reach us, we have evidence that they attempted to. Having a whitelist system is VERY different and has many unforeseen consequences. From as little as, your mother got a new phone and soon she cannot reach you, you got a beautiful girls number and want to ask her on a date but cannot reach her. To bigger issues like your teenage child is mad at you and deletes your contact from their phone. Job offers will be missed, you will become unreachable in emergencies etc. The short of this is, the best case of such a feature is that you don't need to install a third party app to block spam calls, the worst case of such a feature is people can literally die cause they cannot contact you or vice versa. If I was a phone manufacturer. I just won't even allow this. There are easier ways to solve the underlying problem without opening the door for worse outcomes
- hardwaresofton 8y ago
  I don't mean this maliciously but unless I've misread your comment this is a lot of text that boils down to "sometimes you'll be unreachable". Some of the reasons you list: - family members getting new phones - missed connections + job offers - teenage child being angry with you - emergencies Two responses: 1. The cellular phone has existed only for so long, and people found a way to exist before it. I'm not going to belabor the point since it's not very deep but this concept that you need to be reachable 99% of the time in 99% of the cases is wrong -- the cases where you actually absoutely need to be reached is often <1% of the time. 2. The problem is identity here -- it's not that you don't want certain numbers calling you, it's that you don't want certain numbers calling you. This could be solved by creating a system that links identities to numbers, though it's exceedingly optimistic notion that we'd get everyone to agree on the same system. In all the situations when you give someone your phone number or they give you theirs, you're agreeing to talk to each other. If you instead exchanged some sort of identity (let's say GPG key), the problem no longer is "how can I call a number they should be at", it's "how do I find how to contact this person with this identity". The latter question can be solved much more robustly. I've thought about something like this -- creating just a online store of just identities that you can freely create and discard, boiling down to GPG key. Having such a shared resource would mean that chat apps, telco providers, and various other usecases could just use GPG (in this example) to look up the right contact method... Attempting to create a widely used standard is basically suicide though so maybe this idea has no legs. In this imaginary scenario you have a whitelist that works the way you want -- people you want to contact you can, and you can have very limited overrides like a shared identity/utility key for hospitals/government/etc. [EDIT] - I also wanted to add -- again, I do think that this would have bad effects on "free and open communication", but I'm not sure it might actually be bad for society -- maybe free-and-open-communication by default for some mediums isn't good. I don't think closing down this loophole for phone numbers is going to squelch productive protests (one of the phenomenons I personally think we'd want to protect), but maybe I'm wrong.
nikanj 8y ago
Because your phone company is a much bigger customer than you are, and they make termination fees on every call you receive.
fxfan 8y ago
I sincerely hope bb open sources their bb10 os. It was absolutely the best thing ever for notification control. (outside of old blackberries)
jarfil 8y ago
You can on a Huawei: - Block unknown/hidden numbers - Block all strangers (non-contact numbers) - Block all incoming calls
fyfy18 8y ago
A few years ago my parents were getting a lot of spam calls on their landline. Basically all of them were automated calls, either a recorded message or you were connected to a person shortly after the call was connected. I bought an OBi100 [0], which is a small device designed to be a VOIP adapter, but you can setup rules on how calls (incoming or outgoing) are handled. I setup a rule that if the call was from a withheld or foreign number, it would play an automated message asking the user to press the number 1 to be connected. This alone stopped basically all the spam calls. I'm surprised how well it actually works, I assume the caller detects it as a voicemail message so just hang up. I imagine most carriers could implement something like this relatively easy. Sorry Google, no AI needed here. [0] https://www.callcentric.com/support/device/obihai/obi100 https://www.callcentric.com/support/device/obihai/obi100
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- nmstoker 8y ago
  Cool idea, but you're talking about a landline though aren't you? The implication from the OP is that it's a question about mobiles. It's not 100% clear, but in my experience people rarely bother to have contact lists on landlines, which themselves are increasingly less popular.
  - StavrosK 8y ago
    Sure, but the point is that with this greylisting approach you don't need them.
  - tones411 8y ago
    iPhone or Android. We don’t have a landline.
- StavrosK 8y ago
  This is the kind of solution that only works because basically nobody is doing it. If a big provider deployed it, it would take five seconds for it to be defeated.
russelldavis 8y ago
Amen. The existing spam call blockers are all based on blacklists, and it's a losing battle against spammers who can simply keep spoofing new numbers. I'm working on an app (iphone & android) that solves this the way you suggest, via a whitelist of contacts, with an optional way for non-whitelisted, non-robocallers to still get through. If you're interested in early access, email me at russell.davis [at] gmail [dot] [com].
yoz-y 8y ago
It is not exactly the solution you look for but on iOS you can use call blocking apps which work in a similar fashion to the safari blocking extensions. They provide a list of blacklisted numbers to the phone app and they can either tag them (say, as a telemarketer) or block them outright. I currently use Callblock and it works fine. One advantage of this system is that the blocking provider does not need (and can't have) access to your phone call history at all. The disadvantage is that it is a blacklist only, you can't invert the rules. As a side note, although I would _love_ to just ignore all calls from numbers I do not know, at least in France most companies such as banks, taxman and so on will call you from a withheld number and they don't always leave a message.
IanCal 8y ago
This feels a bit tech-supporty. Are you sure you can't? There seem to apps for doing call blocking on both Android and iOS. I'd be absolutely shocked if none of them allow checking against your contacts.
mattmaroon 8y ago
There are plenty of Android apps that let you do that.
ssharp 8y ago
A few years ago, prior to the recent rush of non-stop robo calls that many people experience today, I was fraudulently put on some diabetes sales list (I don't even have it) and would get calls daily on it, often from the same number. At the time, AT&T, if you gave them a few dollars a month, would let you block 5 numbers. It was the most unbelievably stupid policy I had ever seen and almost caused me to churn, which I probably should have done.
moonbug 8y ago
Phones should be like Victorian children. Seen but not heard.
ubermonkey 8y ago
I'm using an app on my iPhone called RoboKiller, and HOLY CRAP has it cut my spam calls to virtually nil. It's worth looking into for sure.
- tones411 8y ago
  I tried that. But redirecting my phone number to a different service made me concerned.
  - ubermonkey 8y ago
    How so? I mean, if you want to quit using it, you just delete the app.
jpeeler 8y ago
Android (not familiar with iPhone at all) has solved the problem of blocking unwanted calls, but has it intertwined with "do not disturb", which also affects notifications. I think we'd all enjoy having the feature separated out so that phone calls can be filtered as desired without assuming a silent/lesser mode needs enabling. On an unrelated note, I've many times wished the phone protocol was upgraded to send metadata of your choosing along with the caller ID. Not even asking for a standard, because it'd probably suck. Just provide the means to send some optional data along with the call (which could ultimately put the nail in the coffin of land lines). The primary use case I had in mind would be to authenticate identity (since caller ID can be spoofed), but I'm sure a bunch of new uses would be utilized.
crankylinuxuser 8y ago
My solution for Android is to do the following 1. Set system ringtone to "nothing" 2. Set ringtones for people I want to not miss 3. Suppress annoying notifications Takes care of most problems.
420codebro 8y ago
The STIR/SHAKEN framework once implemented will give you a very good indicator of the callers identity.
anticensor 8y ago
You can, but only bidirectionally (called fixed dialling restriction).
cs_advice 8y ago
At least in Spain you can ask to be in the Robinson list and then, no company can call you for advertisements or offers unless you're a client of them. AND, in Spain is against the data protection law to do marketing calls from mobile phones if you're not their client. So they can get into trouble if they do. You can always set you're phone to ignore calls, but this doesn't avoid the call to reach your phone. However, the robinson list does. "Is an opt-out list of people who do not wish to receive marketing transmissions" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson_list https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson_list
chrisBob 8y ago
I still get regular spam calls, but I can always look and identify them. My cell phone has a 315 area code, and the only other person I know with a similar number is on my contact list. Absolutely anything else from a 315 number is spam. If I get something from the same number twice then I add it to my "SPAM" contact which is blocked. The Hiya app also helps somewhat. I didn't realize how good a job carriers like T-Mobile do at filtering out the Spam calls until I switched to XFinity Mobile and went from 1-2 calls per week to 5 in the first day. Hiya brings the number back down inline with T-Mobile, and might be the same database T-Mobile uses on the backend.
exabrial 8y ago
And send every unknown to Jolly Roger phone company
james_niro 8y ago
One IPhone you can turn Do Not Disturb option and only allow calls from your contact list. All other calls will be muted. Also, I do not answers numbers which I do not recognize and send it to voicemail, If they don’t leave voicemail I will add that number to my block list.
- jdeibele 8y ago
  I tried this on my iPhone but the problem is, it seems to block all text notifications. I get way more texts from friends and family than I do phone calls. If it worked for texts the same way, that would be perfect. I'm probably going to look into the silent ring tone for unknown numbers because that will get me closest to what I want.
astrostl 8y ago
How many spam calls are folks averaging per day? I probably get one (1) every 3-6 months, and I answer calls from unknown numbers without hesitation. I've also been using the same mobile number for more than two decades.
- citizens 8y ago
  About two per day.
otterpro 8y ago
Does anyone know if we can get 900 number on our cell phone, which would charge the caller for each call? On landline, we were able to call a psychic on a 1-900 numbers (and 0900 in Europe) for a fee. If I charged $1.99 for each call, I wouldn't mind answering even those spam calls.
roland35 8y ago
From reading this thread (and from my own experience) it seems the best way to mitigate spam calls is to buy your phone in an area code away from your home! Spam always finds a way...
- phyllostachys 8y ago
  This mostly works. After military service, I never changed back my cell number and I never answer if it is from the old area code. Though, I did once and it was a volunteer fire station asking for donations.
giantzoc 8y ago
I have been using shouldianswer which has this feature. https://www.shouldianswer.com/ https://www.shouldianswer.com/ I was getting constant spam phone calls before I started using this app. The app was also clear about why it needed certain permissions.
tonyquart 8y ago
Well, I personally choose to just ignore them. Blocking each of them are a waste of time. By ignoring them, I think along with time, they will consider my phone number as an inactive number. Sometimes I also look up the numbers on Google or some sites like http://whycall.me http://whycall.me and just post some reports about those numbers if I find people have reported them as scams.
jenkstom 8y ago
So when you call 911 or emergency services the first or second thing you are asked for is your phone number so you can be called back if needed. Trust me... you are NOT going to remember to turn off blocking when things go pear shaped. Obviously it's your own choice, but it could become a life and death issue in rare circumstances.

319 points by tones411 8y ago

It’s pointless to block every single spam number that can call in. If we can’t end spam calls, why don’t phones let you at least block all except numbers in your contact list?

slater 8y ago

Or even maybe just a wildcard option, e.g. "block all calls from 555-*" would be nice

kazinator 8y ago
On Android, the Call Blocker app from embware does "starts with" and "ends with" matching. Blocker does a good job on dropping unwanted calls in such a way that they rarely have an opportunity to go to voicemail.
koolba 8y ago
The vast majority of junk calls I receive on my cell have my local area code so that wouldn’t work.
- joe_the_user 8y ago
  Just get a number with an area code outside of your current location. I wound-up in this situation and it's a good junk filter. To their credit, T-Mobile also does decent spam filtering.
  - joshka 8y ago
    Same boat. Milking this until it's not :|
- derekp7 8y ago
  For me, most of them have the same area code AND prefix as my cell phone (so obviously caller ID spoofed). I wish I could block those, without blocking the couple other phones in my calling plan that share the same prefix.
vforgione 8y ago
On iOS there’s an app called Exchange Blocker that does exactly this.
- huxflux 8y ago
  That's exactly why I left Apple after six years of usage, I don't want to have to use an app for every single little task.
  - malshe 8y ago
    This whole comment thread is listing number of Android apps doing it...maybe you missed that

anigbrowl 8y ago

Because nobody wants to download a third party phone call app?

kazinator 8y ago
The carriers should pick up the ball a little bit and deal with the spam call problem at the network level, rather than leaving it to apps. How can the tech be broken that call display can be spoofed; like someone obviously from outside of your area spoofs a number in your area. I can't believe that can't be intercepted. They just don't care beyond collecting a monthly bill from you.
- max76 8y ago
  T-Mobile is the front runner carrier for dealing with spam and fraud phone calls in the US. I'll link some official marketing about one of their features, but they are doing a lot in this space. I suspect they find that these features increase brand loyalty per dollar more than the coverage arms race, which they can never win against their deep pocketed opponents. https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection
  - bscphil 8y ago
    I've been on Google Fi for a few years, and I don't believe I have received a single spam call, ever. I don't know if that's because Google is just good at filtering, because they operate over T-Mobile's networks, or just a coincidence.
  - anigbrowl 8y ago
    I shudder to think what the others are like, because I use TM and get a ton of spam calls despite a fairly lowonline profile.
- jimktrains2 8y ago
  Caller ID originates from the sender and has no authentication. (Bell 303 modem modulation between the 1st and 2nd rings iirc.) I don't believe there is any other data with the call to know the calling number either. (I don't work in Telecom, so take it with a grain of salt as that's just the research I've done as an outsider.)

mathewspolin 8y ago

iOS "do not disturb" does this.

cimmanom 8y ago
By only if you’re also willing to forgo every single other possible notification.

WestCoastJustin 8y ago

I just put my iphone on "do not disturb" full-time and use my favourites list to only allow calls though (from a selected list). People who double call are also allowed through. Then you are not constantly distracted by notifications, emails, texts, spam calls [1]. My thinking is, my phone should serve me, not the other way around, so I only check when I'm not focused on something else. Personally, I find useless notifications way worse than calls. [1] https://www.iphonelife.com/blog/32671/tip-day-how-let-favorite-contacts-call-you-when-do-not-disturb https://www.iphonelife.com/blog/32671/tip-day-how-let-favori...

kylec 8y ago
I want to do this, but only for calls. All other notifications should happen normally. It annoys me that iOS doesn't support that though, it's all or nothing.
- IgorPartola 8y ago
  Custom ringtone that is silent and individual ring tones for the select few contacts?
  - tintor 8y ago
    That is genius!
    - EGreg 8y ago
      Well you know us HN crowd...
  - Meph504 8y ago
    Wonder if you could do a no vibration pattern also, I haven't turn my ring tone on in like 10 years.
    - DonHopkins 8y ago
      Yea, Crazy Frog "The Annoying Thing" permanently turned me off to ring tones.

pxeboot 8y ago

Just a guess, but I would expect carriers to be strongly against any feature that made it easy to block most calls.

jonwachob91 8y ago
Carriers no longer get paid per call, so you'd think they'd be incentivized to lower the load on their network by reducing the number of spam calls.
- pxeboot 8y ago
  At least in the US, the carrier initiating the call still pays the receiving carrier. This is less then 1¢/minute in most cases, but still represents real money when multipled by millions of calls a day. Users just pay for 'Unlimited Calling' now, but all the legacy payment structures still exist on the back end.
- vortico 8y ago
  But with less usage, their service is valued less by the customer, which would cause more unsubscribes/downgrades in service.
- nikanj 8y ago
  The more people block most calls, the less useful the ability to make calls is. And making calls is rather important for telcos.

altmind 8y ago

Just checked, I got this feature on stock samsung s8(phone-settings-block numbers-block unknown callers)? Are you talking about iphone(as if it is a default phone vendor) ?

jonwachob91 8y ago
There is a difference between unknown callers and calls from numbers not in your contact list.
- squirrelicus 8y ago
  Can you explain?
  - lashkari 8y ago
    An "unknown caller" is typically one that has no caller ID information provided (e.g., unlisted number). However, getting a random telemarketing call from a VoIP-provided (or spoofed) local number would still come through since the caller ID information is provided, even though the number is not in your contacts list.
  - bcyn 8y ago
    Unknown = caller who has chosen to hide their number, or their number is just unavailable for any other reason.
    - mamon 8y ago
      Fortunately, my carrier allows blocking such calls on NETWORK level, so they don't ever reach my phone.
tones411 8y ago
Thanks. I am using iphone but didn’t realize Samsung had that option. I couldn’t find that option on my Essential Android phone either so it must be a vendor thing.

undoware 8y ago

Oh, easy. Collection agencies. Collection agencies are a vital part of the capitalist financial apparatus. Banks rely on them to enforce loan term agreements, and in turn defend them when in negotiation with e.g. Apple, when e.g. negotiating agreements regarding e.g. Apple Pay. I suspect (but cannot prove) an elaborate leaning on mobile companies to keep nonconsensual cold calls possible. Look for this state-of-affairs to change abruptly when being in arrears can directly affect the state of your device. I expect, by 2025 at the latest, that mobile service and handset providers will begin kneecapping devices whose owners have displeased Equifax. When this occurs, it will no longer be necessary to allow nonconsensual calls, and there will be much touting of the new-and-improved DND. Probably court summons and legal stuff works similarly, so my second prediction is that, around the same time, it will be possible to serve you notice of a subpoena by unblockable alert.

max76 8y ago
> I expect, by 2025 at the latest, that mobile service and handset providers will begin kneecapping devices whose owners have displeased Equifax. What type of action could someone put on a device to deal with an owner that has bad credit?
undoware 8y ago
Downvoters, why do you disagree? I'm sincere and I believe myself to be correct.
- GalacticDomin8r 8y ago
  They are vital in the same way mosquitoes are vital to the ecosystem. You try to assume they must serve some higher purpose greater than blood-sucking(eg food for fish), but nope that's it.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - undoware 8y ago
    I fail to understand how I assume they serve a greater purpose -- they simply provide consequences for debtors, something increasingly difficult. I hate them, but it fascinates me that some folks can't even bear to discuss how the meat grinder actually works. Because grind it does.

Figs 8y ago

You can? I thought that was pretty standard on Android phones? On my phone, at least, there are do-not-disturb options for "priority only" (which can be set to either specific contacts or the whole contact list), "alarms only", and "total silence" (careful with that one).

sagarm 8y ago
I use priority only to only allow started contacts through at night. During the day, I want all contacts to come through but not unknown numbers.
ryan-allen 8y ago
Yep I'm pretty sure this is standard on Android phones. Not sure if it can be done on iPhones though!
- russjr08 8y ago
  On iOS, you can do block everyone but favorites, or just all, with an option of allowing repeat callers through (they call X amount of times in a 5 minute duration). Unfortunately this also disables all other app notifications which is less than desirable.
sliken 8y ago
It's on my pixel 3 xl, if you turn on "do not disturb" you can allow calls from anyone, contacts, starred contacts, or nobody.
tones411 8y ago
Does it disable other notifications on android though?
koheripbal 8y ago
My challenge on Android is that Hangouts calls have zero ability to filter.

pmoriarty 8y ago

On Android, you can do exactly this with an app called "Should I Answer?" That app has a lot more features too, like blocking calls which are rated negatively in the community-curated database. Of course, you can rate numbers yourself as well, and block/whitelist those. It can also block hidden numbers or foreign numbers, and a whole bunch of other stuff as well. It's a pretty cool app. Check it out.

zamalek 8y ago
It's mostly built in for Pixel: it warns about spam calls under the caller ID and allows you to report spam. In addition, there's the new call screening functionality [1] (which also now works on the Pixel 2). [1]: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/google-call-screening-how-to-use/ https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/google-call-screening-h...
- MarkSummer 8y ago
  > It's mostly built in for Pixel I this this "Pixel" reply is misplaced. I've been using "Should I Answer" for about a year on my Galaxy S6, and it does everything the OP was requesting and then some. I just donated to them yesterday for the first time in fact. Even if you don't choose to use your contacts as a white list (which I don't because I often have client/prospect calls coming in that aren't in my contacts yet), it still catches about 95% of calls thanks to thepower of the masses fighting back. If you don't have it, definitely worth a download
SAI_Peregrinus 8y ago
Agreed. And it does it by periodically downloading a ratings database and storing it on your phone, so the checking doesn't leak any personal info. That takes some space, but not very much.
julienreszka 8y ago
I will try this

aiyodev 8y ago

This is still possible with Google Voice but through the legacy menu. I hope they aren't planning to drop these features any time soon. You can screen calls or automatically send them to voicemail. You can create rules for groups of contacts that override the default. You can setup different voicemail messages for different groups. I have it setup to send everyone but friends and family to voicemail. The transcript of this message is emailed to me. If I get multiple spam voicemails from the same number, I add the number to a contact called "Block" which sends them to a custom voicemail message I recorded telling them the number has been disconnected. My number is posted on websites, I use it when signing up for shady things, but I hardly ever get spam. I remember having to add a lot of numbers the first month and then suddenly the torrent of spam calls abruptly stopped. I assume they blacklisted my number on their lists. I've been pretty much spam free for years.

TYPE_FASTER 8y ago

Get a Google Voice number. Give your cell number to people, the Google Voice number everywhere else. You can configure Google Voice to send all calls to voicemail if you want. And I think you can still configure it to send you a transcription via text. Spam calls won't leave a message.

sagarm 8y ago
Google voice can be configured to screen calls from anyone not in your contacts. It works pretty well in my experience.
quarkral 8y ago
Doesn't work. Spammers still manage to blind call my actual cell phone number even though I've given it to absolutely not a single person, dead or alive.
- GalacticDomin8r 8y ago
  Your provider/mvno should allow you change that one easily. I just did with mine that some spammers had. Works great except new one is on the school districts notification list with no easy way to opt-out. But that one is easy to block.
- jzl 8y ago
  Exactly. Robocallers just call every single phone number. There aren't that many.
tones411 8y ago
Yep. Even if I switch numbers they real number is still out in the wild. And even if it’s not in the wild my guess is they are just calling every combination of numbers.

Cactus2018 8y ago

Tangentially; T-Mobile tags suspect numbers with "Scam Likely" caller ID. Opt-in to block these calls by dialing #662# - https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection https://www.t-mobile.com/resources/call-protection edit; T-Mobile accepts forwarded text message SPAM at 7726 - https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/privacy/fraud-spam/sms-spam https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/privacy/fraud-spam/s...

fosco 8y ago
Thank you trying this out now. Awesome.
YeahSureWhyNot 8y ago
I do report numbers all the time but I didn't know I can prevent them from calling me. Just did that 662 dial. thank you
wj 8y ago
Half of my spam calls these days are from numbers that are supposedly in the same area code as my phone (likely spoofed as I've called a couple back before and the person didn't know what I was talking about when I said they called me) but since I no longer live in that area code I am able to use that as an identifier.
- magduf 8y ago
  It's the same for me. Any time I see a call from my phone's area code, I know it's 99% likely to be spam (the other 1% is a recruiter, who I also don't want to talk to because they're trying to get me to take a job back in that same area code). Having a phone with a far-away area code is actually really useful just for this reason, I've found.
glitcher 8y ago
Thank you, just activated this. And it is #632# to opt back out again (for my own future reference, I can probably find this thread faster than T-Mobile's documentation :)
8y ago

piyush_soni 8y ago

There are many apps that do the same, at least on Android I've personally tried, but i guess should be the case on iPhone too.

sys_64738 8y ago

I use callcentric for voip and it allows all non-whitelist numbers to fall through to ‘press random digit to connect’. That gets rid of spam calls for me.

tuananh 8y ago
nice !

stonogo 8y ago

They used to, before the Android/iOS takeover of the industry. Competition was nice.

axaxs 8y ago
I was going to say... I'm 90 percent sure my RAZR had that ability even...
kregasaurusrex 8y ago
Still sad that BB10 will have support ending at year's end... But does a market exist for users of a non-Android/IOS phone in 2019 and beyond?
- kkarakk 8y ago
  KaiOS is the new up and comer

pdx6 8y ago

It is pretty annoying -- you'd think there would be an out of the box solution for this. We can block IPs, why not phone numbers? With the Galaxy 9, there are some Name ID features built in if you use T-Mobile. For iOS on T-Mobile, I do: 1. Pay for T-Mobile Plus to get Name ID. 2. Install the Name ID app and enable all the blocking features. 3. Manage Blocks, Go to VM, and whitelist contacts Another thread mentions Exchange Blocker, this also helps with exchange alias scams and is a light weight app that takes a minute to install.

lsllc 8y ago

This. It's a complete nightmare, I get 5-10 junk calls a day, all from "local" numbers. I gave up blocking them as they are seemingly random. Some of the calls are in Chinese! At this point I just don't answer a call that's not in my contacts, but I should be able to enable this as the default. If it's someone that really wants to talk to me, then they'll leave voicemail. I shouldn't have to use Do-Not-Disturb; that's for something else (don't ring my phone at all when I am sleeping), also I don't want to lose my other notifications. The telcos charge for a "blocking" service so they have no incentive to do anything about it ... but I don't understand why Apple hasn't addressed this (maybe today's 15% decline in iPhone sales is people saying f-it and switching to Android where you can get apps to block calls).

RileyJames 8y ago

I got a “new” number when I moved to Canada. The ONLY calls I receive (about 2 per week) are robo call spam / scams. The messages repeat once in English and then in mandarin. (It’s a Vancouver number.. only logic I can see). Most of the time they go straight to voicemail and leave the same message. All my real friends FaceTime, signal, iMessage, etc. It bewilders me that telcos haven’t done anything about this. It’s 100% of my incoming calls... and they only about 2 unique actual messages, pre recorded...

avtar 8y ago
The Mandarin spam is not specific to Vancouver numbers. I live in Toronto and receive daily calls.

wyred 8y ago

What if it was a legitimate emergency? Like if someone used your number as an emergency contact. Or some hospital in the world trying to contact you because someone you know got hospitalized (touch wood).

kalleboo 8y ago
This is a good reason for the telcos to actually fix their shit instead of slapping this bandaid on it. But until then people are just going to manually ignore calls from unknown numbers assuming they're spam calls and the result will be the same. In this case, maybe sending the calls to voicemail instead of outright blocking them will work. AFAIK robocallers disconnect when encountering voicemail, whereas in a real emergency they'd leave a message to call back.
smelendez 8y ago
That's absolutely an issue for some people but not for everyone.
JauntyHatAngle 8y ago
What happened 40 years ago when home phones were the only way to contact somebody? I'm not trying to say it's not an issue, but the mentality that you need to be connected and accessible at all times is a relatively new phenomenon. If you are in a caretaker role than sure, but if my best friend is sick in hospital and I miss it because I'm out hiking or have turned my phone off, that's just life. People are not supposed to be 24/7 contactable in my view.
- jimrandomh 8y ago
  In those days, you would answer the phone when it rang because most calls were legitimate contact attempts. Then telemarketing came, but it was kept somewhat in check by the need to have a human make the call. Spam robocallers are a very recent phenomenon; but they've made it so that the overwhelming majority of unknown-number calls people get are spam.
- blihp 8y ago
  To make matters worse, 40 years ago most people didn't even have answering machines... most of the time the phone just rang and rang. Somehow we muddled through. Your point is spot on re: not being reachable 24/7 by the entire world.

dingo_bat 8y ago

You can just select "Block unknown callers": http://i.thinimg.com/img/75sy.jpg http://i.thinimg.com/img/75sy.jpg

huxflux 8y ago

I use a Chinese Android phone called OPPO R17 Pro, and I have exactly this feature built into the stock-rom (ColorOS) and a bunch of other really cool once, such as block foreign numbers, numbers not in my contact list, numbers not on my VIP-list, service numbers etc.

proxygeek 8y ago

But you can! Mostly in Android though. I can confirm MIUI - the stock rom on Xiaomi phones - have this exact feature built in. You can block all hidden numbers, all numbers not in your address book, specific numbers, etc. Or one can use Tasker - an Android automation app to achieve the same functionality and more in any Android phone. I suppose these days, you can use Iphone's scripting functionality as well for the same, can't you? Privacy concerns regarding MIUI /Android can be handled by installing a firewall like Netguard.

narag 8y ago
I can confirm that. No need for me to block all except whitelisted numbers. Blocking the dozen or so worst offenders was more than enough. Also the feature of recording conversations is very nice.
fdsak 8y ago
Yes this is excellent feature and working very well
marcosdumay 8y ago
There is a "Blacklist Block" app on F-Droid that (despite the name) will do that on any Android phone.

wittedhaddock 8y ago

My name is James, I work for Community Phone, a nationwide cell phone company. Show of hands: if we opened up this feature for you to control this filter for yourself or your loved ones, holding all else constant (price and coverage), would that be sufficient to cause a switch to try out an alternate provider?

meetuu 8y ago
hi James, This filter is a filter i would love to have for my phone, there is a wish list that could accompany the desire to filter calls, a ^large^ list perhaps, but i think it would be summed up as another user has stated, I want my phone to serve me, not the other way around. I also believe the smart phone thing has been abused for far too long, to the point I will not operate a smart phone for reasons of security, privacy and the interruption of tasks with alerts popups updates, and feature bloating. baked in apps that depart radicly from the stated function of the app, unnessecary permisions and connectivity. These reasons and more are why i refuse to use anything other than a dinosaur flipphone, and e-mail. thanks for the ear James.
- wittedhaddock 8y ago
  Hi meetuu, thanks very much for your thoughtful response. I totally can relate to your desire for that feature and I hope you do not feel ashamed for it. Your phone is a personal device, and it ought to exist to serve your personal preferences so that you may live the best possible life with the thing (toleration or enjoyment)! I think it can be confusing now, that they have become so impersonally social, that we can be made to feel strange for wanting them to behave in different ways. And I appreciate your desire for simplicity and wanting to get to the essence of your communications. At what point did you finally decide to leave your smartphone behind and how severe of a lifestyle change have you had to make in order to operate and function as you have come to expect of yourself? - We currently offer unlimited talking and texting for $15/month + state taxes and FCC fees, or ~$18.
  - WrtCdEvrydy 8y ago
    Interesting, got any family plans?

davidjnelson 8y ago

Are you on the do not call list? https://www.donotcall.gov https://www.donotcall.gov

dredmorbius 8y ago
That's minimally effective.
ddebernardy 8y ago
Bot operators apparently ignore that. https://art19.com/shows/today-explained/episodes/deb6329e-ad97-419f-b1a8-36c9abb312d7 https://art19.com/shows/today-explained/episodes/deb6329e-ad...
tones411 8y ago
Yes

randomacct3847 8y ago

Data only SIM + google voice?

itake 8y ago
I still get spam calls on Google Voice

baroffoos 8y ago

This doesn't sound like an ideal solution to me. Most of the legitimate calls I get are from numbers I have never seen before like delivery people asking where they should leave a package and such. I added my self to the Australian do not call list and have received virtually no spam calls in years.

keyle 8y ago
I am too on the "do not call list", and I have received numerous, almost fortnightly scam calls from 03 numbers. No point reporting them, they're just known as scam redirects from other countries. I'd love an iOS feature to prevent or snooze all unknown callers.

YeahSureWhyNot 8y ago

I wish there was no unlimited calling and texting. 1 cent per minute/text is ideal. cheap enough for everyone to afford and expensive enough to make massive scale spam calling business unprofitable. same for emails. make emails cost 1 cent per email that gets donated to whatever good cause and watch spam drop by 90%

djohnston 8y ago
i feel like it would be effective but i worry about requiring payment information for sending emails. it seems like a privacy nightmare
- dest 8y ago
  Also, this gives a way to entities who control the payments control who can send emails. Might be a concern in authoritarian regimes. Weren't there a project with proof of work?
  - djohnston 8y ago
    blockchain-based emails would definitely be a zesty solution

stevenicr 8y ago

Assuming op is using an iPhone? I was looking into this for a friend and found something a couple of tutorials for making it happen with iphone, but they all said you had to use the interface from a computer (desktop/laptop) - that the call filtering and time block feature was not accessible via the phone's interface. (this was about a year ago?) - you could make your phone go silent, but let a selected set of contact be able to ring, or perhaps give another set of contacts the option to turn off your silent mode if they coded twice within 5 minutes or something? I think there is built in methods for this with do not disturb and assorted options with that feature on newish android without third party apps right? (I currently frequently use a "timed silent profile" app that I paid the premium for years ago, but I think I ran into these settings on base android in the past year.

Afforess 8y ago

I block all US calls now, using Hiya (I block +1 ) and warn new contacts to either text me, or use signal, whatsapp, discord, etc. Originally, it was just enough to block my own area code (+1 616 ), since I had moved and didn't have any contacts that would have been from the area. But in the last few months, robocalls kept increasing, and I'm at about 100 robocalls a week. I seem to have robocalls worse than most, most of my friends are still sufficing with spam detection, but it's not enough. It's a crying shame the FCC has allowed the telephone to become a tragedy of the commons, but none of the carriers have any interest in blocking robocallers, it's a secondary source of income. I have a smartphone that literally can not operate as a phone and take calls. It's dystopian.

jotux 8y ago

I use this android app (paid $1 for the ad-free version): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vladlee.callblocker https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vladlee.ca... It specifically has a setting to force all non-contact list calls to voicemail. I had to do this when I started getting 8-10 spam calls a day.

twodayslate 8y ago

I recently installed RoboKiller on my phone and the number of spam calls on my phone has dropped to zero

sliken 8y ago

Buy an android phone. Go to settings -> sound -> do not disturb -> exceptions/calls. Click on allow calls and select "from contacts only".

deleted 8y ago

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trixie_ 8y ago

I don't answer calls from unknown numbers as well, but still having my phone ring only to ignore it multiple times per day is annoying. Apple should really make this a first class feature for iPhone users at least.

DonHopkins 8y ago

I'm in the Netherlands and I hardly ever get any spam calls on my T-Mobile phone. Is there some reason like Dutch regulations, or are spam calls pandemic in the US because of American deregulation, or am I just unpopular with the spammers?

TheRealPomax 8y ago
I moved from NL to Canada. There. are. so. many. spam. calls. here. The idea of telcos by law being required to actively block reported spam numbers is literally foreign here.
croisillon 8y ago
Living in Austria I've never heard of phone spam either but my parents in France are plagued by it, I guess that's a regulation thing.
dx034 8y ago
UK also has them, Germany doesn't. I don't think it's the language barrier (UK calls are targeted for UK customers), so there's likely a difference in regulation or treatment by providers.
- detaro 8y ago
  The fake "Microsoft Support" calls happen in Germany too, but appears to be mostly on land-line numbers.
  - dx034 8y ago
    But they're more targeted and low volume. Not robot calls that are easy to identify as fake after a second.

mgerdts 8y ago

I've been pretty happy with blacklist blocker. https://github.com/kaliturin/BlackList https://github.com/kaliturin/BlackList I had to work some magic (which I have since forgotten) to convince my S9+ to ignore this background process, else it would stop working after a few hours. The key thing that I wish it had was a quick way to allow unknown calls for a specified time. This would have been helpful when given the option of staying on hold for an extended period of time or receiving a callback - or when you get that "my connection is crap, let me call you back on another line."

timbit42 8y ago
Have you looked at the Should I Answer? app?

egypturnash 8y ago

Default ring: three seconds of silence, no vibration. People you actually want to talk to: custom ring/vibration. As a bonus you can assign different rings to people so you know “oh hey that’s Mom” or whatever.

deathanatos 8y ago

Or why isn't the law enforced? Why is the FCC and do-not-call.gov asleep on the job? Why are scammers even allowed to spoof caller IDs from local area-code numbers that don't even exist? (Thankfully, this makes them blissfully easy to spot. But I fear someday the fraudsters will get up to speed on that heuristic.) Don't get me wrong, I'm all for a technical measure like the one you suggest — it appears to be sorely needed. But I'm dismayed at how little the government and the carriers care. And for God's sake can we choose a more convincing scam than "the factory warranty on your vehicle is about to expire"? My car is over 20 years old. The warranty is gone.

jonathanlb 8y ago
> Why is the FCC and do-not-call.gov asleep on the job? I can't speak to the FCC's leadership under Ajit Pai, but donotcall.gov was shuttered during the latest government shutdown.
- Evidlo 8y ago
  Here's a success story of the FCC busting someone last year: https://mashable.com/2018/05/13/fcc-fines-spam-robocalls-florida-man/#5Z2GbHJLqPqQ https://mashable.com/2018/05/13/fcc-fines-spam-robocalls-flo...
deleted 8y ago
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nik1aa5 8y ago

I use "Should I answer?" which serves this purpose very well: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.mistergroup.muzutozvednout https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.mistergrou... The main service the app offers is a community rating of phone numbers. Depending on the rating, calls can be muted automatically. You can also, however, tell the app to generally block all calls except those from contacts in your address book.

s17tnet 8y ago

Uh, I can do in my cheap old Moto G5 plus with almost-stock Android.

muraliSKDV 8y ago

It is better to make separate ringtone for your ringtone for both.

emayljames 8y ago

Xiaomi phones have a "Block Calls From Strangers" option in the security settings. Xiaomi phone's are awesome.

joshka 8y ago

I'm more inclined to say that the real solution to this is to make it expensive for the callers by having a service that answers the call every time and tries to keep the caller on the line wasting their time. There's obviously an asymmetric principal at play here. Imagine for a sec a situation where: 1. I receive a robocaller message. 2. I press a button on phone indicating spam 3. Software Agent takes over, presses the right DTMF to proceed (ML based analysis of what works and what doesn't) 4. Agent waits for human to come on, starts playing random conversational pieces that sound right (extension, the google thing that booked a hair dresser appointment takes this even further https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D-6mxb_Mu8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D-6mxb_Mu8). 5.

est31 8y ago
It's surprisingly easy to fool spam callers with a set of prerecorded messages: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0fj0vLJPE&list=PLduL71_GKzHHk4hLga0nOGWrXlhl-i_3g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB0fj0vLJPE&list=PLduL71_GKz...
askmike 8y ago
Are you sure this is a problem you want to (try to) solve technically? - You'll make it very hard for genuine people to contact you. - You don't solve the problem, you only make it more expensive. As long as the benefit of calling you is bigger than the cost they will jump through whatever hoop to call you. For some context: this isn't a problem everywhere in the world. In my country there are strict laws about unsolicited phone calls (especially to people who have indicated they wan't to be called[1]). I never get a spam called (automated or otherwise). [1]: https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/wetten-en-regelingen/productbeschrijvingen/bel-me-niet-register https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/wetten-en-regelingen/productbes...
- gwbas1c 8y ago
  Re-read the proposed solution. The recipient screens the call and pushes a button to redirect the spammer.
- joshka 8y ago

Haitischmock 8y ago

I'm using a Moto X Play with Android 7.1.1. In the "do not disturb"-mode you can select "only important interruptions" which only lets through phone calls or notifications from your contacts.

simonCGN 8y ago

Seems to be a US problem. I als never get unsolicited calls in my country.

avh02 8y ago
Had plenty of robocalls during my year in the UK - mainly the same message that tries to get you to speak first then goes on a spiel about being involved in a car accident that wasn't my fault (given I don't have a car that was pretty moot)
- 0db532a0 8y ago
  One of them got quite excited when I told her that I’d just wrecked my Lambo. Sadly I didn’t have a Lambo to wreck. They keep calling me, though. The callers, by their accent, seem to have moved to the vicinity of the Indian subcontinent since [1]. Bless their hearts, they still do check in on my once in a while. It just doesn’t make sense that they don’t organise and make a database of nuisance callees or callees with no vehicle. [1]https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/03/09/road_accident_nuisance_callers_fined_270000_for_being_absolute_bags/ https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/03/09/road_accident_nuisa...
yoz-y 8y ago
In France these calls are pretty common and come in waves.

crispytx 8y ago

Hey Tones411, I actually created an app that does this for Android called RoboStop. Check it out! Unfortunately Google will be removing the app from the Play Store on March 9th due to increased restrictions regarding access to user's data (call logs), but I plan on moving the app over to RoboStop.org in about a month from now.

Kiro 8y ago

I just want to block all calls, period.

vincengomes 8y ago
Try Flight Mode with Wifi On
- Kiro 8y ago
  I want to use 4G though and get texts.
- tones411 8y ago
  That just might do the trick

aws_ls 8y ago

I have felt it since long, that phone calls should be like emails. For example, the ring should include an (optional) recorded subject of the caller (of course, may be heard on demand, by the receiver of the call for privacy reasons). In fact anyone not in contact list, should be required to send a brief voice subject/purpose of calling, which may be limited to 10 seconds. Also we should be able to respond by pressing a 'Not interested' button. This will take the problem of spam away.

adim86 8y ago

Although at first glance this sounds like a no brainer and a little confusing why we are not given the power to have a whitelist system on our phones I think this feature is a terrible idea. This is the same as saying, why can we not bounce all emails that have not been stored in our email address book. This one feature has the ability to destroy modern communication as we know it. Hear me out. If you all have noticed, with every privacy feature released a significant amount of people migrate to it full-time. I currently cannot recognize my phone ring, because from the day I bought my last phone I switched off the ringing and never bothered to turn it back on, not because I hate ringtones, I just forgot and also there have been no dire consequences to do so. Someone on this thread also said he/she set her phone permanently on "do not disturb" and just deals with notifications when they want to. This is all well and good cause anyone who has tried to reach us has successfully done so and even if they did not reach us, we have evidence that they attempted to. Having a whitelist system is VERY different and has many unforeseen consequences. From as little as, your mother got a new phone and soon she cannot reach you, you got a beautiful girls number and want to ask her on a date but cannot reach her. To bigger issues like your teenage child is mad at you and deletes your contact from their phone. Job offers will be missed, you will become unreachable in emergencies etc. The short of this is, the best case of such a feature is that you don't need to install a third party app to block spam calls, the worst case of such a feature is people can literally die cause they cannot contact you or vice versa. If I was a phone manufacturer. I just won't even allow this. There are easier ways to solve the underlying problem without opening the door for worse outcomes

hardwaresofton 8y ago
I don't mean this maliciously but unless I've misread your comment this is a lot of text that boils down to "sometimes you'll be unreachable". Some of the reasons you list: - family members getting new phones - missed connections + job offers - teenage child being angry with you - emergencies Two responses: 1. The cellular phone has existed only for so long, and people found a way to exist before it. I'm not going to belabor the point since it's not very deep but this concept that you need to be reachable 99% of the time in 99% of the cases is wrong -- the cases where you actually absoutely need to be reached is often <1% of the time. 2. The problem is identity here -- it's not that you don't want certain numbers calling you, it's that you don't want certain numbers calling you. This could be solved by creating a system that links identities to numbers, though it's exceedingly optimistic notion that we'd get everyone to agree on the same system. In all the situations when you give someone your phone number or they give you theirs, you're agreeing to talk to each other. If you instead exchanged some sort of identity (let's say GPG key), the problem no longer is "how can I call a number they should be at", it's "how do I find how to contact this person with this identity". The latter question can be solved much more robustly. I've thought about something like this -- creating just a online store of just identities that you can freely create and discard, boiling down to GPG key. Having such a shared resource would mean that chat apps, telco providers, and various other usecases could just use GPG (in this example) to look up the right contact method... Attempting to create a widely used standard is basically suicide though so maybe this idea has no legs. In this imaginary scenario you have a whitelist that works the way you want -- people you want to contact you can, and you can have very limited overrides like a shared identity/utility key for hospitals/government/etc. [EDIT] - I also wanted to add -- again, I do think that this would have bad effects on "free and open communication", but I'm not sure it might actually be bad for society -- maybe free-and-open-communication by default for some mediums isn't good. I don't think closing down this loophole for phone numbers is going to squelch productive protests (one of the phenomenons I personally think we'd want to protect), but maybe I'm wrong.

nikanj 8y ago

Because your phone company is a much bigger customer than you are, and they make termination fees on every call you receive.

fxfan 8y ago

I sincerely hope bb open sources their bb10 os. It was absolutely the best thing ever for notification control. (outside of old blackberries)

jarfil 8y ago

You can on a Huawei: - Block unknown/hidden numbers - Block all strangers (non-contact numbers) - Block all incoming calls

fyfy18 8y ago

A few years ago my parents were getting a lot of spam calls on their landline. Basically all of them were automated calls, either a recorded message or you were connected to a person shortly after the call was connected. I bought an OBi100 [0], which is a small device designed to be a VOIP adapter, but you can setup rules on how calls (incoming or outgoing) are handled. I setup a rule that if the call was from a withheld or foreign number, it would play an automated message asking the user to press the number 1 to be connected. This alone stopped basically all the spam calls. I'm surprised how well it actually works, I assume the caller detects it as a voicemail message so just hang up. I imagine most carriers could implement something like this relatively easy. Sorry Google, no AI needed here. [0] https://www.callcentric.com/support/device/obihai/obi100 https://www.callcentric.com/support/device/obihai/obi100

deleted 8y ago
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nmstoker 8y ago
Cool idea, but you're talking about a landline though aren't you? The implication from the OP is that it's a question about mobiles. It's not 100% clear, but in my experience people rarely bother to have contact lists on landlines, which themselves are increasingly less popular.
- StavrosK 8y ago
  Sure, but the point is that with this greylisting approach you don't need them.
- tones411 8y ago
  iPhone or Android. We don’t have a landline.
StavrosK 8y ago
This is the kind of solution that only works because basically nobody is doing it. If a big provider deployed it, it would take five seconds for it to be defeated.

russelldavis 8y ago

Amen. The existing spam call blockers are all based on blacklists, and it's a losing battle against spammers who can simply keep spoofing new numbers. I'm working on an app (iphone & android) that solves this the way you suggest, via a whitelist of contacts, with an optional way for non-whitelisted, non-robocallers to still get through. If you're interested in early access, email me at russell.davis [at] gmail [dot] [com].

yoz-y 8y ago

It is not exactly the solution you look for but on iOS you can use call blocking apps which work in a similar fashion to the safari blocking extensions. They provide a list of blacklisted numbers to the phone app and they can either tag them (say, as a telemarketer) or block them outright. I currently use Callblock and it works fine. One advantage of this system is that the blocking provider does not need (and can't have) access to your phone call history at all. The disadvantage is that it is a blacklist only, you can't invert the rules. As a side note, although I would _love_ to just ignore all calls from numbers I do not know, at least in France most companies such as banks, taxman and so on will call you from a withheld number and they don't always leave a message.

IanCal 8y ago

This feels a bit tech-supporty. Are you sure you can't? There seem to apps for doing call blocking on both Android and iOS. I'd be absolutely shocked if none of them allow checking against your contacts.

mattmaroon 8y ago

There are plenty of Android apps that let you do that.

ssharp 8y ago

A few years ago, prior to the recent rush of non-stop robo calls that many people experience today, I was fraudulently put on some diabetes sales list (I don't even have it) and would get calls daily on it, often from the same number. At the time, AT&T, if you gave them a few dollars a month, would let you block 5 numbers. It was the most unbelievably stupid policy I had ever seen and almost caused me to churn, which I probably should have done.

moonbug 8y ago

Phones should be like Victorian children. Seen but not heard.

ubermonkey 8y ago

I'm using an app on my iPhone called RoboKiller, and HOLY CRAP has it cut my spam calls to virtually nil. It's worth looking into for sure.

tones411 8y ago
I tried that. But redirecting my phone number to a different service made me concerned.
- ubermonkey 8y ago
  How so? I mean, if you want to quit using it, you just delete the app.

jpeeler 8y ago

Android (not familiar with iPhone at all) has solved the problem of blocking unwanted calls, but has it intertwined with "do not disturb", which also affects notifications. I think we'd all enjoy having the feature separated out so that phone calls can be filtered as desired without assuming a silent/lesser mode needs enabling. On an unrelated note, I've many times wished the phone protocol was upgraded to send metadata of your choosing along with the caller ID. Not even asking for a standard, because it'd probably suck. Just provide the means to send some optional data along with the call (which could ultimately put the nail in the coffin of land lines). The primary use case I had in mind would be to authenticate identity (since caller ID can be spoofed), but I'm sure a bunch of new uses would be utilized.

crankylinuxuser 8y ago

My solution for Android is to do the following 1. Set system ringtone to "nothing" 2. Set ringtones for people I want to not miss 3. Suppress annoying notifications Takes care of most problems.

420codebro 8y ago

The STIR/SHAKEN framework once implemented will give you a very good indicator of the callers identity.

anticensor 8y ago

You can, but only bidirectionally (called fixed dialling restriction).

cs_advice 8y ago

At least in Spain you can ask to be in the Robinson list and then, no company can call you for advertisements or offers unless you're a client of them. AND, in Spain is against the data protection law to do marketing calls from mobile phones if you're not their client. So they can get into trouble if they do. You can always set you're phone to ignore calls, but this doesn't avoid the call to reach your phone. However, the robinson list does. "Is an opt-out list of people who do not wish to receive marketing transmissions" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson_list https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson_list

chrisBob 8y ago

I still get regular spam calls, but I can always look and identify them. My cell phone has a 315 area code, and the only other person I know with a similar number is on my contact list. Absolutely anything else from a 315 number is spam. If I get something from the same number twice then I add it to my "SPAM" contact which is blocked. The Hiya app also helps somewhat. I didn't realize how good a job carriers like T-Mobile do at filtering out the Spam calls until I switched to XFinity Mobile and went from 1-2 calls per week to 5 in the first day. Hiya brings the number back down inline with T-Mobile, and might be the same database T-Mobile uses on the backend.

exabrial 8y ago

And send every unknown to Jolly Roger phone company

james_niro 8y ago

One IPhone you can turn Do Not Disturb option and only allow calls from your contact list. All other calls will be muted. Also, I do not answers numbers which I do not recognize and send it to voicemail, If they don’t leave voicemail I will add that number to my block list.

jdeibele 8y ago
I tried this on my iPhone but the problem is, it seems to block all text notifications. I get way more texts from friends and family than I do phone calls. If it worked for texts the same way, that would be perfect. I'm probably going to look into the silent ring tone for unknown numbers because that will get me closest to what I want.

astrostl 8y ago

How many spam calls are folks averaging per day? I probably get one (1) every 3-6 months, and I answer calls from unknown numbers without hesitation. I've also been using the same mobile number for more than two decades.

citizens 8y ago
About two per day.

otterpro 8y ago

Does anyone know if we can get 900 number on our cell phone, which would charge the caller for each call? On landline, we were able to call a psychic on a 1-900 numbers (and 0900 in Europe) for a fee. If I charged $1.99 for each call, I wouldn't mind answering even those spam calls.

roland35 8y ago

From reading this thread (and from my own experience) it seems the best way to mitigate spam calls is to buy your phone in an area code away from your home! Spam always finds a way...

phyllostachys 8y ago
This mostly works. After military service, I never changed back my cell number and I never answer if it is from the old area code. Though, I did once and it was a volunteer fire station asking for donations.

giantzoc 8y ago

I have been using shouldianswer which has this feature. https://www.shouldianswer.com/ https://www.shouldianswer.com/ I was getting constant spam phone calls before I started using this app. The app was also clear about why it needed certain permissions.

tonyquart 8y ago

Well, I personally choose to just ignore them. Blocking each of them are a waste of time. By ignoring them, I think along with time, they will consider my phone number as an inactive number. Sometimes I also look up the numbers on Google or some sites like http://whycall.me http://whycall.me and just post some reports about those numbers if I find people have reported them as scams.

jenkstom 8y ago

So when you call 911 or emergency services the first or second thing you are asked for is your phone number so you can be called back if needed. Trust me... you are NOT going to remember to turn off blocking when things go pear shaped. Obviously it's your own choice, but it could become a life and death issue in rare circumstances.