4 ms·

I get what you're saying, but I get irate at people who don't answer calls from unknown numbers. Spam or soliciting? Hang up and block caller. It doesn't take m

I get what you're saying, but I get irate at people who don't answer calls from unknown numbers. Spam or soliciting? Hang up and block caller. It doesn't take more than 5 seconds. I've been in situations when I don't have access to my cell phone and I need help from friends, so I call from a stranger's cellphone. I never get an answer. I have to text them from the stranger's phone (and see their text messages), wait for them to see the message, then accept the call. It's incredibly frustrating.

ganstyles 7y ago
One problem here is that by answering at all, you're confirming your phone number as one with a real live person on the end. They track this and will keep calling. Anecdotally I noticed after I stopped picking up, the number of calls I was getting decreased.
- Jarwain 7y ago
  I like to pick up and immediately hit mute. If they say something, maybe I reply, but typically the spam callers just hang up after a few seconds. I read somewhere that picking up but not saying anything can take you off the rotation or something
  - sk5t 7y ago
    I've done the same for a span of a couple months--immediate mute, no interaction. It didn't seem to make a difference one way or other other though with regard to call frequency.
  - Moru 7y ago
    It's just a machine calling. If you pick up and make a sound, you will be immediatelly connected to a person. If no person is available it will just drop the call and call again later. Only way is to not answer.
noizejoy 7y ago
I maintain voicemail for that purpose and would call you right back. And call blocking doesn’t work well, since caller id is easily spoofed.
- erikbye 7y ago
  I block all calls from non-contact numbers, and I have never experienced a spoofing of a contact number, so IME call blocking works very well.
jlgaddis 7y ago
> ... I get irate at people who don't answer calls from unknown numbers. Spam or soliciting? Hang up and block caller. It doesn't take more than 5 seconds. I'd like for you to spend a day at my grandmother's house. She's had the same landline number for probably 50 years and gets - no kidding -- probably 20 of these calls a day. It may not "take more than 5 seconds" but it gets real f'in' annoying real f'in' quick. She now only answers calls from numbers she recognizes. She will pick up if you yell at her on the answering machine, though! Also, as of iOS 13 (or whenever it was they introduced the feature), I am -- thankfully -- no longer even aware of calls or text messages from numbers that aren't in my contacts until I pick up my phone and look. My phone doesn't beep, ring, or ding if I receive a call or text from an "unknown number" -- and I could not be happier about that!
perl4ever 7y ago
Doesn't Google have an automatic call screening thing? Maybe it was related to Voice and/or a pilot program they cancelled. But I'd expect people around here to know about it.

ganstyles 7y ago

One problem here is that by answering at all, you're confirming your phone number as one with a real live person on the end. They track this and will keep calling. Anecdotally I noticed after I stopped picking up, the number of calls I was getting decreased.

Jarwain 7y ago
I like to pick up and immediately hit mute. If they say something, maybe I reply, but typically the spam callers just hang up after a few seconds. I read somewhere that picking up but not saying anything can take you off the rotation or something
- sk5t 7y ago
  I've done the same for a span of a couple months--immediate mute, no interaction. It didn't seem to make a difference one way or other other though with regard to call frequency.
- Moru 7y ago
  It's just a machine calling. If you pick up and make a sound, you will be immediatelly connected to a person. If no person is available it will just drop the call and call again later. Only way is to not answer.

noizejoy 7y ago

I maintain voicemail for that purpose and would call you right back. And call blocking doesn’t work well, since caller id is easily spoofed.

erikbye 7y ago
I block all calls from non-contact numbers, and I have never experienced a spoofing of a contact number, so IME call blocking works very well.

jlgaddis 7y ago

> ... I get irate at people who don't answer calls from unknown numbers. Spam or soliciting? Hang up and block caller. It doesn't take more than 5 seconds. I'd like for you to spend a day at my grandmother's house. She's had the same landline number for probably 50 years and gets - no kidding -- probably 20 of these calls a day. It may not "take more than 5 seconds" but it gets real f'in' annoying real f'in' quick. She now only answers calls from numbers she recognizes. She will pick up if you yell at her on the answering machine, though! Also, as of iOS 13 (or whenever it was they introduced the feature), I am -- thankfully -- no longer even aware of calls or text messages from numbers that aren't in my contacts until I pick up my phone and look. My phone doesn't beep, ring, or ding if I receive a call or text from an "unknown number" -- and I could not be happier about that!

perl4ever 7y ago

Doesn't Google have an automatic call screening thing? Maybe it was related to Voice and/or a pilot program they cancelled. But I'd expect people around here to know about it.