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I guess you don't schedule a lot of medical appointments or work with contractors. I wish I could block all unknown numbers, but I'll miss the rescheduling cal

I guess you don't schedule a lot of medical appointments or work with contractors. I wish I could block all unknown numbers, but I'll miss the rescheduling call from the roofer who had to borrow his wife's cell because his fell out of his pocket, or I'll miss the "please confirm you're coming to your appointment tomorrow" and now I've lost a doctor's appointment I scheduled weeks in advance, etc.

TylerE 6y ago
It’s changing. Even the fairly small doctors office I use locally now texts instead of calling.
GoblinSlayer 6y ago
Just formalize communication procedure with them.
jjeaff 6y ago
The solution to this is to get a phone number from an area code that you don't live in. Almost all spam calls now spoof the number to give it the same area code as your phone. So I know any call coming from a local area code is probably legit. Most calls coming from the same area code as my number or from a random area code or even 800 number is usually spam.
- vinay427 6y ago
  Also, this probably goes without saying but if you choose this route, find an area code in which you likely don't know anyone. I have an area code from a state in which I previously lived so I still don't know whether it's a spam call or an old contact.
- jasode 6y ago
  >The solution to this is to get a phone number from an area code that you don't live in. Getting a new number is not a realistic "solution" for many people because they've had their old cellphone # for decades and it's already deeply entrenched with all their relatives, friends, doctors' emergency contact numbers, airlines notifications, bank fraud alerts vis SMS, etc, etc. E.g. Most of my friends & family have had the same wireless phone numbers for more than 20 years which they've deliberately kept even when changing carriers. People still want to keep their familiar number; they just want the spam robocalls to stop. Yes, buying a new area code # (which btw costs ~$40 admin charge with AT&T) ... and then expending a lot of effort to "propagate" the new number to all your contacts and website profiles is not impossible but it's a burden many don't want to tackle. Some celebrities manage spam by always having at least 2 different cell phones. So a high-profile Hollywood actor would have: (1) personal phone for spouse & kids & the agent that brings in the money. This number is a closely guarded secret and never shared with anyone or websites' account profiles. This phone's ringer can be set to "silence unknown callers not in the contact list". (2) separate "burner" phone for everybody else. The (2) business phone # is changed out monthly because it inevitably leaks out with all the people that have it. But (1) personal phone is only changed if it was leaked by a insider employee at AT&T or TMobile. But again, it's another unrealistic "solution" for most because regular people don't want to buy and carry around 2 separate phones. Yes, some phones can use dual SIMs but only the expensive models ... and it also requires paying extra for 2 numbers on the monthly bill. Hopefully, an eventual solution that combines: - more effective FCC crackdowns and penalties - SHAKEN/STIR anti-spoofing, - intelligent spam filters at the wireless carrier level, - better call management tools in iOS/Android ... would be a more sane approach than buying new phone numbers to escape the spam.
- Maxburn 6y ago
  This worked pretty well for me, probably because I use google voice for my primary number. My actual cell number is in another state far away and anything coming in with that number I just don't answer.
- Izkata 6y ago
  This year so far, I've had 27 spam calls, of which: * Only 7 were from my phone's area code * 2 were from where I live now * The other 18 were from all over the country So.. you're lucky if your spam is so consistent. It's far from a guarantee.
  - bananabreakfast 6y ago
    Ah, but that's the value of the strategy! Your roofer or doctor or whoever should have only a local area code. So out of those 27 spam calls, you only need to answer the 2 that came in from where you live now. That's a 90%+ reduction! Not a bad strategy.
    - vijayr02 6y ago
      Sorry, pedant at work... Presumably the 18 random area calls would have been ignored in any case. So the real reduction is 7/9, which is is a 77% reduction. Not bad, but not 90%+.
  - jjeaff 6y ago
    So you really only would have gotten 2 spam calls had you used my method to ignore. Unless you regularly get important calls from numbers you don't know in other locales, I don't. But they can leave a message if they do.
- sumtechguy 6y ago
  I accidently did this! I moved away from an area and everyone I know basically did the same thing. So pretty much if it is that area code almost every time it is some spam call. I have been playing the 'clueless old guy' on some of them. It is kind of fun if you are bored. Most of them are left unanswered. Last year a new type showed up, VC guys trying to buy my house (usually well below market rate).
thechao 6y ago
I do; I politely tell them the situation (I get a lot of spam calls) and they need to call me from a predetermined phone number or leave a voicemail.

TylerE 6y ago

It’s changing. Even the fairly small doctors office I use locally now texts instead of calling.

GoblinSlayer 6y ago

Just formalize communication procedure with them.

jjeaff 6y ago

The solution to this is to get a phone number from an area code that you don't live in. Almost all spam calls now spoof the number to give it the same area code as your phone. So I know any call coming from a local area code is probably legit. Most calls coming from the same area code as my number or from a random area code or even 800 number is usually spam.

vinay427 6y ago
Also, this probably goes without saying but if you choose this route, find an area code in which you likely don't know anyone. I have an area code from a state in which I previously lived so I still don't know whether it's a spam call or an old contact.
jasode 6y ago
>The solution to this is to get a phone number from an area code that you don't live in. Getting a new number is not a realistic "solution" for many people because they've had their old cellphone # for decades and it's already deeply entrenched with all their relatives, friends, doctors' emergency contact numbers, airlines notifications, bank fraud alerts vis SMS, etc, etc. E.g. Most of my friends & family have had the same wireless phone numbers for more than 20 years which they've deliberately kept even when changing carriers. People still want to keep their familiar number; they just want the spam robocalls to stop. Yes, buying a new area code # (which btw costs ~$40 admin charge with AT&T) ... and then expending a lot of effort to "propagate" the new number to all your contacts and website profiles is not impossible but it's a burden many don't want to tackle. Some celebrities manage spam by always having at least 2 different cell phones. So a high-profile Hollywood actor would have: (1) personal phone for spouse & kids & the agent that brings in the money. This number is a closely guarded secret and never shared with anyone or websites' account profiles. This phone's ringer can be set to "silence unknown callers not in the contact list". (2) separate "burner" phone for everybody else. The (2) business phone # is changed out monthly because it inevitably leaks out with all the people that have it. But (1) personal phone is only changed if it was leaked by a insider employee at AT&T or TMobile. But again, it's another unrealistic "solution" for most because regular people don't want to buy and carry around 2 separate phones. Yes, some phones can use dual SIMs but only the expensive models ... and it also requires paying extra for 2 numbers on the monthly bill. Hopefully, an eventual solution that combines: - more effective FCC crackdowns and penalties - SHAKEN/STIR anti-spoofing, - intelligent spam filters at the wireless carrier level, - better call management tools in iOS/Android ... would be a more sane approach than buying new phone numbers to escape the spam.
Maxburn 6y ago
This worked pretty well for me, probably because I use google voice for my primary number. My actual cell number is in another state far away and anything coming in with that number I just don't answer.
Izkata 6y ago
This year so far, I've had 27 spam calls, of which: * Only 7 were from my phone's area code * 2 were from where I live now * The other 18 were from all over the country So.. you're lucky if your spam is so consistent. It's far from a guarantee.
- bananabreakfast 6y ago
  Ah, but that's the value of the strategy! Your roofer or doctor or whoever should have only a local area code. So out of those 27 spam calls, you only need to answer the 2 that came in from where you live now. That's a 90%+ reduction! Not a bad strategy.
  - vijayr02 6y ago
    Sorry, pedant at work... Presumably the 18 random area calls would have been ignored in any case. So the real reduction is 7/9, which is is a 77% reduction. Not bad, but not 90%+.
- jjeaff 6y ago
  So you really only would have gotten 2 spam calls had you used my method to ignore. Unless you regularly get important calls from numbers you don't know in other locales, I don't. But they can leave a message if they do.
sumtechguy 6y ago
I accidently did this! I moved away from an area and everyone I know basically did the same thing. So pretty much if it is that area code almost every time it is some spam call. I have been playing the 'clueless old guy' on some of them. It is kind of fun if you are bored. Most of them are left unanswered. Last year a new type showed up, VC guys trying to buy my house (usually well below market rate).

thechao 6y ago

I do; I politely tell them the situation (I get a lot of spam calls) and they need to call me from a predetermined phone number or leave a voicemail.