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Apple’s call and sms spam filtering remains subpar to say the least. When I had a Pixel, I had the option to let the OS transcribe what the potential spammer wa

by avtar 4y ago

Apple’s call and sms spam filtering remains subpar to say the least. When I had a Pixel, I had the option to let the OS transcribe what the potential spammer was saying and end the call. It’s puzzling why Apple isn’t doing more here.

Daltzn 4y ago
Give the app bouncer a try. I been able stop almost all spam texts.
hospitalJail 4y ago
- stouset 4y ago
  > Other companies compete over best or newest features. Camera location/exterior shape forces their status-conscious demographic to buy new phones. Frankly this kind of comment has no place on Hacker News. There are many, many reasons to be critical of Apple. "Doesn't compete on features and only cares about what the device looks like superficially because their customers are sheep who only care about status" is not only a lazy take, but also doesn't even remotely describe the reality in which we live. > I don't see what is wrong with calling out a very rational decision to continue making high status products rather than deviate into high tech products. I genuinely can't fathom how one could conclude that Apple as a company isn't investing in technology. I mean, even at a superficial level, you're talking about a company that in-houses their own chip design and has dominated the mobile CPU market since doing so. They're very competitive in the desktop space in compute power with their very first chip line in this product category, and are absolutely crushing the existing players on performance per watt. The've leveraged this advantage into being effectively the only meaningful player in the wearables space other than Garmin. Satellite integration into the phone is a direct shot across the bow of devices like the Garmin inReach, and the greater battery life (plus satellite integration) in the Apple Watch Max is going to start eating away at a chunk of Garmin's marketshare for GPS-tracking watches. Though Garmin still wins here for serious backcountry enthusiasts who spend multiple days in a row out of reach, Apple is leaving them a smaller and smaller margin in which to operate. I stand by my original comment that this characterization of Apple is not reflective about of our reality. For Apple's many faults, they are extremely competitive from a technological perspective. Precisely because they are so unbelievably good at identifying how and when to apply a technological advance to achieve the largest possible impact for their customers.
MR4D 4y ago
Select "Silence unknown callers" and you're done. Last month I had a flurry of spam texts and calls. I moved the slider to the "enable" side a few weeks ago and have had zero issues since.
- frizkie 4y ago
  This is a great feature but it's a huge double-edged sword. I need to remember to turn it off when I'm expecting a call from an unpredictable number, and then I need to remember to turn it back on again after I receive the call. It would be great if I could turn it off for some number of hours or days.
  - zonkedwheel 4y ago
    I've had the same issue if I am expecting a call but not sure what number it will ne. But iIf you already know the number, adding that to contacts will solve the problem ?
    - alistairSH 4y ago
      Numbers I didn’t know and had to turn off “silence unknown callers”… recruiters/hiring managers, freight deliveries, doctors, pharmacy. The feature mostly works, but needing to remember to disable it when a call is expected is annoying.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - nytesky 4y ago
    I use a Google Voice number for all of my delivery, business, etc phone calls. It has built in verbal call screening and the smarter spam filtering, and thus my personal iPhone # can be exclusive for my white listed personal calls.
    - lelandfe 4y ago
      Sadly, soo many services refuse to accept Voice numbers. Most recent example: I tried to submit positive feedback to an airline and their form rejects any Google Voice numbers, mandating a "real" phone number instead.
pwpw 4y ago
It's the biggest thing I've missed after switching from a Pixel to an iPhone this week. In my first day of iPhone ownership, I received more spam/text calls than in an entire year with a Pixel.
- dchuk 4y ago
  Why would you switch the same week they were going to announce all new stuff?
  - pwpw 4y ago
    There's a 2 week return period, and I wanted to be sure I'd be fine switching to iOS before buying an expensive new device. Part of the reason I'm switching is the new Pro models are a lot closer to Android phones with features like always on display. Based on the rumors, I was pretty sure what to expect today, so I have just been onboarding myself with iOS yesterday and today and can return the phone by the time I should have the new one in hand.
    - justusthane 4y ago
      Odd strategy. Why wouldn't you just return the 14 Pro if you didn't like it?
      - pwpw 4y ago
        Because I'm immediately leaving town. I can grab it, quickly set it up, and know what to expect.
        fomine3 4y ago
        Don't leaving town make returning difficult?
        ayewo 4y ago
        I believe what the gp is really saying is that by the time they get to pick up the iPhone 14 Pro (whether in store or when their pre-order gets delivered), they'll be too close to the date of their departure. In other words, they would not have had any meaningful time getting accustomed to iOS from Android, which is why they used the strategy of getting an iPhone 13 spend 2 weeks or more with it, in the hopes that if they like the experience, they'd return it for the newer iPhone 14 Pro.
vbezhenar 4y ago
I'm using yandex app and it detects spam calls. So iOS does have some hooks for that. You just need to find app for your location.
reaperducer 4y ago
Apple’s call and sms spam filtering remains subpar to say the least. It's my understanding that this is largely because of the carriers. Phone and text spam filtering came to the iPhone in China long before it hit other countries. I only know a couple of people in China, and neither are in tech, but they say it's because spam was absolutely rampant so the government leaned on the carriers to fix it, and the iPhone spam filtering appeared a short time later. There's no shortage of Chinese users on HN, so maybe one of them can explain further, or refute what I've been told.
- anormaluser 4y ago
  Is it true? I’m also curious about it.
protomyth 4y ago
T-Mobile does this and also labels a lot of numbers "Scam Likely". Its been really helpful. I too wish Apple would do more, but the carrier can do a bit.
the_mar 4y ago
Boy do i have a lifehack for you. Buy a phone number with a random area code, like ohio or something, all the spam calls come from surrounding area codes.
- mwint 4y ago
  But then my calls will come from the random area code too. It’d be neat if you could do a dual phone number, where your CID on outbound calls shows as your local area code, but you give out the foreign area code for inbound calls. But then you mess up callbacks.
  - axxl 4y ago
    You misunderstand slightly. All the calls from the area code matching your phone number are more likely to be spam (spammers matching you to appear legit). So unless you call people in that particular area, you won't be matching their area code, so you won't look like a spammer. And unless you happen to know a lot of people in that area, you won't get calls from that area that appear to be spam.
    - sangnoir 4y ago
      > So unless you call people in that particular area, you won't be matching their area code, so you won't look like a spammer You're misunderstanding them too, I suspect. One could equally assume that a call coming from an area code they've never been to, 5 states away is spam - so this trick works if you do not make a lot of calls.
      - xsmasher 4y ago
        > One could equally assume that a call coming from an area code they've never been to, 5 states away is spam Not equally. I have an area code from the opposite coast. If I get a call from that area code, it is 100% spam. Spammers just love outing themselves by spoofing the same area code of the person they are calling. A call from any other area code is only 30% chance of being spam.
thefourthchime 4y ago
robokiller does a decent job on ios
blibble 4y ago
I think they have a patent on it
ljm 4y ago
I’d like it if you could just have an ephemeral call list. I don’t want to add an estate agent or recruiter to my main contact list, but I’d like to see their name come up if they call back or I get another call from them. Just make it a contact with like a 7 day TTL or something. If it’s longer term, save it proper. I mention this because the old Caller ID setup doesn’t really work any more.
willyt 4y ago
That must be a US thing? I never get spam calls on my iPhone and only very rarely a spam text; maybe a couple of times a year I get the 'you've got a parcel with a fee to pay' scam.
- sensitivefrost 4y ago
  It's definitely not a US thing.
  - hiq 4y ago
    Robocalls seem to be way less of a problem in Europe than in the US, not sure how many other countries suffer from the same.
dkonofalski 4y ago
I set up a VOIP phone number for this and give that one to anyone that I don't meet personally. Anyone that needs to be able to call me has my real phone number.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
alwillis 4y ago
I just use the free version of Truecaller: https://apps.apple.com/app/id448142450 https://apps.apple.com/app/id448142450
- swyx 4y ago
  appreciated this rec. trying it out, so far looks legit. always worried that these things are free (so what data of mine are they selling) but the permissions seem locked down
  - i67vw3 4y ago
    Truecaller is not bad in some areas like EU, US etc as there are strong privacy laws. They have slightly different versions based on the country and jurisdiction. But where there are no strong privacy laws like india, truecaller is straight up spyware https://restofworld.org/2022/how-truecaller-built-a-billion-dollar-id-data-empire-in-india/ https://restofworld.org/2022/how-truecaller-built-a-billion-...
    - beagle3 4y ago
      At the very least, it always tells Truecaller who is calling you (your phone doesn't have a copy of the database - it is being looked up). And at least as of a few years ago, Truecaller would upload a copy of your phonebook to their servers. That's how they bootstrapped their database - from user's addressbooks. I only ever used it on a burner with an empty phone book, and occasionally get Truecaller pearls like "Annoying John - do not answer" as the caller's name.
alwillis 4y ago
Also using Focus mode to whitelist who can call me when has reduced my spam calls.
dzhiurgis 4y ago
It's weird there's still genuine uses for phone calls. Tends to be only sort of "official" ones from gov agencies or utilities providers. Both cases should be scheduled via text/email first, otherwise it's rude.

by avtar 4y ago

Daltzn 4y ago

Give the app bouncer a try. I been able stop almost all spam texts.

hospitalJail 4y ago

stouset 4y ago
> Other companies compete over best or newest features. Camera location/exterior shape forces their status-conscious demographic to buy new phones. Frankly this kind of comment has no place on Hacker News. There are many, many reasons to be critical of Apple. "Doesn't compete on features and only cares about what the device looks like superficially because their customers are sheep who only care about status" is not only a lazy take, but also doesn't even remotely describe the reality in which we live. > I don't see what is wrong with calling out a very rational decision to continue making high status products rather than deviate into high tech products. I genuinely can't fathom how one could conclude that Apple as a company isn't investing in technology. I mean, even at a superficial level, you're talking about a company that in-houses their own chip design and has dominated the mobile CPU market since doing so. They're very competitive in the desktop space in compute power with their very first chip line in this product category, and are absolutely crushing the existing players on performance per watt. The've leveraged this advantage into being effectively the only meaningful player in the wearables space other than Garmin. Satellite integration into the phone is a direct shot across the bow of devices like the Garmin inReach, and the greater battery life (plus satellite integration) in the Apple Watch Max is going to start eating away at a chunk of Garmin's marketshare for GPS-tracking watches. Though Garmin still wins here for serious backcountry enthusiasts who spend multiple days in a row out of reach, Apple is leaving them a smaller and smaller margin in which to operate. I stand by my original comment that this characterization of Apple is not reflective about of our reality. For Apple's many faults, they are extremely competitive from a technological perspective. Precisely because they are so unbelievably good at identifying how and when to apply a technological advance to achieve the largest possible impact for their customers.

MR4D 4y ago

Select "Silence unknown callers" and you're done. Last month I had a flurry of spam texts and calls. I moved the slider to the "enable" side a few weeks ago and have had zero issues since.

frizkie 4y ago
This is a great feature but it's a huge double-edged sword. I need to remember to turn it off when I'm expecting a call from an unpredictable number, and then I need to remember to turn it back on again after I receive the call. It would be great if I could turn it off for some number of hours or days.
- zonkedwheel 4y ago
  I've had the same issue if I am expecting a call but not sure what number it will ne. But iIf you already know the number, adding that to contacts will solve the problem ?
  - alistairSH 4y ago
    Numbers I didn’t know and had to turn off “silence unknown callers”… recruiters/hiring managers, freight deliveries, doctors, pharmacy. The feature mostly works, but needing to remember to disable it when a call is expected is annoying.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- nytesky 4y ago
  I use a Google Voice number for all of my delivery, business, etc phone calls. It has built in verbal call screening and the smarter spam filtering, and thus my personal iPhone # can be exclusive for my white listed personal calls.
  - lelandfe 4y ago
    Sadly, soo many services refuse to accept Voice numbers. Most recent example: I tried to submit positive feedback to an airline and their form rejects any Google Voice numbers, mandating a "real" phone number instead.

pwpw 4y ago

It's the biggest thing I've missed after switching from a Pixel to an iPhone this week. In my first day of iPhone ownership, I received more spam/text calls than in an entire year with a Pixel.

dchuk 4y ago
Why would you switch the same week they were going to announce all new stuff?
- pwpw 4y ago
  There's a 2 week return period, and I wanted to be sure I'd be fine switching to iOS before buying an expensive new device. Part of the reason I'm switching is the new Pro models are a lot closer to Android phones with features like always on display. Based on the rumors, I was pretty sure what to expect today, so I have just been onboarding myself with iOS yesterday and today and can return the phone by the time I should have the new one in hand.
  - justusthane 4y ago
    Odd strategy. Why wouldn't you just return the 14 Pro if you didn't like it?
    - pwpw 4y ago
      Because I'm immediately leaving town. I can grab it, quickly set it up, and know what to expect.
      - fomine3 4y ago
        Don't leaving town make returning difficult?
        ayewo 4y ago
        I believe what the gp is really saying is that by the time they get to pick up the iPhone 14 Pro (whether in store or when their pre-order gets delivered), they'll be too close to the date of their departure. In other words, they would not have had any meaningful time getting accustomed to iOS from Android, which is why they used the strategy of getting an iPhone 13 spend 2 weeks or more with it, in the hopes that if they like the experience, they'd return it for the newer iPhone 14 Pro.

vbezhenar 4y ago

I'm using yandex app and it detects spam calls. So iOS does have some hooks for that. You just need to find app for your location.

reaperducer 4y ago

Apple’s call and sms spam filtering remains subpar to say the least. It's my understanding that this is largely because of the carriers. Phone and text spam filtering came to the iPhone in China long before it hit other countries. I only know a couple of people in China, and neither are in tech, but they say it's because spam was absolutely rampant so the government leaned on the carriers to fix it, and the iPhone spam filtering appeared a short time later. There's no shortage of Chinese users on HN, so maybe one of them can explain further, or refute what I've been told.

anormaluser 4y ago
Is it true? I’m also curious about it.

protomyth 4y ago

T-Mobile does this and also labels a lot of numbers "Scam Likely". Its been really helpful. I too wish Apple would do more, but the carrier can do a bit.

the_mar 4y ago

Boy do i have a lifehack for you. Buy a phone number with a random area code, like ohio or something, all the spam calls come from surrounding area codes.

mwint 4y ago
But then my calls will come from the random area code too. It’d be neat if you could do a dual phone number, where your CID on outbound calls shows as your local area code, but you give out the foreign area code for inbound calls. But then you mess up callbacks.
- axxl 4y ago
  You misunderstand slightly. All the calls from the area code matching your phone number are more likely to be spam (spammers matching you to appear legit). So unless you call people in that particular area, you won't be matching their area code, so you won't look like a spammer. And unless you happen to know a lot of people in that area, you won't get calls from that area that appear to be spam.
  - sangnoir 4y ago
    > So unless you call people in that particular area, you won't be matching their area code, so you won't look like a spammer You're misunderstanding them too, I suspect. One could equally assume that a call coming from an area code they've never been to, 5 states away is spam - so this trick works if you do not make a lot of calls.
    - xsmasher 4y ago
      > One could equally assume that a call coming from an area code they've never been to, 5 states away is spam Not equally. I have an area code from the opposite coast. If I get a call from that area code, it is 100% spam. Spammers just love outing themselves by spoofing the same area code of the person they are calling. A call from any other area code is only 30% chance of being spam.

thefourthchime 4y ago

robokiller does a decent job on ios

blibble 4y ago

I think they have a patent on it

ljm 4y ago

I’d like it if you could just have an ephemeral call list. I don’t want to add an estate agent or recruiter to my main contact list, but I’d like to see their name come up if they call back or I get another call from them. Just make it a contact with like a 7 day TTL or something. If it’s longer term, save it proper. I mention this because the old Caller ID setup doesn’t really work any more.

willyt 4y ago

That must be a US thing? I never get spam calls on my iPhone and only very rarely a spam text; maybe a couple of times a year I get the 'you've got a parcel with a fee to pay' scam.

sensitivefrost 4y ago
It's definitely not a US thing.
- hiq 4y ago
  Robocalls seem to be way less of a problem in Europe than in the US, not sure how many other countries suffer from the same.

dkonofalski 4y ago

I set up a VOIP phone number for this and give that one to anyone that I don't meet personally. Anyone that needs to be able to call me has my real phone number.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

alwillis 4y ago

I just use the free version of Truecaller: https://apps.apple.com/app/id448142450 https://apps.apple.com/app/id448142450

swyx 4y ago
appreciated this rec. trying it out, so far looks legit. always worried that these things are free (so what data of mine are they selling) but the permissions seem locked down
- i67vw3 4y ago
  Truecaller is not bad in some areas like EU, US etc as there are strong privacy laws. They have slightly different versions based on the country and jurisdiction. But where there are no strong privacy laws like india, truecaller is straight up spyware https://restofworld.org/2022/how-truecaller-built-a-billion-dollar-id-data-empire-in-india/ https://restofworld.org/2022/how-truecaller-built-a-billion-...
  - beagle3 4y ago
    At the very least, it always tells Truecaller who is calling you (your phone doesn't have a copy of the database - it is being looked up). And at least as of a few years ago, Truecaller would upload a copy of your phonebook to their servers. That's how they bootstrapped their database - from user's addressbooks. I only ever used it on a burner with an empty phone book, and occasionally get Truecaller pearls like "Annoying John - do not answer" as the caller's name.

alwillis 4y ago

Also using Focus mode to whitelist who can call me when has reduced my spam calls.

dzhiurgis 4y ago

It's weird there's still genuine uses for phone calls. Tends to be only sort of "official" ones from gov agencies or utilities providers. Both cases should be scheduled via text/email first, otherwise it's rude.