5 ms·

How does one go about tracking a robocall back to the OCN? I have time and a strong dislike of scammers.

by kej 4y ago

cgb223 4y ago
Interested in this as well. Been getting spam texts out the wazoo and have felt powerless to do anything about it beyond delete them
- lolinder 4y ago
  One thing I do to exert some control is use WHOIS to find out who their domain name and web hosting providers are and forward them the phishing texts. I've gotten multiple domains revoked through this process (though I've also been ghosted plenty). Doesn't help if there are no domains linked, and I'd still love to attack their SMS instead because I suspect that's harder to replace.
  - BenjiWiebe 4y ago
    In a similar vein I've had success surprisingly often when reporting spam email domains to the hosting company and Google safe browsing, which gives a big red warning page when someone tries to access the site (in Firefox and Chrome at least).
    - Dylan16807 4y ago
      Wait, are you reporting those sites to Google safe browsing because of malware or phishing content? If so, great. But if they're just a source of spam I don't think you're supposed to be doing that.
  - Scoundreller 4y ago
    I’ve also had some success getting the SSL cert revoked. Is there any way to send the SSL-encrypted webpage to prove to the SSL provider that the website came from them though? I guess in my case they could open the link, but that may not always work.
    - deleted 4y ago
      [deleted]
- mikeytown2 4y ago
  I call the spam texts (hi Bob, it's Alice, we met last night type) and it's usually a Google voice number that want you to sign up for their whats app channel. I now text back them that we met last night and they can join my crypto investing WhatsApp group and I've gotten a lot less sms spam as a result. Must be on their black list now
  - jareklupinski 4y ago
    She was trying to scam him using a lonely hearts pull He was trying to scam her with the promises of riches This summer, sparks fly in the romantic comedy of 2023: "Phish into my Heart"
    - dylan604 4y ago
      okay, so this made me smile. just finished exporting a montage scene that could fit right into that script. timing is priceless
    - ethbr0 4y ago
      This makes me feel old. Cinema when I grew up was calling into advice radio shows because someone couldn't sleep on their architect-affordable houseboat in Seattle. None of that exists anymore.
    - Andrex 4y ago
      Or the A24 horror version, "Heartphish."
  - jaxn 4y ago
    I reply to the ones wanting to buy houses that I don’t own. I drag them along for days. I figure I can at least waste their time
troydavis 4y ago
(Update: Commenter "homero" mentioned that Twilio's CNAM API response includes the carrier: https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Getting-Started-with-the-Twilio-Lookup-API#h_01ECXDQZ8TH86K5S51PDQF4KFC https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Ge... . Twilio's docs make it sound like this API does incorporate mobile number portability, which is what you need, but I haven't personally verified. Can anyone from Twitter confirm that the LNP info is at least near-realtime?) You'll need either access to an SS7 routing system or, more likely, an HTTP API that exposes 10-digit number routing info. Google for '10 digit OCN lookup' or 'realtime CNAM lookup API' and you'll be on the right track. You need one that handles mobile number portability. Most APIs charge a small per-query fee because it's not static data. Any one number can be ported at any time and the only way to know is to see where (in SS7) it's actually routed. And be aware that there's a fair number of gotchas. I have a lot of experience in the telco world[1]. The two big gotchas are: 1. Inbound and outbound carriers can be and often are different, and outbound caller ID can be spoofed. The source number on an SMS from a 10-digit number (a "10DLC" SMS) is much, much less likely to be spoofed than the caller ID on a robocall. You can fairly reliably report source numbers on SMSes. To keep it simple, consider starting by reporting SMSes. For robocalls, expect that many robocall CIDs are spoofed, and the most interesting robocalls are the ones that ask the recipient to contact them at the same number. Or, where both the CID and the callback/contact number are DIDs from the same carrier. 2. Number portability means that all the old static databases (LERG and NPA-NXX-Y Number Pooling[2] databases) aren't enough. One phone number might be routed to one carrier and the sequentially-next number might be routed to a completely different carrier, and either of them might change the next day. This is just the start - there are other gotchas and a pretty significant learning curve. Stay polite and professional, assume good intentions, and assume you're wrong about something. [1]: Back in 2010, I made the first free, public REST API for looking up phone data: https://www.slideshare.net/troyd/cloudvox-digits-phone-api-locate-any-number https://www.slideshare.net/troyd/cloudvox-digits-phone-api-l..., https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cloudvox-launches-free-api-bookmarklet-and-web-service-for-finding-the-location-of-any-phone-number-91590254.html https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cloudvox-launches-f... [2]: https://nationalnanpa.com/ https://nationalnanpa.com/ and for thousands-block reports, https://www.nationalpooling.com/ https://www.nationalpooling.com/ -> Reports -> Block Report by Region
homero 4y ago
You can actually use twilio to find the carrier on cnam https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Getting-Started-with-the-Twilio-Lookup-API https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Ge...
Magicstatic 4y ago
I use Lookify.io which lets you look up a carrier without creating an account - you can also see if anyone else flags it as spammy but who knows if the reports are anything other than anecdotal

How does one go about tracking a robocall back to the OCN? I have time and a strong dislike of scammers.

by kej 4y ago

How does one go about tracking a robocall back to the OCN? I have time and a strong dislike of scammers.

Interested in this as well. Been getting spam texts out the wazoo and have felt powerless to do anything about it beyond delete them

lolinder 4y ago
One thing I do to exert some control is use WHOIS to find out who their domain name and web hosting providers are and forward them the phishing texts. I've gotten multiple domains revoked through this process (though I've also been ghosted plenty). Doesn't help if there are no domains linked, and I'd still love to attack their SMS instead because I suspect that's harder to replace.
- BenjiWiebe 4y ago
  In a similar vein I've had success surprisingly often when reporting spam email domains to the hosting company and Google safe browsing, which gives a big red warning page when someone tries to access the site (in Firefox and Chrome at least).
  - Dylan16807 4y ago
    Wait, are you reporting those sites to Google safe browsing because of malware or phishing content? If so, great. But if they're just a source of spam I don't think you're supposed to be doing that.
- Scoundreller 4y ago
  I’ve also had some success getting the SSL cert revoked. Is there any way to send the SSL-encrypted webpage to prove to the SSL provider that the website came from them though? I guess in my case they could open the link, but that may not always work.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
mikeytown2 4y ago
I call the spam texts (hi Bob, it's Alice, we met last night type) and it's usually a Google voice number that want you to sign up for their whats app channel. I now text back them that we met last night and they can join my crypto investing WhatsApp group and I've gotten a lot less sms spam as a result. Must be on their black list now
- jareklupinski 4y ago
  She was trying to scam him using a lonely hearts pull He was trying to scam her with the promises of riches This summer, sparks fly in the romantic comedy of 2023: "Phish into my Heart"
  - dylan604 4y ago
    okay, so this made me smile. just finished exporting a montage scene that could fit right into that script. timing is priceless
  - ethbr0 4y ago
    This makes me feel old. Cinema when I grew up was calling into advice radio shows because someone couldn't sleep on their architect-affordable houseboat in Seattle. None of that exists anymore.
  - Andrex 4y ago
    Or the A24 horror version, "Heartphish."
- jaxn 4y ago
  I reply to the ones wanting to buy houses that I don’t own. I drag them along for days. I figure I can at least waste their time

troydavis 4y ago

(Update: Commenter "homero" mentioned that Twilio's CNAM API response includes the carrier: https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Getting-Started-with-the-Twilio-Lookup-API#h_01ECXDQZ8TH86K5S51PDQF4KFC https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Ge... . Twilio's docs make it sound like this API does incorporate mobile number portability, which is what you need, but I haven't personally verified. Can anyone from Twitter confirm that the LNP info is at least near-realtime?) You'll need either access to an SS7 routing system or, more likely, an HTTP API that exposes 10-digit number routing info. Google for '10 digit OCN lookup' or 'realtime CNAM lookup API' and you'll be on the right track. You need one that handles mobile number portability. Most APIs charge a small per-query fee because it's not static data. Any one number can be ported at any time and the only way to know is to see where (in SS7) it's actually routed. And be aware that there's a fair number of gotchas. I have a lot of experience in the telco world[1]. The two big gotchas are: 1. Inbound and outbound carriers can be and often are different, and outbound caller ID can be spoofed. The source number on an SMS from a 10-digit number (a "10DLC" SMS) is much, much less likely to be spoofed than the caller ID on a robocall. You can fairly reliably report source numbers on SMSes. To keep it simple, consider starting by reporting SMSes. For robocalls, expect that many robocall CIDs are spoofed, and the most interesting robocalls are the ones that ask the recipient to contact them at the same number. Or, where both the CID and the callback/contact number are DIDs from the same carrier. 2. Number portability means that all the old static databases (LERG and NPA-NXX-Y Number Pooling[2] databases) aren't enough. One phone number might be routed to one carrier and the sequentially-next number might be routed to a completely different carrier, and either of them might change the next day. This is just the start - there are other gotchas and a pretty significant learning curve. Stay polite and professional, assume good intentions, and assume you're wrong about something. [1]: Back in 2010, I made the first free, public REST API for looking up phone data: https://www.slideshare.net/troyd/cloudvox-digits-phone-api-locate-any-number https://www.slideshare.net/troyd/cloudvox-digits-phone-api-l..., https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cloudvox-launches-free-api-bookmarklet-and-web-service-for-finding-the-location-of-any-phone-number-91590254.html https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cloudvox-launches-f... [2]: https://nationalnanpa.com/ https://nationalnanpa.com/ and for thousands-block reports, https://www.nationalpooling.com/ https://www.nationalpooling.com/ -> Reports -> Block Report by Region

homero 4y ago

You can actually use twilio to find the carrier on cnam https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Getting-Started-with-the-Twilio-Lookup-API https://support.twilio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050891214-Ge...

Magicstatic 4y ago

I use Lookify.io which lets you look up a carrier without creating an account - you can also see if anyone else flags it as spammy but who knows if the reports are anything other than anecdotal