How To Report Hackers To The Proper Authorities

Hackers and scammers are more than just a frustrating nuisance. In many cases, they can be dangerous and harmful to your privacy. Instances of cybercrime have only increased since 2019, accounting for over $4.2 billion in losses from the American people.

If you’re a victim of cybercrime or if you’ve experienced an attempted attack on your personal privacy, you can take action. Here is how you can properly get some justice against the scammers and hackers that are out to get you.

What Is Cybercrime?

Cybercrime is an illegal activity that takes place over a computer or network. Three common types of cyber crimes occur most often:

• Phishing: Occurs when a hacker sends a fraudulent message purporting to be from a reputable company, like your phone or credit card company, in an attempt to gain sensitive information from you. These messages can include calls, social media messages on your Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, or Facebook accounts, or texts.

• Payment / Non-delivery: These occur when a hacker puts a product, item, or service up for sale. However, after you pay for the product using your credit card, the item never actually gets delivered to you. In most cases, it probably doesn’t even exist.

• Extortion: Extortion scams are types of fraud that occur when someone blackmails or threatens you into providing some kind of payment or service.

With this in mind, cybercrimes can take many forms, so it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when a crime occurs. These crimes can also take the form of a phishing virus that leads to credit card fraud or identity theft.

As a rule of thumb, use your best judgment. If you’re ever suspicious of a text, email, or phone call, don’t interact with it until you can find out more information in regards to the sender’s credibility. Always try to visit secure websites with an HTTPS lock, and never give strangers control of your account.

How to Report Scams and Cyber Crimes

If someone were to steal your wallet on the street, that’s a clear crime. The same is true if someone tries to steal information from you on the internet. And for that reason, the government makes it so that you can easily report hacking, fraud, and other internet-related crimes if they ever happen to you.

It can be difficult to determine the appropriate law enforcement agency to report cybercriminals. In the United States, if you’ve been the victim of a scam or fraud and it hasn’t put you in immediate danger, start by reporting it to your state’s consumer protection office. You can do this in person or through their official websites. You’ll also want to file a report with your local police if your scam involves stealing money or other possessions. Many have an online form or support team that can help you make your complaint. If that doesn’t succeed, you should move on to filing a report to a federal law enforcement agency.

For minor disturbances that are not immediate emergencies, your first course of action should be to report the instance to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. This government-run resource uses crime reports for investigative and intelligence purposes. This official government organization might be able to help locate the individual that scammed you in order to prevent a similar fate from happening to someone else.

However, if the cybercrime is severe, such as network intrusion, data breach, or a ransomware attack, you can report it at tips.fbi.gov or on the Action Fraud website. You may also go to your nearest Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) field office and file a claim in person. The Department of Justice (DoJ) also handles some individual complaints.  

Note that neither of these options is appropriate for life-threatening situations, so if you are in immediate danger, contact 911.

Other countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia have their own gov websites for reporting fraud, which can be found through a simple Google search.

Reporting Common Scams

While many scams or cybercrimes can be frustrating, not all of them warrant an FBI investigation. For instance, if you receive a spam text, there are ways to go about avoiding them without the process of filing a full police report.

The Federal Trade Commission is an agency that collects spam reports and uses them to try to pinpoint the source of common fraudulent activity. They won’t be able to resolve your individual issue, but the information you provide will help investigate and bring about cases of fraud.

What Happens After I Report a Hacker?

When you report a cybercrime to the FBI, there are a number of trained squads who are specially educated to tackle cyber threats. The National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force leads more than 30 agencies countrywide, and they'll center on key cyber threat areas to try to find the source of some of the most pressing internet crimes.

Additionally, the information you give to government agencies lets them track scam patterns, which makes it easier for them to identify the source behind many hacking or scamming activities. They might even be able to take legal action against a company or industry based on the types of reports coming in.

However, something to note is that many of these agencies don’t follow up with you after you make the report. That means they’re not likely to be able to recover lost money either. With that said, you should stay in communication with your government office to see what actions you may be able to take in order to get back what you’ve lost.

How to Avoid Scams and Cyber Crimes

Reporting cybercrimes is easy, but avoiding them is even easier. Not to mention, preventing these types of attacks can save you a lot of stress in the future.

A great way to reduce your risk of cybercrime and hacking is to use strong passwords. Hackers use special services to automatically input usernames and passwords into websites and applications in the hopes of gaining access to your personal information. The simpler your password, the easier it is for them to get in.

Use different passwords across different websites, and try to make them complex. This means using a combination of at least ten letters, numbers, and symbols. Keep a paper record of your important passwords so that no one can gain access to them through the internet.

Also, you can get an application to help block unwanted calls and texts so that you don’t run the risk of accidentally giving a scammer some personal information. Firewall creates a whitelist based on your contacts, giving you total control over who is allowed to ring through. 

It reveals who’s calling you, whether it’s a robocall or telemarketer so that you can make an informed decision before answering the phone.

Finally, a simple trick to cut back on hacking is to keep your software updated. A lot of people are skeptical of software updates because they fear that the application will no longer work as expected; this is a risk. 

Developers push out software updates when they discover vulnerabilities within the application. So if you don’t update, you’re potentially putting yourself in danger of being hacked.

Conclusion

Scams and other types of cybercrime are becoming increasingly common. And while it’s important to understand and recognize the three main types of scams, there are times when things might slip through the cracks. If you’ve become a victim of hacking, there are steps you can take to report it.

First, start at your local government’s consumer protection office. Then, go to the federal government and file a claim with the FBI. For minor inconveniences like spam calls and texts, you can fill out a claim with the Federal Trade Commission to alert them of this type of activity.

You can also try to avoid scams from happening in the first place by using strong passwords, blocking spam calls, and keeping your software up to date.

Try Firewall free for 14 days and see how it helps prevent scams.

Sources:

IC3 Releases 2020 Internet Crime Report | FBI

ReportFraud.ftc.gov | Federal Trade Commission

Cyber Crime | FBI

NCIJTF Releases Ransomware Factsheet | CISA

Unsolicited Calls: How To Get Them To Stop

Feeling your phone buzz in your pocket is always a bit of an exhilarating feeling. Maybe you’re getting a call from a new potential employer, old friend, or a loving family member. 

But when you pick up the phone and hear a stranger on the other end. It’s nothing short of infuriating. Nearly 50% of Americans report receiving a spam call every single day.

Unsolicited phone calls are forms of communication that are made without your consent. This includes spam calls, robocalls, telemarketers, and everything in between. 

Not to mention, unsolicited communication can take the form of text and email, too, making it hard to hide from these frustrating forms of spam.

If you’re as tired of unsolicited calls as we are, don’t worry. There are solutions to make them stop.

Where Do Unsolicited Calls Come From?

Sometimes it feels like more strangers are trying to reach out to you as compared to real friends and family. Most of these nuisance calls are coming from spammers who are trying to gain information from you, or they’re telemarketing calls trying to sell you something.

Fraud calls from scammers are typically the most dangerous. These are coming from individuals attempting to solicit personal information like your bank account information or social security number to steal your identity. The goal with these calls is usually to try and steal money.

Telemarketers are another type of spam caller who intends to sell you something. While this is not illegal, it can still be enough to make you want to toss out your phone and never use it again.

Recognizing Unsolicited Calls

When it comes to fraudulent calls, individuals may use certain tactics to make you more likely to give in to their demands. This can make it difficult to know when a fraudulent call is unsolicited or if it’s coming from a reputable source.

Generally, if someone calls you and claims to work for a government agency or major tech company, like Microsoft, it’s probably an unsolicited call. These sorts of institutions rarely contact you unless they’ve corresponded with you earlier through other means, such as email.

Also, if a call is pitching a product or service that sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Take caution whenever someone offers free travel, debt forgiveness, cash prizes, or freebies over the phone.

Finally, scammers will often use tactics to create a sense of urgency, such as telling you it must be completed immediately. 

There is rarely a circumstance with a time constraint, so this is likely proof of spam.

How to Stop Unsolicited Calls

If you’re tired of getting robocalls every time you pick up the phone, you’re not alone. The good news is that there is no shortage of ways to get them to stop.

Block Each Number

One quick way to make sure unsolicited calls don’t bother you anymore is by blocking them after they call. This ensures that the same number is unable to reach you ever again.

On an iPhone, you can do this by just going to the Phone app. Tap “recents” and then hit the blue information icon next to the number you want to block. Then, just tape “Block This Caller.”

On Android, it’s a similar process. Go to “recents” in the Phone app. Long press, or hold down, the number that you want to block and then click “Block.”

While this is effective, it can take a lot of persistence to block every specific number that comes your way. Additionally, it’s a reactive method, meaning it requires an unknown number to call you before you’re able to prevent them from reaching out again.

Add Yourself to the Do No Call List

The Do Not Call Registry is a government-run service that can help block telemarketers from calling your home. Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) made it illegal for most robocallers to contact numbers from the Do Not Call Registry, exempting charities, telephone surveyors, debt collectors, and political organizations. 

Violations of these federal laws could lead to big fines or sanctions for those unknown callers if they continue to send you unwanted calls, and you can easily report them to the FTC and FCC online.

It’s quick, easy, and free to add your device to the Do Not Call Registry, and it can save you some unwanted frustration in the future. All you do is register your phone number on the list. Within 31 days of registering, telemarketers who call you at that number will be fined thousands of dollars.

Use a Call Blocking App

One of the more effective ways to prevent spam calls from ever even making it onto your phone’s screen is by using a call blocking app.

Many third-party apps use a blacklist approach in which you can block a caller after you’ve identified them as spam. The issue with this is that once a spam call comes through, it puts you at risk of falling for their traps.

Firewall uses a whitelist approach that gives you total control of whose numbers are allowed to pass through your phone’s barrier. You’ll choose who is allowed to give you a call, and it will filter everything else out.

This is useful, as you’ll always know who’s calling at any given moment so you can identify exactly when and when not to answer that phone with spam alerts and caller ID. It even transcribes your voicemail, so you’ll know why they’re calling you in the first place.

Importance of Blocking Unsolicited Calls

Understanding how to recognize unsolicited calls and how to stop them is essential for your privacy and safety. In fact, Americans lost $29.8 billion to fraud calls alone in 2020.

Blocking spam calls can ensure that your privacy is kept sacred, including your name, number, bank account information, and social security number. It's not enough to reject calls—protect your home phone and cell phone numbers by following the simple instructions above.

Call blocking apps and services can also give you peace of mind that you’re not going to be bothered by these frustrating types of calls.

Conclusion

Unsolicited calls are forms of communication that are made without your consent. While they are sometimes just telemarketers trying to sell you a product or service, they can be fraudulent scammers trying to access your financial information. Either way, blocking them is essential for your privacy and comfort.

One form of anonymous call rejection uses your phone directly, but you can also prevent calls from coming through by adding yourself to the Do Not Call registry. 

This will work for your landline phone, your smartphone, and wireless home phones alike.

With that said, using a call blocking app tends to be one of the more effective options for preventing and reducing unsolicited communication from ever filling up your inbox.

Get the Burner app now and get unsolicited calls to stop.

Sources:

THE ANNOYANCE ENGINE: Spam robocalls became profitable scams by exploiting the phone system, but you can stop them | Business Insider

List a Number on the National Do Not Call Registry | Federal Trade Commission

Americans lost $29.8 billion to phone scams over the past year | CNBC

Phone Scams That Everyone Should Know About

We’ve all probably received a spam call at one point or another. And while younger generations may be savvier to the tactics that spam callers use, older generations are extremely susceptible to having their personal information manipulated by scammers.

However, it makes sense why so many people fall victim. Often, scammers use highly persuasive methods to try to gain personal information from their victims. Understanding the common types of phone scams can be useful in preventing future problems.

Here are some of the most common types of phone scams that everyone should know about.

Common Phone Scams

Scammers, fraudsters, and spammers can take many different forms, and trying to recognize when an unsolicited call is fraud can save you some headache (and heartache) down the line.

These scams may ask for your social security number, debit card or credit card number, or other personal information in an attempt at identity theft. It's important to remember that you should not give financial information away to phone calls from unknown numbers.

Imposter Scams

One of the most prominent types of scams is imposter scams in which an individual on the other end, pretends to be from a government agency, insurance agency, major tech firm, or another prominent business. They may even claim to be from the IRS or pretend to be a family member.

Sometimes, they can manipulate the caller ID through “spoofing,” which can make it even more difficult to recognize if the call is legitimate.

As a rule of thumb, most major institutions will never call you without prior correspondence through mail or email or if you’ve reached out to them previously.

Common scams include posing as police or law enforcement and threatening arrest or deportation, the "grandparents scam" in which fraudsters pretend to be seniors' grandchildren, or claiming recipients failed to appear for jury duty. 

Charity Scams

Sometimes, scammers will call and pretend to work at a local charity, often asking for financial contributions. This is especially common after major disasters.

Never feel pressured to give money over the phone immediately. Always check the credibility of a charity before donating. And if possible, try to make donations through their website rather than wire transfer to ensure that the money is going to the intended location.

Debt Relief Scams

Another common type of phone scam involves imitating debt relief companies and offering relief from student loans or mortgages. Additionally, they may offer some form of credit repair. 

More often than not, these scammers offer these alleged services for an upfront fee. True debt collection services will not ask for an upfront fee over the phone.

Lottery and Cash Prize Scams

Ever heard the old saying: “If it’s too good to be true, it probably is”? Well, this could not be more accurate when it comes to spam calls.

Some telemarketers or scam callers will claim you're a winner of free cash prizes, gift cards, or compensation for winning the lottery as long as you give them your bank account number so they can deposit the money into your account. They may also say you need to pay shipping charges or taxes.

These are not legitimate calls in any sort of way, so don’t give in if you receive this kind of call.

Extended Car Warranties

If a scammer is able to find out what type of car you drive, they may reach out and try to trick you into buying completely worthless service contracts. If someone ever calls you and offers this type of service, do some more external research before agreeing to anything.

Travel and Timeshare Scams

Scammers may also call and offer free or low-cost vacations if you just pay taxes or small fees. Timeshare resale scams are similar and involve individuals acting like they’ll sell your timeshare if you pay them first.

Loan Scams

Scammers may also pretend to be lenders at mortgage companies or banks, offering attractive loans to individuals with low credit scores. They usually say that you can get great rates by paying an upfront fee.

Legitimate lenders do not make guarantees like that, especially if you have bad credit. Take these calls with a grain of salt, and hang up the phone if it sounds like something is off.

What To Do When You Receive a Scam Call

Receiving a scam call can be scary, but there are a few simple ways to avoid financial loss or breach of privacy when they occur.

Hang Up

If the person on the other end is calling you illegally, and you suspect that they are fraudulent, you should hang up the phone immediately. This is the best way to prevent yourself from accidentally giving them information that can be used against you.

If the call is coming from a robot, you shouldn’t press any buttons, and you should hang up right away. This is because it can lead to more robocalls in the future if the automated system recognizes that your number is legitimate.

Block Them

If you answer the phone on a scammer, it’s possible that they may call you again in the future. You can prevent subsequent calls from the same source by directly blocking them on your phone directly.

On an iPhone, just go to the Phone app and look at your recent calls. Hot the blue information button on the side and then click “Block This Caller.” On Android, go to the Phone app and hit “recents.” Long press the number you want to block, and then just click “Block.”

You can also text an unwanted number to SPAM if you have AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint. This is helpful if you receive spam texts through your SMS messaging system.

You can also add yourself to the Do Not Call registry, which is a government-run free service that makes it illegal for telemarketers to call you. While it won’t prevent charity calls or political calls, it’s a great way to cut back on telemarketing calls that can crowd your inbox otherwise.

Use a Call Blocking App

If your smartphone is your primary form of communication, you may benefit from using a phone app to filter out unwanted calls. 

Firewall uses a whitelist approach where you decide whether or not to let a call through. You’ll see their number, as well as why they’re calling, so you can make a sound decision as to whether or not you want to pick up the phone.

This is a more sound alternative to call blocking, as it’s a proactive measure to prevent spam as opposed to a reactive measure. 

Call blocking apps can also help prevent scammers from having access to your real phone number by acting as a buffer between your personal number and their line of communication. Plus, it can allow you to make outgoing calls without your number showing up on someone else’s caller ID.

Conclusion

Phone scams are frustrating and annoying, but they can also be dangerous for susceptible populations. Knowing the different kinds can help you identify calls that are not to be trusted.

Imposter scams, charity scams, lottery scams, loan scams, and debt relief scams are just a few of the types of calls you’re susceptible to. 

It’s important to:

• Hang up the phone, 

• Never give out your personal information number (PIN) 

• Block numbers that you suspect are spam so that they no longer bother you.

Try Firewall today and see how it helps keep you protected from phone scams.

Sources:

How to Stop Unwanted Calls | FTC Consumer Information

Phone Scams | FTC Consumer Information

Caller ID Spoofing | FCC

National Do Not Call Registry | Federal Trade Commission

What Is An Android Developer & What Do They Do?

The tech industry continues to grow as products keep on improving and upgrading. To keep up with the demand, jobs within this sector have skyrocketed. It’s estimated that there are over 12.4 million jobs in the technology industry as of 2021, which is one of the highest counts in history.

While there are plenty of avenues to go down if you’re looking to work in this growing industry, working at one of the major companies is a great way to go. Google is just one example, and if you’re thinking of getting into the field, a job as an Android developer might be a great way to go.

Here’s everything you need to know about this important line of employment, as well as some ways you may be able to get into the business yourself.

What Does an Android Developer Do?

Android is an operating system (OS) that runs a number of Android smartphones and mobile devices, like the Samsung Galaxy or the Google Pixel. If you ever work as an Android developer, you’d likely be working under the Google umbrella.

Android app developers design software and mobile apps for Android devices and the Google Play Store. While they may work for an app company directly, they may also work for larger corporations.

Typically, Android developers are in the business of making applications or apps. This might include developing games, services, or social media-based applications that are tailored specifically for Android devices. 

They help create apps from concept to launch and beyond, helping develop layouts, navigation, storage systems, notifications, and beyond. Each component of app design is unique, so developers often have a wide-ranging technical skill set.

Many Android developer job descriptions will ask for:

• Writing program code to build apps or design for Android devices. This includes knowledge of C++ and JavaScript.

• Troubleshooting bugs in new or existing applications or creating a debugger to ensure they run smoothly.

• Performing module testing of applications through the Android platform.

• Working with outside teams to help companies create applications that they deem are fit for their preferences.

Android vs Apple Development

Android is a direct competitor to Apple. If you’re an independent app developer, you may be wondering which one is better. While it’s largely personal preferences, there are a few things to keep in mind.

In terms of programming language, Android uses Java. While this is a universal script, it can be hard to work with if you don’t have proper training and education. Apple uses a native language called Swift, which is easier to use and also more convenient. This reduces the time spent coding the app itself.

With that said, Android is open source. This essentially means that developers have access to more hardware, features, and file systems that are usually off-limits in terms of developing for Apple. It allows Android developers to have more customization options. You may also want to become familiar with the Android software development kit (Android SDK), Android Studio, Android emulators, and the Kotlin programming language.

Both have their pros and cons. But if you know that you want to become an Android developer specifically, there are a few skills that you’ll want to make sure you have.

How to Become an Android Developer

App development for Android is an entry-level position. But it doesn’t mean you can be unskilled if you’re looking to be an app developer. You need to have some prior education or experience.

For one, you’ll need intricate knowledge of programming languages such as C++ and JavaScript. It’s also helpful to have knowledge of MYSQL databases and a background in computer coding or web design.

Of course, basics like HTML and XML, RESTful APIs, Git, and Android UI design principles will go a long way when getting into mobile app development.

App developers also utilize other development tools and resources indirectly related to app design. It’s always helpful to have knowledge of the Adobe Creative Suite and program testing software and database management systems, like IBM Rational PurifyPlus and Apache Flume, respectively.

Android developers also need to understand current tech trends. And while you’ll spend a lot of time working alone, having a good work ethic and communication skills when cooperating with team members is essential for success.

Most app developers have at least a Bachelor’s degree in software development or a related field. However, you usually don’t need prior experience as an app developer to become an Android developer specifically.

Android Developer Salary

While the salary for this and similar positions varies by skill level and company, the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that the median salary for Software Development positions is $110,140. If that’s not enough to convince you to go down this path, we’re not sure what is!

With that said, a successful Android developer isn’t in it for the money. If you’re someone with a passion for innovation, or if you have an amazing idea for an app that’s never been done before, this position might be something for you to consider.

After you’ve done your time as an Android developer, a natural progression is to become a Senior App Developer. This title involves taking on leadership and mentorship roles in addition to the development roles that are typical for the original position.

Similar Job Roles

Being an Android developer isn’t your only way to get into the tech industry. There are a plethora of avenues.

If you prefer the visual aspects of software engineering instead of coding, you may want to consider graphic design. This can allow you to incorporate the visual elements of an application to ensure that it’s pleasing to look at and intuitive when it comes to utilization.

You can also put software engineering skills to sources outside of mobile phones. You can be a developer for websites, video games, or other forms of electronic media that require coding.

Additionally, if you prefer working with hardware rather than software, an IT engineer might be right up your alley. Here, you’ll perform routine maintenance and install hardware in homes or corporate buildings.

Finally, you may consider being a technical support specialist to help individuals troubleshoot any problems on their mobile phones or other electronic devices. 

You may help individuals struggling to properly use their software or even individuals experiencing malfunctions due to spam calls and viruses.

In Conclusion

An Android Developer’s job is to design software and applications for Android devices, particularly their mobile phones and tablets. They typically need knowledge of coding language as well as a background in design and intrapersonal communication.

It’s also useful for Android developers to know the C++ and Java programming languages. In addition, one should understand current trends in tech or have an idea of a specific type of app they’re looking to engineer. Understanding Android applications will also help, especially as you try to fix bugs, brainstorm new features, and improve the user interface and user experience.

Android developers work in direct competition with Apple developers, who create apps for iOS systems. While each has pros and cons, you may want to do some research to see which type of developer aligns with your interests more suitably.

Try Firewall today and see how it performs with your Android phone.

Sources:

2021 Tech Industry Job Market & Salary Trends Analysis | Cyberstates by CompTIA

Software Developers, Quality Assurance Analysts, and Testers : Occupational Outlook Handbook | US Bureau of Labor Statistics

The 10 Most Popular Programming Languages to Learn in 2021 | Northeastern University

Robocalls & How They Emerged: A Complete History

It’s hard to deny that technology has made our lives easier in a number of ways. From self-checkouts to smartphone technology, it’s hard to imagine a world without robotic tech living among us. Of course, this also has some downsides, especially when it comes to scams and fraud calls. 

In addition to spam text messages and emails, you may encounter a type of fraud called robocalls.

Robocalls are pre-recorded messages that are often sent to mass populations each day. If you’ve ever answered the phone and were connected to a random voice rather than a real person, you are likely the recipient of an illegal robocall.

But where exactly did these come from, and why did they start in the first place? Here is your complete history on robocalls.

Dinner Hour Telemarketing

Robocalls have actually been around for decades, but in the very beginning, they worked a little bit differently. In the late 80s and early 90s, it started off as “dinner hour marketing,” in which real people made house calls trying to sell products or services. 

At that time, making robocalls to mass recipients was a lot more expensive. Additionally, these telemarketers usually just intended to sell a specific product rather than obtain personal information, which is a current trend in modern robocallers.

Rise of Computers

As computers became more advanced in the late 80s and 90s, telemarketers began to find new ways to utilize technology to make mass phone calls with pre-recorded messages. It started off with large box-like pieces of hardware that allowed individuals to make mass calls. But now, it’s as simple as using a smartphone app.

While telemarketing calls from real people still exist, they don’t seem to be as prevalent as pre-recorded messages. After all, recording just one message and sending it out to millions of people at once is a lot more efficient than calling a million people individually. 

New advancements in technology have only made these types of calls more prevalent. And while caller ID is a powerful tool to help recognize unsolicited numbers before they make it through, robocallers have even figured out how to alter caller ID through spoofing.

This is all to say that robocalls have only become more prevalent and dangerous since their humble fruition in the late 80s. In fact, it was predicted that over 50% of phone calls in 2019 would be spam. These spam calls could be fraudsters pretending to be a pharmacy that's filled your prescription, a radio contest telling you that you've won a sweepstakes or a variety of other phishing scams.

The Government Takes Action

The Federal Communications Commission (FTC) recognized an issue with robocalls and took some action in 1991. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act set a number of laws to protect individuals from the frustration of annoying robotic phone calls.

Under this act, it made it illegal for companies or individuals to make pre-recorded robocalls with the intent of trying to sell you something. However, automated messages by themselves are still legal, and even if your voicemail inbox is getting filled to the brim with unwanted calls, you may not be able to take legal action.

With that said, companies can call you to sell products if they’ve received written consent to do so. Additionally, the Federal Trade Commission allows certain calls to pass through without consent, like political calls or charitable organizations asking for money.

New updates to this regulation have also made it so that you can stop robocalls in their tracks by just stating that you want the call to end. 

While these rules are helpful, scammers can also use these loopholes to try to steal your personal information and put your privacy at risk. 

However, there are plenty of ways that you can go about reporting and blocking spam robocalls.

How to Stop Robocalls

Although it’s become easier for scammers and telemarketers to make robocalls, it has also become a lot easier to stop them in their tracks. Here are some effective ways to cut down on spam calls.

Hang Up

One of the most important actions to take when you receive a pre-recorded phone call is hanging up the phone. If you press a button or interact with the call, it may alert the automated system that the number they’ve reached is connected to a real person. This can lead to future spam calls from the same number.

Additionally, never give out personal information over the phone. Scammers and robocallers may often claim to originate from government agencies or major businesses. These types of corporations will rarely call you without previous correspondence, so never give you bank account info or private info without first ensuring the authenticity of the call.

Block Them

If you receive a robocall, you can prevent that same number from calling you back by blocking it directly on your phone. If you have an iPhone, just go to the Phone app and click on “Recents.” 

Then, press the blue information button next to the number you wish to block and click “Block This Caller.”

On an Android, the process is pretty similar. You’ll go to the Phone app and tap “Recents.” Then, long-press the number that you want to block and just hit “Block.”

Even landlines can block calls using VoIP if they make calls over the internet. Simply contact your carrier and see if they offer this service.

You can also try to prevent these types of calls from coming through in the first place by adding yourself to the Do Not Call registry, which is a government-run database that makes it unlawful for telemarketers to contact you. 

After it takes effect, robocallers and telemarketers will receive immense fines if they give you a ring.

Finally, you can silence unknown callers, filtering all unknown numbers. This can be easier than blocking the specific numbers that have contacted you in the past, but it could mean you miss legitimate calls from people who aren't already on your contacts list.

Use a Call Blocking App

The problem with blocking robocalls after they’ve already given you a call is that they’ve already caused you frustration. However, you can download third-party apps on your iOs and Android devices as a scam shield to filter out phone calls before they ever even reach your number.

Some carriers offer their own proprietary call filter app, like AT&T Call Protect.

Firewall creates a whitelist based on your contacts, giving you full control over who is allowed to ring through. Every time you receive a call, you’ll first see exactly who is calling and why. Then, you’ll have the option to take the call or ignore it. Not to mention, it can block SMS spam messages from clogging up your text message inbox, too.

You can also keep your personal number safe with Burner, which provides you with a second burner phone number so robocallers and strangers never actually gain access to your real phone number. 

Conversely, only your Burner number will appear on the recipient’s caller ID when you make an outgoing call.

Conclusion

Robocalls began as a dinner-time nuisance, with telemarketers calling each home individually to try to sell products. However, now that technology has made it easy to call millions of people at just one time, robocalls have shifted towards more devious methods that elude authentication methods.

While the government has taken action to make it illegal for robotic telemarketing calls to come through your line, it is not necessarily illegal for pre-recorded messages to make their way into your inbox. However, there are simple ways to ensure that only the people you know are able to access your phone number. These methods work across many carriers, whether you're with Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, or others.

If a robocall comes up on your device, hang up the phone and do not engage with the pre-recorded message. You can also use reverse number lookup to screen your calls before answering. Additionally, be sure to block the number after the fact or even consider using a call blocking app to make sure that these sorts of calls don’t get through in the first place.

Sources:

Robocalls | FCC

S.1462 - 102nd Congress (1991-1992): Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 | Congress.gov

National Do Not Call Registry | Federal Trade Commission

Text Tracking: Everything You Need To Know

While spam phone calls have been around for ages, spam text messages are fairly new due to the tremendous popularity of smartphones. In fact, complaints about spam text messages were up 146% from 2020 to 2021, and it seems like there’s no easy way to fix them.

However, text tracking is a way to pinpoint the source of SMS messages so that you can gain some power over the spammers and telemarketers that are flooding your inbox. Here is everything you need to know.

What Is Text Tracking?

Text tracking can actually take on a few different definitions. 

Typography

For one, the idea of text tracking can refer to the concept of increasing or decreasing the horizontal spacing of letters in digital fonts. Kerning tracks the letter spacing between each character, with optical kerning taking individual letters into account and metric kerning considering the spacing of specific groups of letters like "wa," "LA," or "Tr." 

This is a concept many graphic designers will be familiar with, especially if you use the type tool from Adobe inDesign to create logos, billboards, or news headlines. When you hear the phrases "open tracking," "close tracking," or "negative tracking," this refers to the functions within the typographical definition of text tracking.

Text tracking is used for everything from entire blocks of text to special characters to a single character in typography. 

USPS Tracking

Text Tracking is also a service offered by the United States Postal Service to send SMS delivery updates to customers regarding their package status. 

Users can request USPS text tracking messages by sending a message to 28777 (2USPS) to receive the latest tracking information, learn of a delivery attempt, see statuses like "Notice Left," know if their package is ready for pickup or discover any additional updates regarding their package. You can also sign up on the USPS website and reply "YES" to the welcome message sent to your mobile device. Additional functions include routing information and the package's current zip code.

You can cancel or unsubscribe from these messages at any time, and you can adjust the notification options to choose between a single text response or ongoing updates on the latest tracking activity for your package. 

SMS Tracking

However, you’re probably thinking of text tracking in the form of messages on your cell phone. There are a couple of different examples of this. One definition of SMS tracking is monitoring text messages after they are sent from a user's mobile device.

In other words, when you send a text message, the recipient gets the content of the message almost instantaneously. However, there are times when a message does not make it to its intended endpoint due to malfunctions in carrier service or improper encoding. Text messages trackers can monitor when a text message was queued, sent, and delivered successfully on Android or iOS.

SMS trackers are typically external applications that can track exactly where an applicable message is throughout the sending process. However, iPhone and Android phones typically have text message trackers built into their messaging apps that let you know when a message was delivered successfully.

On the other hand, text tracking can also refer to trying to pinpoint exactly where a text message came from. This can be useful when receiving spam messages or an SMS from a stranger. Tracking can be used to figure out exactly where and who has sent you a given message.

Tracing a call or a text back to its source is not possible without special tools available to police and other law enforcement personnel. However, that doesn’t mean you’d never be able to figure out who exactly is spamming your inbox.

Tracking the Origin of an Unsolicited Text Message

If you’re wondering if there’s a way to track down the source of a call or text like they do in movies, the answer is no. However, you have some tracking options for the origins of a text message.

One of the easiest options is to check Google. If you enter the phone number into Google, it’s likely to link back to a company or public institution where the call is coming from. But if nothing turns up, it’s probably a private number, a mobile phone, or a fake phone number.

You can also try doing a reverse phone number lookup. Services like Spokeo allow you to input the given phone number to see if any results show up. If so, you’ll be able to see some information for free, as well as detailed information with payment.

Also, you can check spam websites like Truecaller to check the validity of a text message in general. The chances are high that the spam text message is linked back to several other circumstances of spam, and Truecaller can reveal if this same number has been used to spam others before you.

Finally, you can pinpoint the source and purpose of an unknown call or text with Firewall, an app that creates a whitelist based on your contacts. You’ll get a detailed breakdown of who is calling you and why so that you can decide whether or not to let it ring through. 

Not to mention, it makes it easy and efficient to block spam text messages within the app.

Tracking Family Member’s Texts

If you’re a concerned parent who wants to be able to monitor your kids' activity on their new smartphone, there are some ways to keep track of their correspondence with others.

For one, Apple’s cloud messaging sync feature allows all phones on the same plan to share text messages with one another. This makes it easy for you to see specific information on exactly when and who your children are speaking with whenever they use their phones. The only downfall is that your messages may also become synced with the messages on their end, so that they can see your active text info, too.

Instead, you can use an external application to monitor sent, received, and deleted text messages, as well as activity on other applications. MSpy, for instance, is a paid service that lets you keep track of what your child (or other family members) are doing on their phones so that you can have some peace of mind.

Can My Text Messages Be Tracked?

If there are some ways to try to find out the origin of someone else’s phone calls, it’s natural to think that others can do the same to you. And while someone can potentially use the same tactics to trace your text reply back to you, there are ways to protect your privacy.

Burner is an app that provides you with a second burner number outside of your primary number. This means that any sender who tries to reach you will only have access to your burner number, helping to shield your number from strangers. Not to mention, only your burner number appears on someone’s caller ID when you reach out to them.

Additionally, be sure not to share your passwords and usernames to cloud-sharing platforms with other people, as this may allow them to access further messages and emails from other devices.

We suggest engaging in safe and thoughtful interaction with others while using your smart device to help avoid any problems down the road.

In Conclusion

Text tracking is a term that can refer to several different concepts. Outside of alignment and the adjustment of space in typography, it may refer to the concept of monitoring the status of a text message as it gets sent to a recipient.

Another form of text tracking refers to the idea of tracking the origin of a spam text message from an unsolicited individual. This is normally only done by police or other law enforcement personnel. Still, Google searches or applications like Spokeo may help to uncover the hidden identity of callers and texters who are contacting you without consent.

Finally, text tracking may also refer to keeping tabs on the incoming, outgoing, and deleted messages that your children or other family members have been making. This can be useful to help make sure your children have healthy interactions via their technological devices.

Sources:

Complaints about spam texts were up 146% last year. Now, the FCC wants to take action | NPR

Beginning Graphic Design: Typography | GCFGlobal

How To Recognize and Report Spam Text Messages | Federal Trade Commission

What Is A Spam Call & How Do They Operate?

If you’ve picked up the phone from an unrecognized number and found someone who was trying to elicit personal information or sell you a product, you’ve been a victim of a spam call. 

In fact, one in three Americans has fallen victim to spam phone calls in 2021 alone, leading to nearly $30 billion in financial losses. So spam is more than just a frustrating nuisance -- it’s also a dangerous hazard to your privacy and finances.

But where do these spam calls even come from? And how do they work? Here’s everything you need to know.

What Is a Spam Call?

Spam refers to all forms of unwanted or unsolicited communication. You can receive spam text messages, emails, or physical mail from the post office. However, spam phone calls continue to be one of the most frustrating and the most difficult to identify.

These types of fraud calls can take many forms. Often, an individual will call with the intent of gaining access to personal information, such as social security numbers or bank account information. Other times, they may call and try to get you to pay them a sum of money with your credit card. And sometimes, they’re just calling to try to get you to purchase a product or service.

Robocalls are a type of spam call where you don’t speak to a person. It’s just a pre-recorded message that’s been broadcast to millions of numbers at once.

Regardless of the reason, spam calls seem to be more prominent than calls from real people within your contacts list. In fact, nearly 5 billion robocalls were sent to Americans in March of 2021 alone, with nearly half of them being placed by spammers.

That’s almost 2.5 billion phone calls made in a single month alone. So, where in the world are all of them stemming from?

Where Do Spam Calls Come From?

Spam calls can come from anywhere in the world. And since it is cheap and easy to make mass robocalls to millions of people thanks to advancements in modern technology, many scammers are getting in on the action.

With that said, this also makes it difficult to pinpoint exactly where these calls are originating from. More often than not, spam calls are coming from some form of telemarketer either trying to sell you a product or manipulate your personal information.

Spam calls made within the country seem to come from California and Florida most abundantly. However, many spam calls are made outside of the United States. The main issue with this is that this is outside of Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jurisdiction, so there's really nothing that can be done about spam phone calls made from overseas.

Over the internet, scammers are able to send pre-recorded messages to millions of phone number combinations at one time. Many of these numbers are non-existent, but they are able to access real phone numbers more often than not. 

This emphasizes the importance of not interacting with spam calls when you receive them, as it can fool their systems into thinking that your phone number is not real. Nearly every phone will receive spam calls at one point or another, regardless of your service provider. AT&T, Verizon, Samsung, T-Mobile, and Sprint each have some call protect avenues to slow their spread, but somehow, spammers always seem to get through.

How Do Spammers Fake Their Phone Number?

While caller ID is an excellent tool for recognizing who is calling before deciding to answer the phone, it’s not foolproof. Scammers use phone number spoofing. 

Here, they alter the data on your caller ID to make it look like they are someone you know.

This typically involves changing the area code to make it appear as though these nuisance calls are being made from a local source. 

Computer software makes it extremely easy to spoof numbers. It can make it much more difficult to identify unsolicited calls when they make their way to your device.

How Do Spammers Get My Phone Number?

You might also be curious as to how exactly random people are even getting access to your phone number to make these phone calls in the first place. While robocallers often send out the same pre-recorded message, telemarketers and other spam callers can use different methods.

For one, your phone number may be sold to third-party providers. It was found that many large mobile carriers were giving their customer’s phone numbers to data aggregators in 2018 during a major security breach. While this doesn’t happen anymore, the damage may already be done. Scammers can “purchase” your number from these sources so that they can then try to give you a call.

Additionally, scammers can access your number through third-party providers if you applied for credit, contributed to charities, or even if you’re a registered voter.

This isn’t to say that you should stop conducting these activities just because you’re worried about spam. You just need to know what to do in order to combat spam calls should they occur.

How to Block Spam Calls

It might feel like you’re defenseless against unwanted calls, but there are simple ways to take action.

For one, you can block numbers directly on your smartphone. On iPhone iOs, just go to the Phone app and tap on Recents. Then, press the blue information button to the right of the number you wish to block. Finally, tap “Block This Caller.”

On an Android device, you’ll go to the Phone app and hit Recents as well. When you find the number you want to block, just hold down your finger and select Block from the pop-up screen. 

You can also silence unknown callers or spammers on many landlines using Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) software. Another option is adding yourself to the National Do Not Call Registry, although this only blocks telemarketer sales calls.

However, these avenues only work as a reactive measure after a spam call has already been made. Scam shield or scam block apps like Firewall can help cut back on spam before they ever even dial through.

Firewall creates a whitelist call filter based on your contacts so you can have complete control over who gets to contact you. When an unsolicited number calls, you’ll see who they are and even why they’re calling so that you can make an informed decision about whether or not to take it. 

It can also help block spam texts to cover even more of your bases.

In Conclusion

Spam calls are a form of unsolicited communication made through a phone call. Many spam calls are made from outside of the country, which can make them difficult to track down. 

Additionally, since many scam calls are sourced from internet-based software that allows for mass pre-recorded messages to be sent out at one time, it’s difficult to be able to trace the origin of these types of calls.

Spammers use tactics such as faking their phone number through call spoofing as well as purchasing your phone number from third-party sources. This can make it even more difficult for you to recognize and avoid these potentially dangerous tricks. 

With that said, you can block spam directly on your phone or even use another app to help cut back.

Try Firewall now with our 14-day free trial. 

Sources:

Americans lost $29.8 billion to phone scams over the past year | CNBC

How to Stop Illegal Robocalls: Tips and Resources | AARP

Caller ID Spoofing | FCC

Block SMS Spam Texts & Stop Them For Good

In the days before the internet, spam usually consisted of junk mail or telephone calls to your landline. These spam attempts started to somewhat die down once the internet became mainstream, but they were quickly replaced by spam emails. 

As people have become better equipped at dealing with spam in general, the newest trend in spam focuses on SMS text messaging. Although not as intrusive or disruptive as a phone call, spam texts are still highly annoying to deal with on a frequent basis. 

Fortunately, there are plenty of options available for anyone trying to block these irritating texts and keep them from popping up on your messaging app. 

Why Are You Receiving Spam Texts?

Before going into the various ways that you can block or reduce the number of spam texts that you receive, it’s important to know why you are receiving them in the first place. 

Most of the common reasons won’t be your fault and are largely out of your control. However, you should be aware of the different ways that spammers can get your number and information:

Your Data Was Sold by a Website

It’s not exactly a secret that most social media websites track your online activity and data. What might be surprising is that they will often sell this information to advertisers for a profit. 

If your phone number is public or connected to any websites online, it’s most likely going to end up in a marketing company database.

You Called an 800 or 900 Number

These numbers are typically toll-free so calling them doesn’t result in any fees. However, dialing a number with one of these prefixes will result in the Automatic Number Identification (ANI) system recording your number. 

The ANI system will store your number and even match it to other digital data connected to you as well. 

You Gave Out Your Number

There are plenty of apps, programs, and memberships that require an active phone number in order to complete your registration. Although a lot of these various entities will protect your number and data, there are plenty that will not. 

You should take caution with who you are giving your number out to as the information might end up in the hands of a spammer either intentionally or by accident. 

Random Bad Luck

Phone numbers are a finite resource and there can only be about 7.92 million phone numbers per area code at the very most. In reality, the list is far lower and spammers know it. They will often set up bots or programs that will randomly call or text every single possible phone number combination. 

It’s not as hard as it may sound and doesn’t take that much time either. It’s possible that your number just randomly appeared on such a program and will continue to be bombarded with spam until you take action to stop it.

How To Block Spam Texts

Regardless of how your number might have fallen into the hands of spammers, it’s time to do something about it. You are far from being the only person that experiences these daily annoyances and lots of other people that are also fed up.

The people are so sick and tired that there have been several new pieces of legislation passed to try and stop these spam attacks. However, it will take some time before these laws will have an effect on spam and not all countries have adopted them yet. 

Until your government can find a way to shut down spam for good, it’ll be up to you to protect yourself. 

Do Not Reply

This is less of a prevention tactic and more of a tip to prevent further problems. Legitimate businesses will often ask you to sign up for promotional texts so they can try to continue doing business with you. If you want these texts to stop then you would simply text “STOP” in reply. 

Some of the more clever spammers have started to use that tactic in order to test if a number is active. Once you reply “STOP”, they will become much more likely to flood your number with spam texts. 

Unless you are absolutely certain that you are replying to a legitimate business, do not reply to any texts. 

Report Them To You Phone Carrier

Just about every phone service provider has some kind of way to block spam. One of the easiest ways to block a number and help to fight back against spam is to report it. 

All you have to do is copy and forward the text that you received to the number 7726 which spells out “SPAM” on your phone. The service is free of charge and will not only help you avoid spam texts in the future, but it will help others avoid the irritation as well.

Block The Number

Whether you are using an iPhone or an Android, you have the ability to block specific numbers. The process isn’t particularly difficult for either type of phone. 

For an iPhone, you would tap the contact card located at the top of the text message. Once opened, select the “Info” icon and open the “Details” menu. You should see the option “Block this Caller” near the bottom. Select it and the number will be blocked. 

For Android users, it’s fairly similar. Go to your messages app and tap on the text from the spam number. Select the three dots from the upper right corner of your screen. You should see “Block Number” as an option. 

Select it and then choose “Block” to confirm. It’s important to note that this option will only block one number. You would most likely still receive spam texts in the future, just from a different number that you would have to block. 

Use An App

There are quite a lot of apps out there that claim to help with spam, but they often go about it the wrong way. Most of these apps will create a blacklist of numbers that will block the spam number, but they are often ineffective against more persistent spammers. 

With Firewall, all calls are blocked except those that you “whitelist” or allow to connect. This way, you’re in control of who rings through and who is blocked.

A whitelist means that the specific number has been personally approved by you. So if your family, friends, or work are texting you then the message is sent through. If the number has not been approved then the message will only make it to your Burner number and not to your personal line.  

The Takeaway

It’s hard to understate just how irritating it is to receive a text chime, notification, or vibration from your phone only to open it up and see yet another spam text. There are so many potential ways that a spammer might have gotten your number and most of them are out of your control. 

Since it’s virtually impossible to prevent spam, the best option is to accept it and focus on blocking them. While you can individually block numbers and report them, it won’t stop the constant bombardment of spam. 

Using an app like Firewall helps to keep your personal line safe and keeps you from deleting spam texts because they won’t make it to you unless you whitelist the number they’re sent from. You can try Firewall for free and leave the spam texts in your past.

SOURCES

Your Data Is Shared and Sold...What's Being Done About It? | Knowledge@Wharton

What Is Contact Center ANI Automatic Number Identification | NICE

Area CodesFrequently Asked Questions | PUC.TEXAS.gov

Never Answer Calls From These Area Codes

Robocalls are one of the most pervasive issues facing our society as a whole today, with unwanted calls, in general, being the biggest reported problem to the FCC (Federal Communications Commission). 

It has become increasingly difficult to avoid these kinds of calls, and almost every person in the United States has had to deal with them at one point or another. Luckily, there are a variety of ways that you can combat these calls on your device. 

Fighting against these unwanted calls is easier when you can identify patterns and calling cards that let you know when a robocall might become. 

One telltale sign is the area code you see on the caller ID. 

Why Do I Get Scam Calls From My Area Code?

There are a number of reasons that you might get repeated robocalls from certain area codes. A common practice is called neighbor spoofing, in which callers will use a fake number that mimics your area code. 

The idea is that you will be more likely to answer a call if you recognize it as a local number. This method also prevents you from blocking the area code as a whole. If you receive a call from your own area code that sounds suspicious, coming from a person you don’t recognize or asking for money, you may be getting a call from a fake number. 

Scams to Watch For

Watch Out for Calls From the Caribbean

Phone numbers out of the Caribbean are regularly used for scam calling because they aren’t easily identifiable as international calls with their +1 area codes. 

Many of these area codes were created within the last few years, making it difficult to keep track of which numbers are from the area. If you find yourself caught in one of these scams, you could end up losing a lot of money for getting stuck on an international call. 

Ring and Run

The ring and run scammer preys on you by calling with an urgent situation and quickly hanging up after requesting a callback. Common situations they make up include pretending to be collections agents or hospital staff and convincing you that you are urgently needed. They confuse you by making their call so brief. 

Unfortunately, once you call back, you’ll get blasted with huge international fees. 

The One-Ring Scam

The one-ring scam is a simple scam that can be costly if you fall for it. The basic process is that you receive a phone call, but the other party quickly hangs up before you can talk to them. They might do this multiple times in an attempt to get you to give that phone number a callback. 

The problem is that once you do this, you get hit with a significant international call fee. Until you realize what is happening, they will continuously drain your money while you stay on the call. 

These scams are incredibly easy to fall for; you don’t have to give anyone your personal info, and you will still find yourself losing money. The one-ring scam is a great example of why you need to be cautious when answering any unknown calls. 

Conclusion

Unfortunately, you may need to be on the lookout every time you get a call from a number you don’t recognize. If you want to be completely safe against unwanted callers, your best bet is to use Firewall.

Firewall is an app made by the creators of Burner, which functions as a filter that blocks any unwanted calls from making it to you. 

Firewall uses a whitelisting system, where you approve the calls you want to receive while all other numbers are blocked. Whitelisting is the only way to filter out 100% of unwanted calls. 

Unwanted callers are sent to voicemail, and Firewall’s voicemail transcription system lets you decide whether or not to approve them for later. Fighting robocalls is getting harder, but there are tools out there that let you maintain your privacy and money. 

Download the Firewall app now to protect your privacy.

Sources: 

Targeting Gateway Providers to Combat Illegal Robocalls Fifth Further Notice of Proposing Rule | FCC

How To Block Unwanted Calls | FTC Consumer Information

Area Codes You Never Want to Call Back and Why | ThePoliceCU

Block SMS Spam Texts & Stop Them For Good

Texting is a fairly new invention that has expanded how we communicate with others. However, it’s also expanded how spammers and telemarketers can target us with fraudulent scams or spam SMS messages.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission reports that nearly $10 million has already been lost due to text message scams in 2021 alone. This report proves that spam texts are both frustrating and potentially dangerous.

Here’s how you can stop and block SMS spam texts from appearing on your phone.

Who Blocks Texts?

There are a few ways that you can report unwanted texts. Perhaps the easiest way is directly through your mobile carrier.

Most major carriers like AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile allow you to forward unwanted spam messages to SPAM (7726). This will report the number to your mobile carrier to ensure they don’t bother more people with their potential scam.

You can also add yourself to the “Do Not Call Registry.” If you add your number to this registry, telemarketers must remove your number from their call lists. The registry also applies to text messages, so it’s a good idea to throw your number on there if you’re getting tired of robocalls.

What Is a Spam Message?

A spam message is any form of unwanted or unsolicited communication, often sent in bulk. A spam text might look like someone offering you money with no strings attached or threatening you to take action.

Spam messages can also take the form of emails or voicemail messages, so it’s important to be mindful.

The Problem With Identifying Spam

Sometimes, a spam caller can use tactics that elicit emotion and make it difficult to pinpoint the legitimacy of a call or text. That’s one of the main reasons Americans lose nearly $30 billion to phone scams in a given year.

Scammers may use a tactic known as caller ID spoofing in which they alter their area code to look like a local number. When you receive an unsolicited text, don’t answer any questions. You should ignore the message and report it as spam. Any interaction with the message may alert the scammer that your number is legitimate, and they may keep calling or texting back.

If you get a call or text from a government agency, someone claiming to work at your bank, or someone asking for personal information, always verify their authenticity. In most circumstances, a legitimate source will also send a written statement in the mail.

The Solution For Identifying Spam Texts

With smartphone technology gaining a foothold, there are new ways to identify spam calls. Firewall is an example that uses a whitelist approach based on your contacts, giving you total control over who is allowed to get through.

Firewall reveals who is calling you, whether it’s a local business, robocall, or telemarketer. For example, if you get a call from a new number, Firewall can label the call as a known robocaller, so you know not to answer.

The app also lets you block unknown SMS messages to help stop scammers and marketers from polluting your messages app.

Does It Work?

Most third-party apps use a blacklist approach to block spam calls and messages. This feature means all calls can come through until you block them. Scammers can easily penetrate this type of security.

Apps like Firewall with a whitelisting approach are more stringent. Whitelisting means that numbers are blocked until you allow them through. This function makes it easier to keep spam messages away, so you never need to worry about them.

How to Block Texts

You can block texts easily on iMessage on your iPhone or in the messaging app on your Android. If you’re getting sick of your inbox being clogged by useless messages, here are some ways to end them.

On iPhone

To block messages on your iPhone:

1. Open the Messages app.

2. Open the text message from the number you wish to block.

3. Tap the contact icon at the top of the screen and click “Info” in the drop-down menu.

4. In the details screen, tap the right-facing arrow next to the name or phone number that texted you.

5. Click “Block this Caller.”

6. In the pop-up menu, click “Block Contact.”

On Android

To block messages on your Android device:

1. Open the message from the number you want to block.

2. Tap the three-dot menu at the top of the screen.

3. In the drop-down menu, click “Details.”

4. On the details page, tap “Block and Report Spam.”

5. You can check the box in the pop-up menu to ensure that the message gets reported for spam. Leave the box unchecked if you don’t want to report the message and you’re just looking to block it.

Conclusion

Spam messages are more than a frustrating nuisance; they can put your safety at risk. Thousands of people are tricked by SMS scams each year, and you don’t want to fall victim to the same tricks.

Spam texts are usually pretty easy to spot, as they may request personal information or claim to be from a government agency. With that said, tactics like caller ID spoofing can make it more difficult to identify legitimate calls from scams.

Apps like Firewall can help you pinpoint unwanted messages and calls before they reach you to help keep your identity safe. If you ever receive a text from a number you don’t recognize, there are plenty of ways to block and report the number directly through your carrier.

Sources:

Scam statistics | ACCC

Stop Unwanted Robocalls and Texts | FCC.

Americans lost $29.8 billion to phone scams over the past year | CNBC

Miscommunication vs. Getting Your Message Across

Communication has changed drastically over the past decade alone, with technological advancements changing how we interact with others every year. 

We have become increasingly proficient at communicating virtually, giving us the ability to keep an entire network on the same page without ever calling an in-person meeting. 

On the flip side, there is a steep learning curve transforming your expectations around communication and human interaction. A discussion with someone through a virtual chat function will play out entirely differently if it is in person and vice versa. 

While the ways we get in touch with one another may change, the importance of thorough and concise communication is as crucial as ever. 

Whether you are talking to a board room full of people or sending out an email to your entire staff, understanding how to get your point across is of the utmost importance. 

How Do Miscommunications Happen?

Communication is vital in all walks of life, and it is essential in the world of business. Companies stand to lose millions of dollars and face lower workplace morale when they fail to maintain healthy and accessible communication channels. 

With so much on the line for businesses, how exactly do these miscommunications come about?

Vague Management

In many industries, it is massively beneficial to empower employees to make decisions about their role and how to go about meeting their professional outcomes. Management must be clear about what a person’s role within a company is when they are hiring. 

People need context and guidance that they can build on when they are working for someone because when a person’s duties are vague, it can be easy to misunderstand various aspects of the job. 

If it isn’t clear which person within a network of employees is supposed to get each specific task done, it can lead to confusion and a loss in productivity. This kind of issue is common when companies grow since the influx of the required workforce also requires a complete overhaul of the company’s workflow. As businesses increase in size, the responsibilities of your team members mustn’t become blurred as a result. 

Rushed Communication

Sending an email is incredibly easy, making it doubly important that you are careful when writing them. Many companies fall into the trap of sending a slew of emails or other messages throughout the day instead of calling meetings to discuss issues efficiently and concisely. 

It is much more difficult for an employer to follow a string of communication than understanding one conversation. This leads to information overload, and the ensuing need for clarification emails and discussions can clog a pipeline. 

Lack of Boundaries

As incredible as our technological leaps in communication have been, they come with obstacles that everyone has to vault. A big one is that people have access to you 24/7 through your mobile device, making it more difficult to enforce the line between your home life and your work life. 

As your business grows, so does your network, and it becomes more important that you filter out unwanted communications and dedicate your time to the people who need it. When the boundaries of the clock aren’t respected, people can lose morale and are more likely to misinterpret things. 

If a person is asked to be alert and productive for eight hours in a day, then it is within those eight hours that all business communications should occur. 

People are much more likely to understand a message told to them face-to-face, over the phone, or on a work memo than in a text sent three hours after their shift ended. 

How Do You Improve Communication?

The issues above aren’t inevitable for every business, and they can be primarily prevented and combatted. Utilizing the latest tools and providing team members with a framework that encourages self-directed growth while providing guidance can make all the difference. 

These improvements work at every level of a business, and implementing them from the top down can maximize the benefits of your communication initiatives. Here are a few methods of improving communication within your company.

Human Resources Support

Every employee should have available access to human resources at all stages of employment, starting from recruitment and onboarding. It is challenging to discuss vague management without evaluating the strength of a human resources department. 

Human resources employees are in the unique position of being in contact with all levels of a company, even outside stakeholders, meaning that they have a massive amount of influence on how others perceive the business. 

Suppose your human resources department is on a unified front when it comes to the goals of each position in the company. In that case, you can cut down on the confusion from unclear employee roles and responsibilities. 

Putting HR in a position where every employee feels that they can access them and ask questions will cultivate a healthy and open work environment where every team member feels they can safely get the support they need.

Avoid Information Overload

You want to make sure that team members are spending their time working towards their goals instead of having to respond to emails all day. Making the most out of in-person meetings or virtual calls that are thorough and provide all the information needed can reduce the fatigue that comes from barraging employees with emails. It also increases team member interaction and helps to cultivate a culture of cooperation. 

Prioritizing direct communication over multiple online messages can make sure you are getting your message across as efficiently as possible. 

Use Third-Party Apps To Maximize Your Own Efficiency

When your business grows, so does your network, and it becomes increasingly important that you filter out unwanted communication. 

You can become the victim of information overload just as easily as you can perpetuate it, with dozens or even hundreds of messages to look at every day. It is worth encouraging yourself and your team members to look into third-party apps that can help you keep unnecessary communication out of your visibility. 

Firewall is an app from the creators of Burner that allows you to block 100 percent of unwanted calls. This lets you focus on your work and avoid communication from unwanted parties, something that every member of your team can benefit from. 

Conclusion

Managing a growing business is tough and keeping your communication crisp and informational as it grows is even more challenging. Utilizing the resources at your disposal and engaging all team members can go a long way toward improving communication within your business. 

If you want to cut down on unwanted correspondence, use Firewall to block any unwanted callers. 

Firewall lets you whitelist anyone you want to have access to your phone and blocks out everyone else, allowing your team members to stay focused on the people they trust. Utilize resources like these when you want to give your team every opportunity to maximize their efficiency and streamline communication. 

Get started with Firewall today.

Sources:

The True Cost Of Poor Communication | Forbes

“Poor Communication” Is Often a Symptom of a Different Problem | Harvard Business Review

The Cost of Poor Communications | SHRM

10 Digital Miscommunications — and How to Avoid Them | Harvard Business Review

5 Causes of Miscommunication | Alvernia Online

iPhone Not Ringing? What Do You Do Now?

Unless you have specifically blocked numbers from ringing, you probably want to know who is calling. Checking your phone and noticing you have missed calls instantly produces panic and anxiety. 

If your iPhone isn’t ringing properly, then you miss out on very important calls and information. Considering how much an iPhone costs, this is especially frustrating to experience. Replacing your iPhone means spending a few more hundred dollars, and even cell repair services can get a little pricey. 

Luckily, there are quite a few things you can do at home that might help solve the issue.

Check And See If “Do Not Disturb” Is Enabled

The first thing that you should do if your iPhone isn’t ringing is to check and make sure that you didn’t accidentally turn on the “Do Not Disturb” feature of your phone. It’s possible that you may have enabled this option that silences your notifications, calls, alarms, and other alerts. Your phone will still receive calls, but you won’t be able to hear a ring. 

To disable this feature, you will have to swipe up from the bottom of your phone and bring up the command center. From here, you will look for an icon that is shaped like a crescent moon. If you see this icon, then it means “Do Not Disturb” is on. 

Pressing the icon should disable this mode and allow your phone to ring and function normally again.

Look At The Ring/Silent Switch

Another possibility is that you may have accidentally muted your ring volume by pressing the Ring/Silent switch into the silent position. This switch is located on the upper left side of your phone, just above the volume buttons. 

If you can see a band of red, then the button has been moved into silent mode. By sliding this button upwards, the phone returns to ringer mode, and you should hear sound when someone calls.

Turn Up The Volume

While you are checking out the Ring/Silent switch, take the opportunity to turn up your phone’s volume, just in case that is needed. The ringing volume may be too low for you to hear the ringing. 

You can use the buttons on the side of your phone, or you can check your settings. Go into the settings tab and select the Ringtone and Volume options. From there, adjust the volume level using a slider.

Your iPhone Might Be In Headphone Mode

If you like to use headphones or earbuds, then your iPhone might be stuck in headphone mode. This can especially be true if you often use a Bluetooth device with your iPhone. If your phone is stuck in headphone mode, it sends the ringtone to a device even if it’s not connected or plugged in. 

There are a few ways that you can deal with this potential issue. First, plug in your earbuds and then remove them. This helps the phone to recognize that the earbuds have been removed and headphone mode is no longer needed. It also helps to clear out any dust or debris stuck in the port that could be causing the issue. 

Another way is to enable Airplane mode on your phone from the command center. This will sever any connection with a Bluetooth device. 

Lastly, you can check the Airplay icon in the command center to see if other devices are connected. The icon looks like a triangle with three circles. If there is anything other than your iPhone selected, disable them and choose your phone. 

See If Call Forwarding Is Turned On

If you have call forwarding enabled, your iPhone won’t ring whenever it receives a call. To check, you will have to open the settings of your iPhone. Select the Phone tab and look for the Call Forwarding option. Press the option to turn it off if it is enabled. 

Check If The Number Is Blocked

Your iPhone allows you to create a list of blocked numbers. Although not as effective as other methods of blocking calls, this feature results in your phone not receiving a call. 

To find out if the number was blocked, open up the settings app of your phone. Then, choose the Phone tab and select the Call Blocking and Identification tab. 

From here, you can see a list of phone numbers that you have blocked. To unblock a specific number, swipe the number to the left and select the Unblock option. 

Turn Off The Silence Unknown Callers Feature

Another iPhone capability is the Silence Unknown Callers feature. This feature is similar to the blocking feature, but it blocks all numbers unless they are already listed in your contacts. 

To disable this feature, open up settings and select the Phone option. You should see Silence Unknown Callers in the list of options. Select it and disable the feature to allow all calls to come through. 

Restart Your Phone

Sometimes the best way to try and fix an issue with technology is to turn it off and then back on again simply. Restarting your phone helps to restore your ringing issue and is very easy to do. All you have to do is to press the Sleep/Wake button and hold it down. 

You would then drag the “slide to power off” prompt on your phone to turn it off. When the screen has gone completely black, you would then press and hold the Sleep/Wake button one more time and turn it back on. 

Check For Possible Updates

There are new versions of iOS coming out periodically. While your phone installs these updates automatically, your phone may not be up to date. The updates are designed to fix common bugs and issues faced by iPhone users, and it’s possible that a new version restores your phone's ringing. 

Open up the settings option on your phone and select the General tab. Look for the Software Update option and open it. If you see an update is available, tap the Install Now button to begin the downloading process. Once the update has been installed, your phone will reboot itself and restart.

The Takeaway

Even though a ringing phone is disruptive and annoying, it’s important to know when you receive a call. If your iPhone isn’t ringing whenever you receive a call, there are several ways that you can fix it. 

The most likely scenario is that you accidentally enabled or disabled one of the features listed above. Check the various features listed to see if you have them running. If that doesn’t work, then it could be a software issue that an update may fix. 

If none of the options listed above work, then you could reset your phone to factory settings. This action erases all of your data and information, so make sure that you have backed up everything first.  

SOURCES:

Own an iPhone or iPad? Here's why you should update your device now | USA Today

iPhone Not Ringing: 8 Ways to Fix It | Businessinsider.com

How to Fix iPhone Not Ringing Problem | Lifehack.org

How to Get Your iPhone Out of Headphone Mode in 6 Ways | Businessinsider.com

Spam Phone Calls Revenge: What Exactly Is It?

Almost 160 million spam calls are being made to Americans every day, and it’s only getting worse. This averages out to over 1,900 spam calls being made every second. 

Unless you are using a high-quality spam blocking app, you have almost certainly experienced a spam phone call very recently. People have gotten so sick and tired of dealing with these spam calls that they have started to seek out opportunities to get revenge on them. 

What Are Spam Calls?

A spam call is a name for whenever a person, business, or program makes unsolicited calls to people in order to try to learn their personal information. 

Generally, these calls will be made by computer programs that will play a prerecorded automated message when the person answers or if it goes to their voicemail. These are known as robocalls, and they are the reason why millions of spam calls can be made in a single day.

These calls are often viewed as a simple annoyance but don’t underestimate them. Robocalls and other phone scams have cost the American people nearly $30 billion in the last year alone. 

Over time, these scams have evolved to become pretty elaborate and are much more effective at conning their victims than in the past.

What Can You Do To Prevent Spam Calls?

Despite solid efforts recently, legislation has largely been ineffective at stopping spam calls. As a result, it will largely fall on you as an individual to protect yourself against them. Fortunately, there are quite a few ways that you can do that:

Change Your Phone Settings

Whether you have an iPhone or Android, your phone will come with various settings that can help you to block spam calls. The overall process is fairly simple and should take less than a minute to complete. 

iPhone

1. Open your Phone app and select Recent.

2. Locate the spam number and select the Info icon.

3. Scroll down until you see Block this Caller and select it.

4. Confirm your decision by selecting Block Caller.

5. The number will automatically be sent to voicemail from now on.

Android

1. Open your Phone app and select Recents.

2. Locate the spam number and select it.

3. Select the Info icon on the lower right.

4. Tap the Block option on the bottom right.

5. Confirm your decision by selecting Block.

6. The number will automatically be sent to voicemail from now on.

Use An App

Your phone gives you the option to block individual numbers, but it doesn’t do much against spam calls at large. Using a third-party app is easily the safest bet for blocking spam calls. 

Several different options are available to you, but the Burner app is one of the consistently highest rating services. Where most apps use a blacklist approach to spam, Burner uses a whitelist, and the results are very stark in contrast. 

Blacklists will be filled with numbers that have been confirmed as spam or are suspected as spam. These numbers will be blocked by the app and never make it to your cell phone. Although generally effective, blacklists can be bypassed whenever a spam caller uses a different number that hasn’t been identified as spam yet. 

A whitelist approach works the opposite way. You will generate this list yourself and include the numbers you will allow to be sent to your phone. Quite simply, if the number isn’t on this list then it won’t make it to your phone. 

While blacklists might be effective in the 90th percentile, whitelists can guarantee a 100% chance of blocking all spam calls and texts. 

How Can You Get Revenge On Spam Calls?

Whether you’ve been the victim of a phone-related scam in the past or you are just simply fed up with dealing with them, you may have been thinking about ways to get even. You would not be alone with that feeling. 

Recently, a startup named DoNotPay was launched and offered a service called Robo Revenge. The idea is fairly simple: scam the scammers. The difference is that this service is totally legal and within your rights. 

The process can get a little bit complicated, but the gist of it is you sue the scammers and can receive as much as $3,000 from them. The service is currently live on the DoNotPay website, and they even have an app available now. 

How Does Robo Revenge Work?

The whole process of this service is pretty clever but will take a little bit of background information to be able to explain. 

First, it’s important to cover the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) of 1991 as Robo Revenge wouldn’t be possible without this key piece of legislation. One of the first attempts to curb the rise of marketing calls, the TCPA restricted the use of automatic dialing systems and prerecorded voice messages during telemarketing calls. 

These rules were updated a year later to include a requirement that anyone making telephone solicitations have strict procedures for maintaining do-not-call lists. 

In 2003, the Federal Trade Commission created the National Do Not Call Registry. This list is made up of phone numbers of people requesting to limit the number of telemarketing calls that they receive. 

Once you have registered, you will have a 12-month renewable window to receive no telemarketing calls. If you do receive a call, then you would be open to creating a lawsuit against the caller. 

It’s through these government institutions that Robo Revenge is possible.  The way that it works is fairly ingenious:

1. Robo Revenge will first help you to register your number on the National Do Not Call Register. 

2. When a spam caller inevitably calls you, you would use the temporary credit card number provided by Robo Revenge.

3. The spammer will then try to collect the money from the card, but it won’t work since it hasn’t been activated.

4. The attempt to collect this money would still be sent through the credit card network.

5. In order to receive the payment, the scammer would then need to provide their name, address, and phone number to the credit card company.

6. The scammer won’t receive any money since the card is useless, but now you will know their personal information. 

7. This information is sent to DoNotPay, who will share it with you and create a letter demanding financial restitution from the scammer or legal consequences would be pursued.

8. You would then print out the letter and mail it to the address provided. 

9. Most often, a settlement check will arrive. If not, you would take the person to small claims court and have an airtight case against them.

It’s important to note that while there have been plenty of successful cases involving Robo Revenge, it’s far from being a guarantee. 

The legal process can be long, complicated, and expensive, so make sure that you are prepared for a fight. Most often, scammers will accept defeat and send a settlement check, but if not, you will have to take it to court, and it may cost you time and money in the process.

The Takeaway

There is a very satisfying and rewarding feeling that comes when thinking of scamming a scammer. The best part is that a service like Robo Revenge isn’t even a scam: it’s completely legal. 

It’s entirely possible that you can end up receiving a few hundred or even thousands of dollars by using Robo Revenge. However, while the thought of justifiable revenge might be very tempting, it’s probably safer just to avoid getting involved with scam callers altogether. 

Instead, you should just change your phone settings or download Burner for a free seven-day trial and block them out of your life once and for all.  

SOURCES

Robocalls are back in a big way in 2021

How to Stop Illegal Robocalls: Tips and Resources

Americans lost $29.8 billion to phone scams over the past year

How To Report Spam Texts

At first, spam largely came in the form of junk mail. Then it became more common as a phone call. After the rise of the internet, email became the new most popular method. Now it seems like spam texts might be the next big thing. 

Spam texts set a record in January of 2021, with over six billion messages being sent. This record wouldn’t last very long as it would be shattered just two months later as the number of spam texts hit 7.4 billion messages in March of 2021. 

As a result of so many messages being sent out, it’s no surprise that there have been apps and software designed specifically to block them. However, blocking them isn’t enough for some people, and they want to fight back against these annoying spammers. If you are fed up with spam texts, there are quite a few ways that you can join the fight against them.

What Are Spam Texts?

A spam text is most commonly defined as a text message you didn’t want and contains information you didn’t ask for. They essentially operate like junk mail for your phone. 

Often they appear as mass advertisements that contain “special offers”, important messages from government agencies or your bank, and announcements related to prizes or contests you won. 

These are just a few general examples as spam texts can get very specific, especially if the scammers have any personal information like your name, address, or job. 

What Is The Point Of A Spam Message?

The ultimate goal of a spam message is to steal as much personal information from the recipient as possible. Your personal data is highly valuable to online predators and cybercriminals. Most people know how valuable their social security number and banking information can be, but even your phone number and email can be enough to sell online to hackers. 

Make no mistake about it; spam texts are a highly lucrative and effective scam. In fact, it’s estimated that over 2.2 million Americans reported a total of $3.3 billion in losses due to digital fraud in 2020. 

Over one in every four (27%) of those fraud victims reported that the initial contact was made via text message. Clearly, spam texts are more than just an annoying notification that you will have to delete; they are very dangerous too. 

Is There Anything Being Done To Stop Spam Texts?

When you have enough people being scammed out of so much money, it’s just a matter of time before local representatives start to hear about it. Due to pressure being applied by their constituents, there have been multiple bipartisan attempts at creating legislation intended to eliminate spam calls and texts. 

The Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act was signed into law in 2003 and made it illegal for businesses to send unwanted text messages. While this helped to curb the number of spam texts in some ways, it hardly slowed down scammers since they typically aren’t registered businesses. 

In January 2020, a new law was signed in order to go after scammers specifically. The Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (TRACED) Act increased the potential fines for spammers and emphasized phone companies do more to protect their consumers. 

Although a noble attempt to help, clearly, the law has been ineffective based on the record number of spam texts being sent every month since its inception. 

What Can You Do About It?

Since it doesn’t appear that spam texts are going away anytime soon, it will be up to you to protect yourself from them. There are quite a few options for doing so and even a couple where you can fight back against the spammers. 

Forward The Messages

The best way to help the world be rid of spammers is to provide information to the proper authorities. At its peak, the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM)  was used in 219 countries and territories around the world and served more than five billion people. 

This digital mobile network has largely been one of the most responsible for the exchange of Short Message Service (SMS) texts. The system has designated the number 7726 or “SPAM” as a method of reporting spam texts. All that you have to do is forward the spam message that you have received to 7726. 

Regardless of your service plan, there will be no fee or charge incurred for sending this message. While this option is one of the easiest, it might not be around much longer as the GSM is expected to be phased out within a few years. 

Report Spam Text Messages

Along with forwarding the text to 7726 to report junk, you should also be sure to file an official complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). 

These organizations are the ones that are best suited to enforce the laws being written to protect you from spam. The more information that they have, the easier it will be for them to do their jobs. All of the info you provide will be added to a registry for spam protection.

For the FTC, you would need to go to the Complaint Assistant page on their website. Under the menu section, you will need first to select the “Mobile Devices and Telephones” option and then “Unwanted Text Messages.” 

You will then be taken through a questionnaire about the details involving the text that you received. 

For The FCC, you will have to visit the Consumer Complaint Center page and be asked to fill out a short form regarding any information you have about the text and where it came from.

Use An App to Filter Unknown Senders

Even though creating reports and file complaints might bring about some satisfaction, you will almost certainly continue to get spam texts to your cell phone number anyway. Trying to fight back against these spam texts is a very noble practice. However, it can quickly be overwhelming having to continuously deal with spam texts or robocallers all day and every day. 

Once you have reached your breaking point with telemarketing calls, using an app like Burner can help you to block 100% of these spam texts and calls. The way that the app works is fairly ingenious. 

After you install it on your wireless device, Burner will allow you to select a new number that comes complete with an area code of your choosing. This number will then be used as the middleman during calls or texts in order to protect your real number. This is the number that shows on other people's caller id.

Since calls and texts will be routed through Burner first, you will be given the option to create a list of numbers that are permitted to be sent. This is called a whitelist approach and is virtually impossible for spammers to bypass. 

Only texts and calls from approved numbers will be sent through to your real phone number; all others will be blocked or sent to your voicemail. From there, you will be able to listen to the voicemail that’s left and determine if the call is legitimate. 

You would then add the number to your whitelist, and the number would be sent through the next time it called. 

The Takeaway

Despite legislative actions to get rid of spam texts, they are currently worse than ever. Even new features from T-Mobile/Sprint, AT&T, Verizon or other carriers don't seem to help block spam texts. These are very dangerous scams that can turn your life upside down in no time flat. 

There are a few options available in terms of reporting these highly annoying messages, but ultimately that won’t stop the constant bombardment of spam from scammers and telemarketers. The only way to guarantee 100% of spam texts and robocalls to be blocked is by using an app like Burner. 

Try the free seven-day trial today in order to experience a life without spam. 

SOURCES:

Robocall Record: 7.4 Billion Spam Texts Surpass Total Robocalls By More Than 1 Billion Messages In March 2021 | prnewswire.com

8 Spam Text Message Examples (& How to Identify Them Quickly) | textedly.com

In-Demand Data | mackeeper.com

Send Unknown Calls To Voicemail Automatically

One of the most pervasive technological annoyances faced by almost everyone in the United States is the prevalence of unwanted calls. Whether they be robocalls or unwelcome telemarketers, pretty much everyone has had to deal with unsolicited phone calls at some point in their life. 

While the problem of unwanted calls is widespread, there are several actions that you can take to counter their effects. With most mobile devices, you have ways of identifying spammers who are unwelcome and have them sent straight to voicemail for you to look over later. 

Blocking New Callers on your Cell Phone

Most Android and Apple devices allow you to filter or block any callers that do not provide identification or who you do not approve beforehand and send them straight to voicemail. This allows you to avoid dealing with unwanted calls in the middle of the day instead of letting you look over them in your voicemail to check and see if they are worth calling back. 

Android Phones

If you want to block unknown callers on an Android device, use the following steps:

1. Access your Phone app.

2. Find and select the options menu within the Phone app. 

3. Click the menu tab for blocked numbers.

4. Set your phone to block all unknown numbers.

This process blocks any unknown phone numbers from calling your cell phone number. 

Apple iPhone

Apple devices allow you to silence unknown callers as of iOS 13, meaning you won’t hear an annoying ring, and you can instead deal with the calls once they hit your voicemail. To set this up, do the following:

1. Open your default phone settings. 

2. Select your Phone app settings icon at the top of your iPhone.

3. Switch on the Silence Unknown Callers option.

These calls will still show up in your recent calls menu, meaning you can check and see if you recognize them at your leisure. 

Blocking Specific Numbers

There are a variety of reasons you might want to block a specific phone number from reaching you. Frequently, robocalls will contact you from a common phone number, meaning that once you identify them, you have the option to block that specific number and hope your unwanted calls cease for a while. 

Other times there might be organizations or people in your life that you don’t want to contact, making this feature equally useful. While your device layout will differ, the process of blocking a number will most likely follow a common method:

1. Access your recent calls list (call log) to find the robocall (this also might be a call blocking list).

2. Select the number and indicate that you want to block that number.

3. Confirm that you are sure you want to block the number you selected.

Until you unblock the number, it will be sent to the auto reject list and is unable to call you, meaning you are free from another unwanted caller. 

Using a Third Party App

While it is great that more and more developers are creating ways that you can silence junk callers, most of them still have a lot of room for error. Firewall is a third-party app that you install on your mobile device that blocks 100% of annoying callers to your phone number. 

Most methods of combating robocalls use an inefficient solution called a blacklisting method, which means that a wide array of databases are cross-referenced to build a list of potential spam callers. This method is effective, but there will always be ways to bypass it and create new phone numbers. 

Firewall uses a whitelisting method, meaning that you choose which numbers to approve and which not to. Any caller who you don’t whitelist is sent straight to voicemail, where Firewall’s voicemail transcription feature allows you to determine whether or not they were legitimate. 

Conclusion

Being hounded by annoying spam calls is something no one wants to deal with, and luckily there are more options to avoid them than ever before. While your device comes equipped with ways of fighting against unwanted inbound calls, third-party apps are the way to go if you want complete protection from pesky spam calls. 

Firewall is made by the creators of Burner, and with that comes a tried and true dedication to privacy and security. With Firewall’s whitelisting approach, you can rest assured that 100% of unwanted callers will be filtered out for you to take a look at without them bothering you with a call in the middle of the day. 

Whatever tool you choose, it is a good idea to always keep an eye out for new ways to preserve your privacy, especially when it comes to your phone. 

Sources:

Targeting Gateway Providers to Combat Illegal Robocalls Fifth Further Notice of Proposing Rule | FCC 

Block or unblock a phone number | Android

​​Detect and block spam phone calls | Apple

Unwanted Calls: How To Avoid Them & Fight Back

Robocalls and spam calls are one of today’s most pervasive issues, and they affect anyone who has a phone. The FCC lists unwanted calls as their most common complaint annually, and luckily our software is advancing in an attempt to meet this threat and get ahead of it. 

Despite the array of software and policy changes implemented in the last few years, unwanted calls are still a big issue affecting almost everyone. 

Here are a few ways you can take action and fight these unwanted calls. 

Do Not Pick Up Your Cell Phone

Sometimes all you need to do to stop unwanted calls is ignore them. These annoying callers aren’t always persistent, and ignoring them hints that you aren’t available to talk to them. 

Letting your phone go to voicemail is especially effective with real-life callers since a real person is more likely to understand when to give it a rest and stop calling you. Unfortunately, many of the unwanted calls people receive in the modern era are robocalls, meaning that the calls aren’t likely to stop independently. 

Block The Caller

Once you identify someone as a spam caller, the simplest and most effective solution is to block that caller. Modern Android and Apple devices both allow you to block specific numbers easily. 

Usually, you can access this feature by selecting the number from your call history and indicating that you want to block them. In most cases, this creates a log of all blocked numbers, which you can return to if you need to unblock a number for any reason. 

This method is very effective when you receive an unwanted call from the same person more than once. Still, it only blocks that individual, which can become tedious if you block numbers regularly due to an uptick of robocalls.

Dispose Of Your Caller Id Number

When making a call, you can type *67 before the number you want to dial, and your number won’t show up on the receiving party’s caller ID. This is a great tool for people who want to stay anonymous, and a great perk is that it keeps businesses from getting access to your phone number. 

Suppose you’re worried about calling someone you don’t want to get a call back from; just hide your phone number and let that worry end there. This won’t block future unwanted callers from reaching you, but it will help you maintain your anonymity.

Sign up for the FTCs Do Not Call List

By signing up for the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) National Do Not Call List, you can protect yourself from telemarketers and prevent sales companies from contacting around the nation contacting your number. 

All you must do is register your number online or call 1-888-382-1222 from the number in the question and register there. While it could take up to a month for businesses to update their Do Not Call registry records, signing up will keep you safe from many of the legal telemarketing calls that you want to avoid. 

However, sometimes unwanted calls are illegal and do not follow the Do Not Call List, so further action is usually necessary.

Use an App To Fight Back

The best way to take matters into your own hands is to download an app built specifically for blocking unwanted callers. Firewall accesses your contacts and whitelists any callers that are approved to reach your phone. 

Unlike many apps that try to get ahead of the issue by blacklisting known scam callers from national databases, Firewall ensures 100% of unwanted calls are blocked by giving you control over who has access to your phone. 

Firewall also includes voicemail transcription so that you can review calls that are sent to voicemail, letting you look at them and decide if they came from someone you want to whitelist. 

Conclusion

While the issue of unwanted calls isn’t going away any time soon, you can still act and prevent them from bothering you. Your phone probably has some built-in features that let you block specific numbers and hide your identity. Still, for the sake of your security and anonymity, it is a good idea to take it a step further with Firewall. 

Firewall is made by the same people who invented the Burner app, and that privacy-first mentality shines through in both products. With Firewall, you can be sure that you are doing everything you can to cut down on robocalls, scam calls, and telemarketers. 

Firewall comes with a 14-day free trial, after which you can purchase the app for $3.99 per

month.

Sources: 

Targeting Gateway Providers

to Combat Illegal Robocalls Fifth Further Notice of Proposing Rule | FCC 

How to block unwanted calls | FCC

National Do Not Call Registry

How To Block Robocalls: A Step-by-Step Tutorial

Unwanted calls are the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) top complaint from consumers in the United States, and estimates say that fraud through robocalls alone costs $13.5 billion annually. 

Luckily for you, government agencies, carriers, and private software developers alike rose to meet this growing concern over the past few years, leaving us with a myriad of viable options for combatting these illegal, scam incoming calls. 

Whether you aim to protect your information from online scammers or your priority is maintaining your privacy, there are steps you can take to block, screen, and report unwanted telemarketing calls.

How To Block All Numbers

Most modern mobile devices have built-in features that allow you to whitelist the phone numbers you want to call, thereby blocking or screening any unknown callers. 

You can set your phone to restrict calls from all unapproved sources on many Android and iOS devices.

Android Phones

Some Android users can block unknown callers outright through the following steps:

1. Access your Phone app.

2. Find and select the options menu within the Phone app. 

3. Click the menu tab for blocked numbers.

4. Set your phone to block all unknown numbers.

Once this is done, all unknown numbers should be barred from calling your phone number. 

iOS and iPhones

iOS takes a slightly different approach which it has implemented since iOS 13. You can set your iOS devices to silence all unknown callers instead of outright blocking them. 

Calls still show up on your phone, but they are sent to voicemail for you to check on. The steps for this are as follow:

1. Open your phone settings. 

2. Select your Phone app settings.

3. Switch on the Silence Unknown Callers option.

This method allows you to check any silenced calls in your recent calls menu and determine the legitimacy of these callers for yourself. 

How To Block Numbers By Area Code

The sources of these robocalls can be very resilient, coming back even after you block them with new phone numbers. Sometimes these callers are still restricted to a particular region, meaning that they might share a common area code. 

If you receive a disproportionate number of robocalls from a particular area code, find out if your device allows you to block entire area codes. This isn’t possible on a base iOS device without third-party applications, but some Android devices allow this. 

Do the following on your Android device:

1. Open your settings.

2. In your call settings, create an auto-reject list. 

3. Change match criteria to Starts With and input the area code or country code.

Once you save this list, all numbers beginning with that suffix should be blocked. 

How To Block Specific Numbers

In many cases, the source of a problematic robocall can be addressed directly; once you have picked up the phone and identified a robocall, blocking that specific number from reaching you again is a simple process across both Apple and Android devices.

While the user interface will vary depending on what kind of device and OS you are using, the following process should work for you:

1. Access your recent call history to find the robocall (this also might be a call blocking list).

2. Select the number and indicate that you want to block that number.

3. Confirm that you are sure you want to block the number you selected.

These devices also contain a record of the numbers you block, and you can access this record whenever you need to if you want to unblock any of these numbers for any reason.

Do Not Call Registry

What makes dealing with these robocalls so complicated is that they are often unauthorized and illegal attempts to scam you. That being said, this isn’t always the case, and sometimes the people hounding your phone are legitimate (albeit perfectly irritating) telemarketers. 

By signing up for the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) National Do Not Call List, you can protect yourself from these telemarketers and prevent many American sales companies from contacting your number. The process is simple:

1. Go to https://www.donotcall.gov/. 

2. Register the number of your choice. 

Alternatively, you can call 1-888-382-1222 from the number in question and register that way. It may take up to a month for some telemarketers to update their Do Not Call lists. If an unwanted caller contacts your number more than 31 days after registering for the list, you can report them to the FTC. 

Do note that the FTC itself admits that organizations such as debt collectors, political groups, and charities will still have access to your number, in addition to any illegal organizations that already don’t respect the Do Not Call list.

Get A Call Blocking App

If you are up for going beyond the software built into your device, there are a slew of apps designed specifically for maximizing your protection against robocalls. You can search an app store and see what you find, but here are a few well tested and trustworthy options:

Firewall

Most apps use a blacklisting approach, where unknown callers are cross-referenced with databases that track known spam phone numbers and numbers associated with robocalls. 

Firewall takes the opposite approach: The whitelisting method. Once you’ve downloaded the app, you permit it to access your contacts and whitelist all known numbers that should be allowed to ring through. 

Firewall sends any phone numbers that aren’t whitelisted to voicemail. The app includes voicemail transcription that allows you to read these messages and determine if they came from a source you would like to whitelist. 

This ensures that 100% of unwanted calls are blocked, something unachievable through blacklisting alone. Firewall comes with a 14-day free trial, after which you can purchase the app for $3.99 per month.   

Nomorobo

Nomorobo is a dependable robocall blocking app with a fun name and intuitive layout. As of October 2021, Nomorobo costs $1.99 per month or $19.99 for a full year of service. All you have to do is:

1. Download the app and choose a subscription plan.

2. Enter your phone number and choose either the Identify or Block setting.

Identify means that the calls will go through, but they will be clearly marked as robocalls via caller ID. Block means that these calls will all be sent to voicemail. 

If your goal is to block robocalls on a landline, Nomorobo offers that for free. Nomorobo works with VoIP landlines, but not with copper wire landlines. 

Hiya

Hiya is another easy-to-use app exclusive to mobile phone users. A stripped-down version of Hiya is available for use for free, but most of the features come with a Hiya Premium subscription for $2.99 per month or 14.99 per year. 

Without the subscription, you will access basic caller ID functions, a personal block list, and spam call alerts. Paying the extra money adds an improved caller ID function, automatic spam blocking, and a number lookup function. 

Conclusion

Robocalls are a pervasive problem with an overwhelming variety of apps and software trying to combat them. Many mobile devices and carriers have built-in features for blocking unwanted calls. Still, software like Firewall is available for people who want to take that extra step toward mobile privacy. 

In addition to blocking robocalls and unwanted calls, Firewall includes SMS spam blocking, voicemail transcription and screening, and the privacy-first you expect from the creators of Burner. 

If your goal is to cut down on robocalls and unwanted spam messages, get your Firewall free trial in the iOS app store today. 

Sources:

Targeting Gateway Providers to Combat Illegal Robocalls Fifth Further Notice of Proposing Rule | FCC 

Detect and block spam phone calls | Apple

Block or unblock a phone number | Google Support

How to block unwanted calls | FCC

Stop robocalls and telemarketers with Nomorobo | Nomorobo

Caller ID, Call Blocker & Protection for a Better Voice Experience | Hiya

Mobile Phone Software For Productivity

There are only so many hours available in the day to be productive. Necessities like sleeping or eating meals take up a few hours of the day, and circumstances such as commuting and raising children will take away several more. 

Since it’s not possible to add in any hours to your day, it’s important to be as productive during your work hours as you can. Falling behind on tasks can lead to them quickly piling up and result in long nights needed to catch back up. 

Fortunately, there are a few apps created with software designed specifically to help boost your productivity. 

What Are You Looking For?

Before you head to the Google Play Store or your App Store and start downloading apps or free software, you should first figure out exactly what you are looking for the software to do. There are essentially three different goals for using productivity-boosting software: helping you to get better organized, increasing your amount of focus, and helping you to develop better habits. 

Depending on your specific circumstances, some of these software options might be a better fit for you than others. 

Dialed

The first option on this list is one that places an emphasis on all three of the categories that can improve your productivity. Dialed is an app that provides a second phone number for your smartphone in addition to contact management capabilities. 

When used properly, the available features help you organize, stay focused, and create better habits. The Dialed app has a few features that can help the organization using contact management. 

One such feature is the ability to create contact sheets that bundle the calls, texts, and relevant information of a contact in one convenient place. For focus, Dialed provides a second phone number that helps you to screen calls, block spam, and block or certain mute users. This helps to keep you from being distracted by unimportant interruptions and allows you to stay focused on work with only a single click. 

Dialed also provides the ability to set work hours, off-hours, and a do not disturb mode. These features route calls to a prerecorded message or provide an automatic reply to texts. It also allows you to set boundaries between work and home life to create healthier habits for productivity. 

A subscription for this platform is $9.99 monthly or $89.99 annually. 

Todoist

The main focus of this software is around creating and completing complicated to-do lists and managing your tasks. With an easy-to-use interface, this software helps you create and manage task lists. 

It also allows you to prioritize tasks and place a larger emphasis on the more important ones. Other available features include creating projects, setting deadlines, and assigning tasks to your team members. 

The daily and weekly overviews can help remind you of your progress and what else is required to complete the project, helping you stay on track to meet deadlines. 

The free version will provide these options for up to five collaborators and allow for five active projects, but the Pro and Business plans will provide more features, while also allowing for more active projects and more collaborators. The monthly subscriptions for these plans cost $3 and $5, respectively. 

Trello

This software is another option for creating tasks and managing projects. The concept is based on the Japanese board philosophy known as Kanban. This philosophy focuses on creating a visual layout and labeling tasks as “to-do,” “doing,” or “done.” 

By organizing the various tasks of a project and assigning them to collaborative teams, Trello makes it easier to stay on top of deadlines and finish the project on time. Another benefit of using Trello is that it allows its users to communicate easily. Trello provides an instant messaging feature that helps the various members of your team communicate in real-time while working together. 

The free version of this app will allow only one board to be created, but the paid subscription will unlock more options. The monthly plan costs $9.99 each month per user.  It's available on iOs, iPhone, Android devices, tablets, and your web browser.

RescueTime

This is one of the most effective productivity apps. RescueTime runs in the background of your phone or laptop and monitors the amount of time that you spend using various websites and apps like Facebook, etc.

The app will then produce reports that display and break down the results, helping to show you how much time you’ve been wasting and where. Once you learn where you are spending your time and focus, you can block those sites or set up a time limit and alarms. 

By creating these boundaries and setting a general goal for productivity, you will be able to focus more on your tasks instead of wasting time. The basic version of the app is free, but they offer a paid version with a couple more enhanced features for $9 monthly or $72 annually. 

Focus Booster

One of the more popular methods of improving your time management is by using the Pomodoro Technique. The idea is that by taking a five-minute break after 25 minutes of work, you can help to recharge your focus, get back on task, and maintain a high level of productivity. 

Focus Booster helps you to manually create timesheets with assigned tasks and view reports on your progress. The app can’t block websites, but it does provide a mini timer on your screen that will serve as a reminder of what you should be working on. 

The free version should be enough to help you, but there are paid versions available for $2.99 and $4.99 monthly.

Forest

This free app is a little bit different than the others on this list, but it’s one of the best for helping to eliminate distractions. It won’t help much with organization, but it can help you stay off your mobile device and focus on your desktop tasks. 

The best part is how it gets you to put your phone down. Whenever you want to focus, you plant a virtual tree in the app. The longer that you spend away from your phone, the more that the tree grows. 

If you can stay off your phone long enough, you can grow an entire forest. While this sounds like a silly game, you can earn virtual coins in this game that can be used to plant and grow trees in real life. 

Everyone knows how important trees are to the planet. By staying off of your phone, you can stay focused on your task and increase your productivity and help make the world a better place in the process. 

The Takeaway

The best way to save time and stress is by maximizing your productivity. This is much easier said than done, but a few apps and resources can help you. 

Whether you need help getting better organized, improving your focus, or developing better habits, there are plenty of options available. However, instead of stacking multiple apps and juggling a few monthly subscriptions, you might find success simply using one instead. 

Dialed can help with all three of these productivity categories when used properly. The free seven-day trial can help you see just how effective it can be at boosting your productivity.

SOURCES

Why Plant Trees? | Onetreeplanted.org

The Pomodoro Technique Really Works for Productivity | Themuse.com

What is a Kanban Board? | Atlassian.com

Android Firewall Software For Handling Spam

Few things are as annoying as constantly dealing with a ringing phone, especially when it’s a robocall, telemarketer, or other forms of spam making the call. Fortunately, more steps are being taken by the major phone service providers and government to help eliminate these calls. 

The idea behind their initiatives is to verify each call that is made using their various networks to discover and disable spam calls. While these efforts are admirable and have helped reduce the number of spam calls being made, they still have a very long way to go. 

If you are constantly dealing with spam calls on your Android device, there are a few apps that you can download that can help protect you. 

What Is Spam?

Before discussing the various options for blocking spam, you should first know a little bit about spam in general. Spam calls are unwanted communication attempts that intend to advertise something, spread malware, or phishing.

The most common attempts usually come in the form of a phone call, text message, or email. Even the most private and careful individuals might fall victim to spam from time to time. Companies will often sell your information, such as phone numbers or email addresses, to third parties. 

They will then use this information to send spam and attempt their con. The issue has become such a problem that recent legislation was passed to crack down on this third-party sharing. Unfortunately, these efforts haven’t been enough to stop the selling of private information or spamming.

How To Prevent Spam

There really isn’t much that you can do to prevent spam from being sent. You should try your best to never engage with any spam efforts, including calls, emails, or risky links on your computer. 

The most effective way of protecting yourself is by using software designed to protect your information and block out spam attempts. The easiest way to achieve this is by using software designed to fight spam. 

These are a few of the best apps available for blocking spam and keeping your information secure.

Burner

The term “burner” refers to using a cheap or disposable phone to hide your actual phone number. The app Burner takes this concept and updates it to fit a more modern world. Instead of requiring you to buy another phone, Burner gives you a second phone number that will hide away your actual number and keep it private. 

Everything on your end stays the same as you can still make calls, send texts, and manage your phone contacts. The difference is that whenever someone sends you a call or text, it is first intercepted by Burner. 

Calls and texts that are sent by your approved contacts are routed to your private number, but any unknown, blocked, or spam calls are not transferred. After a free seven-day trial, the app is available as a monthly subscription with no limits on minutes and texts or a prepaid option with varying limitations. 

Truecaller

Since 2009, the Truecaller app has been used around the world by over 250 million users. The software utilizes an extremely powerful Caller ID that helps to identify spam, robocallers, telemarketers, and other undesired callers. 

The spam detector is effective due to the spam list being constantly updated by millions of users across the world. So instead of having to wait for a number to call your phone to become blocked, it will only need to call another Truecaller user to be blacklisted automatically. 

The free version of this app grants access to the Caller ID and spam blocking features, but it will require advertisements. Truecaller also offers a paid subscription that removes the ads, enables several more features, and provides additional security for a fee of $4.99 a month. 

Hiya

Businesses and carriers use the software developed by Hiya in addition to regular everyday people. The app allows you to identify numbers you want to answer and block the numbers you wish to avoid. It also contains the option to auto block unknown numbers and reverses phone lookup to find out the number calling. 

Hiya is available in over 40 different countries and claims over 170 million users. Hiya has a basic option that is free to use and provides some benefits, but their paid subscription service will cost $2.99 a month. 

The paid service will provide more frequent spam updates and premium Caller ID services. 

Firewall

A lot of call blocking apps use the blacklist method to try and prevent spam calls. They add phone numbers to the blacklist, and the number is no longer be able to make contact. However, this approach isn’t totally effective, and spammers can often penetrate it by switching their numbers. 

Firewall works a little bit differently. It utilizes a whitelist instead, which works in the opposite way of a blacklist. You would create a list of contacts that would be allowed to ring through when calling, and the rest would be either blocked or sent to voicemail automatically. 

Another feature of Firewall is that the calls sent to voicemail can be transcribed. This way, you can quickly read them and see if they are worth calling back or deleting. 

When returning the call, Firewall further protects you by keeping your number private. The app is available for a free 14-day trial but will require a monthly subscription of $3.99 in order to continue using.

RoboKiller

RoboKiller is a software that uses an algorithm designed to identify and block robocalls, telemarketers, unknown callers, and other spam. The numbers will automatically be uploaded to a blacklist that is constantly being updated, ensuring the latest protections from the newest spam numbers. 

The app allows you to create a customizable Block-list as well as an Allow-list. You will also have the ability to temporarily pause the blocking algorithm if you expect a call from an unknown number and reactivate it when you choose. 

What really separates this software from the others is its ability to fight spammers by using spam. Instead of simply blocking the number, you will have the option of selecting an Answer Bot that will send spammers long and tedious messages. You’ll have the chance to get a little bit of payback for all those years of annoying spam calls. 

The RoboKiller app offers a free seven trial but requires a subscription fee of $3.99 to continue using after the week is over.

The Takeaway

Unfortunately, spam is a highly annoying part of having access to modern technology. The good news is that the problem is being addressed, but the bad news is that the problem still exists. It seems like every time a solution is created; spammers find a new way to get around it. 

For that reason, you shouldn’t rely on legislation and laws to protect you from spam. Instead, you should take matters into your own hands and protect yourself by downloading the Firewall app now.

SOURCES

Tired of annoying and intrusive spam calls? Here's how to keep robocalls at a minimum | CNET.com

What Is Spam | Internetsociety.org

 Here's what you need to know about the new law on robocalls | ABCNews.com

5 Simple Ways You Can Fight Spam and Protect Yourself | CSA.gov

How does Caller ID work? | HowStuffWorks

Caller Name (CNAM) Lookup: How To Find Someone's Location

“EVERY MINUTE OF EVERY DAY, everywhere on the planet, dozens of companies — largely unregulated, little scrutinized — are logging the movements of tens of millions of people with mobile phones and storing the information in gigantic data files.”

• Stuart A. Thompson and Charlie Warzel, The New York Times, Dec. 19, 2019

The first line from The Privacy Project sounds a bit frightening and scary for some, it also has several benefits, such as locating a missing person or dangerous criminal. Parents, for example, will often install apps on their children's phones in order to know their location throughout the day. 

Whatever the reason might be for needing to know the location of someone, looking up the phone’s CNAM is one of the most effective and commonly used methods.  

What Does CNAM Mean?

CNAM stands for Caller Name and is a feature used by telephone networks in the United States in order to provide an accurate name and identity of the calling party. Whenever you see the name and number of a phone call pop up on your Caller ID, it’s using CNAM technology in order to provide this information. 

Although Caller ID will typically only display the ten-digit phone number of the caller, CNAM can include as many as 15 characters that are associated with the number. This information can include the name of the person who owns the number and the city and state they reside in. 

How Does CNAM Work?

Throughout the country, there are various carrier databases that the telecom service providers use in order to store CNAM information. Whenever a carrier receives a call and information appears on their screen, they are performing what’s called a “CNAM Dip.” 

This dip will search for the name that is associated with the number making the call and send the information along with the call. However, there has been software developed that can be used in order to block CNAM and hide the name and number from being displayed. 

So if the phone number is using a CNAM blocker, then the call won’t be identified, and you won’t be able to learn any more information about its origins. This is an especially common tactic for robocalls and spammers. You might not be able to learn who is making these calls, but they can be blocked by using certain apps and software. 

How Can CNAM Find The Location Of A Phone?

Unless intentionally blocked, telecommunications providers store relevant information relating to a phone number in their database. These private databases are maintained and updated with information as phone accounts and numbers are constantly opened, closed, and changed. 

The phone number is registered in the database, so too is the GPS data and sim cards. This is how using CNAM can help to identify the current location of the phone. Another benefit of CNAM is that it assigns spam scores to phone numbers. 

If a number is labeled as “spam,” then the information will pop up on the display screen whenever a call is made from that number.  

What Are Other Ways To Find A Phone’s Location?

Using a CNAM lookup tool lets you discover the information related to a telephone number as long as you have the ten-digit phone number. 

The location of the caller should be included along with the rest of the information mentioned above. While this can be an effective way to learn the physical location of a phone, there are quite a few other ways that can work as well. 

Use Whitepages

Whitepages is a website that is also available as an app. By entering the phone number in the search box, the software will search and provide any relevant information relating to it. This might include the name, age, address, relatives, scam rating, and even the person’s criminal record associated with the number. 

While this option will provide a ton of valuable information, it won’t be able to divulge the exact current location of a number. 

Find My Device Apps

Whether you have an Android or an iPhone, there are apps available that can help you find your phone’s location. The app is called “Find my Device” for Android users and is available to download from the Google Play Store. 

The app is “Find my iPhone” for iPhone users and should already be installed on your phone. All you would need to do is enable the option through iCloud. Both of these apps can tell you the exact current location of the phone and the various activities being performed on it. 

If the phone is lost or stolen, the app will lock the device and will not allow anyone to access it. The information could even be erased remotely if you would like. 

Social Media

Most social media apps have a search box on their site or app. By entering the phone number into the search box, it can relay the accounts that are linked to the person owning that number. You would then be able to search their account and see their recent updates and activities. 

This will only work if the person has a public account or is currently a friend or follower of yours. You might be able to discover someone’s real-time location if they have recently posted something, but you won’t be able to tell otherwise. 

The IMEI Number

IMEI stands for International Mobile Station Equipment Identity, and every cell phone has one. The IMEI number is a unique 15 digit number that will provide various information about the manufacturing of the device. 

In order to find the IMEI of the phone, you can either go into your phone settings and select the “about” tap or dial *#06#. Once you know the IMEI number of a device, several apps and trackers are available that can pinpoint its exact location. 

Spy Tracking Apps

There are quite a few options out there for spy tracking apps, but just about all of them will require the app to be downloaded onto the phone. Spyera, PanSpy, and Spyic are a few of the more popular choices. 

Once you have obtained an app license and bought a service from a website, you would download the app onto the phone that you wish to track. The software uses GPS to track the phone’s direct location, but it can use mobile data or Wi-Fi if GPS isn’t enabled. 

Along with the location, these apps can also track various information such as call logs, texts, and keyword alerts. 

The Takeaway

Trying to determine the location of a phone can be a little bit difficult, but it’s far from impossible. The best ways are by using various software or apps that cell phone towers and GPS services can triangulate. 

However, if you are attempting to find the location of a phone that you do not have access to, you will probably need to look up their CNAM information. If the CNAM information is purposefully blocked, you won’t find the phone’s location or the caller’s identity. 

These CNAM blockers are a popular method used by spam callers and robocalls but can be blocked. However, spammers quickly find ways around being blocked. Apps like Firewall give you total control over who is allowed to ring through. These apps ensure you know who’s calling and why by allowing you to create a caller whitelist. Click the link now and visit Firewall for more information on easily blocking robocalls and spam calls.