Samsung to introduce automatic call blocking on Android 11-capable flagships

Samsung phones will soon come with automatic spam call blocking. The feature, which is part of Samsung Smart Call, will debut on the Galaxy Note20 and will roll out to all new devices released after 2020. The chaebol has made a deal with Seattle-based caller ID startup Hiya, licensing the firm's tech for five years. Hiya is …

[hoola]

How does it work?

Given that so many of these spam calls appear to originate from Asia using rapidly changing spoofed numbers I don't see have it can help. The identifiable local culprits are only a very small part of a far wider issue where it appears to be all to easy to game the system.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: How does it work?

I've never had any calls from Asia. In fact I don't really get nuisance calls on my mobile. Perhaps it's a problem in specific countries?

I did get nuisance calls on my fixed line but that stopped once I registered as not wanting them.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: How does it work?

It's a problem in specific countries with lax laws, and for specific users in countries with better laws.

In the latter ones, especially for those who let some companies to know their mobile phone numbers and allowed them to be resold - not reading careful the privacy polices and accepting blindly them.

Not that I like sending my calls to someone else to check if that is a spam call....

[Richard Crossley]

Re: How does it work?

Definitely a problem in specific countries. Since almost no-one uses a land line regularly in Hong Kong, spam caller bots target mobile phones.

I've installed call blocking software on my phone and the occasionally successful calls are blocked manually afterwards.

[JetSetJim]

Re: How does it work?

Unless there are some tells in the inbound call setup message headers, I'm not sure what they can do beyond the already implemented number blocking (Hiya is active on my S7, presumably I won't get this upgrade). All the "calling about the accident you had" (a) use the same recording and (b) have caller numbers set to landlines from all over the place. They all get blocked on my phone, and reported, but the cost to change the number to whoever is doing this is obviously trivial and probably more effort than my blocking it.

The sooner telco's make it impossible to spoof caller info the better - or just block all peer networks that generate sufficient quantities of spoofs

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: How does it work?

"... probably more effort than my blocking it."

I'm blocking them with you man. I've honestly reported over 300 numbers, and for a single person, that's not shabby (and it's helping). You do have to wonder though, being that every number blocked was blocked by a human... and if Hiya ever sells their DB to spammers... :-/

[JetSetJim]

Re: How does it work?

> I've honestly reported over 300 numbers, and for a single person, that's not shabby

I'm married, so only a few dozen so far. It might help that my number pre-dates the TPS and it went on their list toot-sweet (possibly before they started admitting mobile numbers officially), so perhaps not as passed around as others as I don't get all that many of these calls.

[Claptrap314]

Re: How does it work?

" if Hiya ever sells their DB to spammers... :-/"

Anything is possible, of course, but I worked at WhitePages.com, and Alex (the founder of both and current CEO of Hiya) is set on being one of the good guys.

[Antron Argaiv]

Re: How does it work?

The numbers don't mean diddly, but the IP to PSTN gateway being used is the place to block this stuff.

There must be a number of these gateways, well known to the fraudsters, which carry the bulk of this traffic between the VOIP networks and the PSTN. And I would be willing to bet that the telephone companies know exactly who they are, what they are doing, and how much they are making per call.

It is the telephone companies that have the power to ban these connection points and who have chosen to prioritise profits over public service.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: How does it work?

"It is the telephone companies that have the power to ban these connection points and who have chosen to prioritise profits over public service."

But the fraudsters aren't stupid. Odds are they mix in plenty of legitimate traffic along with their own to raise the specter of collateral damage. If I needed a cover, perhaps I'd shell out a little bit and undercut all the legit phone companies to get people to make their calls over my compromised gateway. That way if the phone companies try to push back, the blocking of all those legit calls will result in holy hell, maybe even at the government level...

[Dale 3]

Re: How does it work?

Exactly. Until there is a solution for number spoofing, none of these solutions are solutions at all.

I spent last monday playing dumb with a multitude of scammers trying to convince me my internet was about to be disconnected due to "hackers" (my favourite moment was when I asked whether I should plug my internet back in because the plug had fallen out) - the calls were relentless on monday although seem to have stopped now.

But every call came from a different, presumably randomly generated, UK number. If crowdsourced number blocking grows in popularity, eventually the chances are some legitimate numbers will start getting blocked and people will have a hard time why their phone seems not to be working although there is still a dial tone.

It can't possibly by that hard for telephone service providers to eliminate number spoofing.

[Mage]

Re: How does it work?

Number spoofing is by design, like email spoofing. Legitimate businesses and users need both because of how phone systems and email systems are designed.

I'm baffled why a particular block-list service should be specific to a particular version of Android. The problem isn't number spoofing as such but lack of regulation and the fact that Telcos make money out of it. There should be a simple reporting mechanism to your service provider, like "The last call was:" and option for type of thing. Cold calling should be illegal everywhere, either on phone, email or the front door. One UK county region saw crime drop by 30% when doorstop cold calling was banned.

The providers should pool the info.

Same should apply to email. I was getting real Netflex spam regularly (illegal in EU) and most of the fake emails are now using Google's Blogspot.com, not even infected 3rd party sites.

I've had about equal unsolictied robo-calling from my bank (they admitted it was them) to the fake MS support calls and scam investment calls (usually using real humans). One even rang back today asking why I hung up! Do not answer with anything that can be taken as an affirmative or negative.

My numbers are not listed.

Email spam has dramatically declined since the end of tinet.ie/eircom.ie free email. I think their database got copied in the tinet days and smarter spammers realised all the same addresses were on eircom.net

[Charlie Clark]

Re: How does it work?

It is easy to do and some countries do it already. If someone is maliciously spoofing then the networks can tell fairly quickly and whichever network is allowing them on can be threatened with a global block if no action is taken.

Except, of course, in places like America, there is essentially no protection against marketing calls and this is by design.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: How does it work?

I'm looking forward to getting one of those calls.

Last one I had, I told the woman that my internet was working fine as I had been downloading pron all morning (not true) - at which point she hung up on me!

[Dimmer]

Re: How does it work?

First rule of politics: Never actually solve a problem - a crisis should never be wasted and attack those that do. If we were able to receive the same caller ID information that the 911 services get, we would be able to block it. The phone companies are making too much money to let this get fixed. This can only be stopped by the likes of the readers of the REG. We can choose if we are willing to allow them to use our route thru our networks. And we can deny them rack space in our data centers. I did and it felt awfully dam good.

[katrinab]

Re: How does it work?

How much money do phone companies make from call charges these days? I’m pretty sure they make most of their money from the monthly subscription.

[DS999]

Re: How does it work?

I don't know where my calls originate but I'm 100% with you on the rapidly changing numbers. I don't get a lot of junk calls since I NEVER answer calls from numbers I don't recognize (if they are legit, they can leave a message) but I get them in clusters. Usually coming from "local" numbers (in the area, or at least the state) which are never the same.

Sometimes even with real person's name as part of the caller ID info - I'm sure they are innocent victims and my real number has probably been used to spoof calls to others in the past.

Blocking by number is at least a decade late - congrats on fixing 2010's problem, Samsung! Maybe there are countries where this is worthwhile, but the US most definitely is not one of them!

[Curtis]

Re: How does it work?

If the number is in the switch's database, it will automatically associate with the subscriber's name.

The "spoofing" is done just by changing the outgoing Caller ID, which is legal in the US for use by Call Centers, Police Stations, and especially Domestic Abuse shelters

[heyrick]

Orange dialler already has this covered

The operator provided calling thingy on my S9 already does this using crowdsourced data, so I can automatically block numbers reported as malicious, the entirety of certain countries, and all calls that withhold their number.

I currently let them go to voicemail (as doctors and banks are notorious for blocking their numbers) but I could disable that too, if desired.

[Tom Chiverton 1]

Re: Orange dialler already has this covered

It's hardly fair to say doctors are "notorious" when it's a requirement for them. Same as they shouldn't leave voicemail; you might not be the one who reads the number or message and it's medical data.

[Totally not a Cylon]

Re: Orange dialler already has this covered

Doctors and other medical people are the last group who should be with-holding their number.

And anyone reaching a voicemail should leave a message not just automatically take your number off their list as several companies have told me they do.

My GP is capable of phoning from an identifiable number so others can and should, otherwise how does BTCallGuard know to let the call through?

[Terry 6]

Re: Orange dialler already has this covered

Wrong wrong wrong.

Not everyone wants their entire household to know that they are being treated/tested or whatever. Many callers, not just doctors, need to verify who they are speaking to before leaving an identity.

[Terry 6]

Re: Orange dialler already has this covered

NO NHS services can leave their identity. Someone else in the household may not know that you have an illness, are getting treatment etc.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Orange dialler already has this covered

...it's a requirement for them

As a professional, I can confirm this for the (European) country I live in.

Then again, as I understand from my international colleagues, this is not the same every where, with many ("civilised") countries having legislation that is much more lax there.

But consider this: would you rather have your terminal cancer diagnosis delivered in/ by a person or through WhatsApp? And if you think that last one is just plain silly, realise that there are indeed ("civilised") countries where this is daily practice currently...

[Mog_X]

Re: Orange dialler already has this covered

The reverse is true when you try to call doctors - the call blocker is called a receptionist.

[Ken Moorhouse]

Re: the call blocker is called a receptionist.

OOOoooh, that was nasty... have an upvote.

[Lazlo Woodbine]

Seems to be being rolled out already...

This was enabled on my work Galaxy A21 yesterday.

As I never use it for calls, instead using the work 3cx App I'm not sure if I'll get to test it

[Lazlo Woodbine]

Re: Seems to be being rolled out already...

And I'm still on Android 10

[Elst]

Re: Seems to be being rolled out already...

I was just thinking the same thing. It's already on my S20 FE and that's an Android 10 device too.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Seems to be being rolled out already...

Yes, even my low-end Galaxy A40 has the service available, but I haven't the need to enable it.

[Shadow Systems]

Give me the right tools.

If I can filter all my calls on factors such as 1. International Origin (I don't have any living relatives abrod so I don't need to accept such calls); 2. VOIP calls (send me a text message announcing you intend to make one & the number from which I should temporarily allow, otherwise no thanks); 3. any number on the Caller ID that doesn't match the Biller ID (a business that uses a PBX to make sure all the outgoing calls appear from the same inbound toll free number is one thing, but pretending to be my own number, a number from my area code, or something obvious like all zeros is an instant drop); or 4. any number I've previously blocked... if the inbound matches any of those conditions then either shunt it directly to voice mail & don't bother to ring, or drop it entirely & don't waste my time.

If the robocall gets through & a telemarketer is allowed to annoy me, don't be surprised when I fuck with their head hard enough to make their skull explode.

Telemarketers: can't live with 'em, aren't allowed to run 'em over with a steamroller.

[Anonymous Custard]

Re: Give me the right tools.

Yes but if you did run them over with a steamroller, then you'd just encourage the next spam cold call about that "accident"...

[a_yank_lurker]

Re: Give me the right tools.

My rule is simple, I do not answer any unknown numbers unless I reason to believe the call might be legitimate (delivery driver needing a code, etc.). The only numbers I will answer are from known callers. If it is legitimate I will call back if you leave voice message, otherwise you are purged.

However the problem is the telcos do not want to stop the calling. Thus the problem.

[drand]

Let me help you with that...

If it could divert spam calls to a convincing but foul-mouthed AI bot, then they might be on to something.

[Nursing A Semi]

Re: Let me help you with that...

I want one that goes with my default "And what are you wearing today....."

[Dwarf]

Re: Let me help you with that...

@drand

Have you not met Its Lenny

YouTube and Reddit both have lots of recordings from it - Lenny recordings

Just be prepared to loose quite a bit of time as its funny.

[cantankerous swineherd]

istr Truecaller had some rather unpleasant ts & cs?

[Test Man]

Samsung phones already have spam and scam block tech from Hiya. Right now I have it switched off but the caller ID and spam protection switch is on, so I get alerted to spam but it's not outright blocked unless I throw the switch on.

This is a Galaxy S10+ with Android 10 (One UI 2.5)

[Steve Davies 3]

For every spam call I get

I'd like to be able to charge the company that they are [cough][cough] supposed to come from for the call ando for the time out of my life that I'm not going to get back.

Then... just perhaps

The likes of

Amazon (I get more of these than the rest put together)

Microsoft

BT (WTF? It is their network that the calls are coming over.)

Mastercard/Visa

HMRC

Might {ok, who am I kidding eh) just perhaps make efforts to stop the spammers from dirtying their name. OR perhaps they simply don't give a damm?

[Andy Non]

I just wind them up

If I've got time I play along and give them outrageous accident details and fake information for as long as I can until they finally realise they are being played. If I haven't got the time I just give them extreme verbal abuse regarding their sexual habits. Either way, they always hang up before I do.

[Roger Greenwood]

Re: I just wind them up

Absolutely - string them on for as long as possible - while they are wasting time with you they are not bothering your Aunt Matilda etc. It's a public service and can be quite fun. I have said this before but my favourites are "Code in please..." and "Please hold the line while I trace the call".

[Outski]

Re: I just wind them up

I have to say, I've used the "Code, please. Please state your [x] digit emergency code.... Your call is being traced" ploy. Unfortunately, it doesn't work on the robocalls that only switch to a human after you speak.

With the "I'm calling from Miccrosoft/BT/OpenReach" calls, often from Bangalore (going by the area code being the same as one of our offices), I generally go with "no you're not" or "does your mother know what you do for a living?"

[Terry 6]

Re: I just wind them up

I just ask why they can't do an honest job. like prostitution.

Or sympathetically say I understand why they're calling. The streets must be cold at that time of the year (probably too subtle). Then hang up.

[mark l 2]

I remember having an issue with unwanted automated calls for someone else from Santander finance dept, they were along the lines of "Mr Joe Bloggs there is an outstanding debt on your loan please press 1 to speak to customer services, or press 2 if you are not Mr Joe Bloggs". I tried pressing 2 and get the message of 'Please get Mr Joe Bloggs to call us on 0XXXXXXXXXXXX' then disconnects.

So the next time they called I pressed 1 to speak to customer services and ended up in a queue and after 5 minutes I just gave up.

So In the end I blocked the number, but they were like a hydra growing new heads after one had been chopped off in that they kept coming back from new unblocked numbers, eventually I blocked over 25 of their numbers and at that point they must have ran out of unblocked numbers to call from as I never received another call from them again.

Thankfully now apart from the occasional call about accident claims, which I actually enjoy receiving as I wind them up with the most ridiculous accidents you can imagine until they hang up on me. I don't get any unwanted calls.

[Outski]

Favourite responses to accident calls from my team:

"No, I died. You're speaking to my ghost"

"Well that can't be right, I can't drive, I'm only fifteen" (she does actually only sound fifteen, despite being 33 and not to be messed with)

"Well, it wasn't an accident, exactly, I meant to hit him, should've left my missus alone"

"No accident, but have you taken out PPI insurance recently? you may have a claim"

Click, brrrrr....

[Adelio]

Spam caller

I get very few spam calls for my mobile but a lot for my home phone number. As I am working from home still i notice these calls more!

One thing i seem to get a lot of is the phone ringing and silence at the other end. After a few seconds it hangs up.

My thinking is that these are automated calls and because I fail to speak the system calling me just hangs up.

Anyway I now just block any call like this. After all, if they really needed to contact me someone would have spoken. (Or written)

[Anonymous Coward]

I got the firm at the other end of the phone to give me their website and company name last time I got one of those "hello? I heard you were in an accident" calls.

I reported them to the ICO. I haven't heard back.

[Anonymous Coward]

Why don't phones have a feature to only accept calls from people who are in my address book? If it's anybody else I don't want to speak to them.

[Richard 12]

I'm pretty sure every Android phone does have that, and it's an option on some landlines too. From your comment, presumably not available on iPhone.

[kiwimuso]

@ac

"...only accept calls from people who are in my address book? If it's anybody else I don't want to speak to them"

So you don't want to talk to someone who is trying to reach you to inform you that your wife/child/other has been involved in a nasty accident, or has been arrested etc,etc.

Nice to (not) know you sir or madam.

BTW, I (nearly) always answer the phone, but if there is dead silence on the other end I hang up as it is almost certainly a computer generated call prior to handing over to a real person.

If it was a real person who is a bit slow in responding, then they will/can phone back. Or not. Up to them. I'm not bothered either way.

Simple, and doesn't get me wound up, nor do I have to chase numbers to block. Cost me, oooh, all of 10 seconds.

[Charles 9]

"So you don't want to talk to someone who is trying to reach you to inform you that your wife/child/other has been involved in a nasty accident, or has been arrested etc,etc."

If it's the police or a reputed hospital, their number (or the front desk number of such, which would show up on the caller ID) would be a matter of public record, which a caller ID check can easily verify. Beyond that, it becomes a "perfect imposter" problem again which no technology can ever fully address.

[Gene Cash]

5 years?

licensing the firm's tech for five years

What happens when the license runs out? The blocking stops working? Or the app fails altogether?

Also, why is Samsung reinventing the wheel? The standard Google phone app already has this on Android 9, and it works.

[martin 62]

The way HIYA works is....

The news is nothing new Samsung have licensed the technology since at least 2017 (here is a press release from August 2017: https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2017/08/23/1312640/0/en/Hiya-Extends-Partnership-with-Samsung-to-Bring-its-Leading-Caller-and-Business-Profile-Services-to-the-Note-8.html) all they have done is extended the partnership til 2025 (https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201022005691/en/Hiya-and-Samsung-Extend-Strategic-Partnership-to-2025).

[Snake]

No thanks...?

Anyone actually discussing any potential privacy issues in this? The Hiya website mentions "access voice analytics and insights", so at the least the Hiya app is sharing telemetry. What else is being shared? Does the caller's number go out to Hiya at every call, allowing full access to your call history, or is this strictly done with an in-device deny list (which I seriously doubt, that'll be a really long list!).

[Anonymous Coward]

Does anyone enjoy stringing them along?

The trick is to say the accident was in the past 6 months, someone rear ended you, so not your fault. Ask them to repeat everything, and say you're having trouble remembering - before revealing it was a lawnmower you were "driving". I think I managed to waste 5 minutes of their time once.

[AlbertH]

Re: Does anyone enjoy stringing them along?

My favourite is to tell them "hang on, there's someone at the door", after having agreed that I was in an accident recently. I normally play a talk radio station to them, so they know that the line is still open. I've had them "hold" for as long as 20 minutes!

[Ken Moorhouse]

Whoa, not so fast.

I have a Samsung Android which has this Smart number recogniser. Sometimes, when typing a number in to dial I get a name automatically coming up that allegedly marries up with that number. In some cases it is right, but 99 times out of 100 it isn't. For example, National Savings comes up with some weird minor limited company, Try this one: one of the best known numbers in London is 020 7222 1234 (TFL). A few days ago it told me I was dialling Great Portland Street station, today it's Chiswick Park station. One of my clients appears as a company that hasn't existed for over ten years.

The point is, if they can't get that side of things right, how can this work accurately?

[Ken Moorhouse]

Re: Whoa, not so fast.

I got a call the other day from Barclaycard flagged by Android as "Suspected Spam". After going through various hoops I was confident that it was indeed Barclaycard. Technology is becoming so complex these days that the exceptions to cure the exceptions which counter the exceptions is bloatacious to say the least.

I did at least, finally - I think - sort out one problem I was having with my Samsung. Every call I made or received, after five minutes or so the call would drop. Really exasperating with some calls where wait times are in the region of an hour or so. The solution in this instance was to clear the phone's system cache.

Another problem that Samsung don't make easy: Text messages were coming through that weren't alerting me; sometimes it would be a delay of a day or so before becoming aware of one, this for some contacts only. Sorted that one out as well, but not without some research.

Technology: pfft. Sometimes I wonder why I chose it as an occupation.

[DryBones]

TrueCaller... ha!

If I remember correctly, TrueCaller works by uploading the contact info (names, numbers, etc) on every phone that it's installed on, and using it to build a database of numbers and names. So if your name happens to pop up on someone's phone when you called it's because the app used that permission it was granted to rob your acquaintance's phonebook blind. Oh, and maybe having bought some phone lists too, but definitely the predatory uploading.

[Screwed]

I, very reluctantly, accept there can be reasons to allow withheld caller-id. More readily, I accept spoofing for some purposes - such as a single presentation number for an organisation.

But is there really no possibility of having a registration process for such numbers? For example, I have read of a spate of spam "HMRC" calls - and seen them on the house line which we never use except to find out who called.

Could the HMRC not register their presentation numbers and the carriers block any spoofing of those numbers from any unregistered sources?

Further, the bottom line is that we need to be able to almost automatically report spam calls. For example, have a logical button we can press instead of answering or cutting off the call - "Report as spam/hoax/etc." - or allow use during a call.

[Lee D]

@Screwed: I agree with you. It's almost like we need a numbering authority, and the equivalent of BGP filtering. You're Fred, you own numbers 6 and 7, therefore we will let you dial from 7 and appear as 6 because it's in your "range".

But it's never going to happen until traditional telephony is dead anyway. Same way that everyone understands and accepts that I can reject a message from an unsolicited account that tries to add me as a friend, but I can't (easily) block random phone numbers from trying to call my number.

It's ludicrous. It's one of the reasons I only use mobiles. They have callerID by default, without being an optional extra. I can have voicemail, or not. I'm socially justified in "not answering them". They aren't tied to my house, so I miss important calls if I'm out. And, with some jiggery pokery with contacts, I can accept calls from only known contacts.

I gave up on landlines 20 years ago, because they couldn't solve a simple technical problem, mainly because they PROFIT from it (they are paid by the spammers, in effect) and they obviously don't have my interests at heart. I'd rather give my money to someone who gives a damn about their service levels to their customers and blocks calls for me, or gives me the functions to block them myself.

Strangely, it's cheaper, with 4G data speeds that are equivalent to broadband in my area, I'm not tied into a contract, and I can take it with me.

Over the years, I've tried reporting spam calls, reporting harassing calls, reporting spam texts, reporting scams, etc. and not once have I ever considered the response adequate from BT or anyone else. So I stopped giving them my business.

I literally have a 4G sim in my dual-sim phone that provides me data and acts as a sink for spam, but lets me put in a valid phone number for certain necessary services, because the phone doesn't check for texts or phone calls on that number. And another sim for actual phone calls / text on my 20+ year old ported number that's never changed, that gets zero spam calls because I don't accept calls from unknown numbers.

At home, I have another 4G SIM with unlimited data providing my home wifi, running the entire house and all kinds of services (I stream my digital-TV to my phone from home). I pay less than a BT bill for the two 4G's, and a few pounds a month for my well-known "mobile number" with unlimited calls. No install cost. No contract. No nasty surprises. Can change / swap / switch at any time to anyone else.

I was half-tempted to just do an IP PBX setup before I got this config, but it actually works out better like this.

No spam calls. A spam sink for anything I "must use a number" for. My old number following me still.

I don't understand landlines now, except as a VDSL carrier with NO PHONE plugged into it. If you want that, use VDSL and then buy an IP phone.

[Charles 9]

"And another sim for actual phone calls / text on my 20+ year old ported number that's never changed, that gets zero spam calls because I don't accept calls from unknown numbers."

Wait until they get you by pretending (complete with full-on spoofing thanks to say a friendly SIP) to be your relative. That actually happened to me.

[Lee D]

And all you have to do is tell Samsung every phone number that ever dials you or that you ever dial.

Or you could just:

- Set the default ring to silence.

- Add your known contacts.

- Set your contacts in a group with a normal ringtone.

- (Optional) Disable voicemail - sorry, but if I'm not going to answer your call, I'm certainly not paying to hear your spam message.

(Oh, and use the default Samsung "block this caller", etc. features, google unknown numbers if you're worried you're missing something, wait for anything important to actually send you a text rather than try that stupid scheduling-nightmare of actually trying to take to you live, etc.)

Hey, presto, you'll never be bothered by spam calls again. Oh, maybe they'll pop up over your mobile games silently and you'll have to press cancel once in a blue moon.

Also, register your business/personal numbers with the damn TPS in the UK. It cuts out 90+% of unsolicited calls instantly. Not perfect but if spam calls bother you, why have you not done that one simple thing?

Because of abuse of the system for decades, positively encouraged by telcos who want the revenue or to charge you for blocking/caller ID services, I do not have a landline any more. I have a dual-SIM mobile phone, one of which is a throwaway number that does not ring (I bought it purely for unlimited data, so I didn't need the number anyway). I do not answer any call that isn't from a registered contact on my mobile. If one does ring, I Google it at my leisure. If it's someone I deal with, I create a contact and silence/allow that contact as required. (P.S. Spark Energy if you call me one more time in business hours and never follow up outside those hours or try any other way to contact me, I will just move my service to someone else. And no, I don't want a smart meter anyway). If it's an unknown number I ignore it (actually, I never even hear it anyway, but I certainly don't ring it back later either).

And then if something is important, and people's ONLY thought is "well I rang him a couple of times from a random number he doesn't know and he never answered" and at no point do they consider texting me ("Hey, it's John, trying to get hold of you."), emailing me, Whatsapping me or writing me a letter, then it's just not that important. Impact on life with 20+ years of this policy so far? Zero. No horrendous situations unable to be dealt with, no missed doctor's appointments, no local councils trying to desperately warn me of a critical situation with my council tax, nothing.

And the best thing, for me? Business conducted via audio channels isn't legally binding without a recording, and you can't record both sides of the conversation on most modern mobile phones. Hence, nothing of import will ever be done by such side-channels, and you're just going to have to send me an email or write me a letter, at which point it's automatically in writing. "An oral contract not being worth the paper it's printed on" and all that.

Seriously, it's 2020. I should not have to deal with spam. I get absolutely minimal spam in my email, and telephones are a thousand times more disturbing.

P.S. I also used to be self-employed and run my own business. Business numbers are slightly different. That's why you send them to voicemail to email for new contacts, or even a virtual office receptionist setup nowadays, and add your customers to your contacts. It's really not difficult.

[SuperGeek]

"and you can't record both sides of the conversation on most modern mobile phones"

Yes you can. Super Backup on Android 9 and below allows me to record both sides of a call, and there's loads of other apps that do the same. Android 10 onwards can't though, thanks to Google.

[TeeCee]

Top tip!

If you work for HMRC, get a landline installed.

[Stu J]

Play along

The best thing you can do - if you have the time - is play along with them.

"Oh there's a problem with my Internet? Someone's hacked it? How terrible!"

And when they start giving you instructions, pretend that you're following them, but with the skill and pace of a blind octogenarian. Tell them you've just turned your PC on and it's installing Windows Updates. Keep them waiting a good 10-15 minutes while updating them on the fictional percentage from time to time.

When they get to the point where they ask you to download TeamViewer or something similar, tell them it's taking a long time to download. Eventually pretend you've done it. But it wants you to reboot as part of the installation process. Reboot. More Windows Update fun on reboot. When they eventually ask for the TeamViewer code, make up some bollocks number. Then start questioning yourself "is that a 1 or an I". Eventually they'll probably give up.

Basically if you can keep them on the line for half an hour, that's half an hour they can't be scamming some poor bastard who doesn't know any better. It makes their business model a bit less profitable.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Play along

That's assuming they don't get a clue, say they'll call back, and move on. Callbacks are a thing these days...