Spam text and calls about low credit card interest rates, free gift cards, debt assistance, and other promises that seem (and are) too good to be true have become more than a nuisance for many of us. The people behind them are after our money, of course. You can take measures to protect yourself rather than rely on your phone company to deal with the onslaught, which it eventually will. One is to check who owns a phone number via reverse number lookup. If you get a name, you can run a background check on it to see what else you’ll find out.
How Do Spammers Get My Number?
You might have called a number that starts with 800, 888, or 900. An ANI (Automatic Number Identification) system collects your mobile details when you call a number starting with these codes. The system can match the number with other data linked to you as well as store it. In addition, your personal data is sold by social media platforms. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram track your footprint and sell all information about your online activity to advertisers. This is why you shouldn’t list your phone number on any social network.
Block Spam Texts and Calls
If a company is legitimate, it will let you opt-out of these calls and texts. However, keep in mind scammers use this technique to get you to “opt-out.” Never click on a link in the text, which might happen by accident too. It might lead to downloading malware on your device, which will then begin collecting personal information. Clicking on such links can open sites that only appear genuine but that were created with the purpose of stealing data. Malware will take up space on the device’s memory, slowing down its rate of operation.
Review Phone Bills
Spammers who get your data can sell it to advertisers or even cybercriminals, such as identity thieves. This can result in excessive phone charges, among other things. Your carrier might charge you for texts you didn’t want to receive. This is why you should check your phone bill now and then to ensure the correct amounts are reflected. If you see unfamiliar charges, you should call your carrier to determine whether you are inadvertently sending spam texts from your phone.
File a Complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
The FTC says it’s not legal to send unasked-for messages to devices without the user’s agreement. This includes unsolicited texts from an automatic dial system and text messages to your mobile phone. Relationship and transactional type messages are two exceptions to this. Fundraising messages and political surveys are also allowed. However, you can and should file a complaint if you’re getting unsolicited texts that are commercial in nature.
It’s not difficult to block a number, but the specific ways to go about this can vary according to the device’s operating system, model, and manufacturer. Of course, the pesky entity might try calling or texting you from a different number, rendering your efforts meaningless.
Blocking on Android
If you’re on Android, press the three-dot icon at the top and select “Settings,” and then go to “Block.” The choices available include recent calls, unknown callers, or a number in your contact list. Select the number you want to stop getting calls or texts from or enter it manually.
Blocking on iPhone
iPhone users must open the text and tap on the number of the sender. Then, click on (i). Then, you should click the number under the Details screen and select Block Contact and Block Caller.
Report Spam to Your Phone Company
You can send spam messages to the number 7726, and your phone company will look into the issue. It’s free to send messages to this number.
Filter Messages
Cell phones have special settings to filter messages, but most people don’t know about them. On Android, you will need to select “Caller ID & Spam” under “Settings.” On an iPhone, you will need to go to “Settings,” then “Messages,” and then turn “Filter Unknown Senders” on. This will eliminate all messages from unknown numbers. Good riddance!
Photo by Alex Green
