Your experience with spam call blocking apps

[walkinwood]

Have you used spam/marketing call blocking apps like Hiya, Truecaller, MrNumber, nomorobo? What's your experience with them?

I'm getting tired of the calls disturbing me. I decline them, but it means I have to move

 

[REWahoo]

I've been using Mr Number and HiYa for several months.

Neither does a good job with neighbor spoofing (calls using actual numbers belonging to people local to you) but they do catch almost all non-local spam/fraud calls - and the price is right (free).

 

[MissMolly]

I've been using Mr Number and HiYa for several months.

Neither does a good job with neighbor spoofing (calls using actual numbers belonging to people local to you) but they do catch almost all non-local spam/fraud calls - and the price is right (free).

+1 for me. MrNumber.

 

[Lsbcal]

Have you used spam/marketing call blocking apps like Hiya, Truecaller, MrNumber, nomorobo? What's your experience with them?

I'm getting tired of the calls disturbing me. I decline them, but it means I have to move

We went with Ooma that uses Nomorobo. Most calls are eliminated now. We also have Panasonic cordless phones which announces the number and we don't answer if unfamiliar. Most robo calls hang up then without a message.

For cell phones, DW gets several even when using MrNumber. I've suggested she change her number but she doesn't want to bother.

 

[Lawrencewendall]

Been using nomorobo for about 4 years. Love it.

 

[sengsational]

I have a Sentry 2 box wired so the phone doesn't ring unless the caller is on the white list.

The bottom line is that when the phone rings at our house, it's like the old days, we jump up and grab it because it's never been spam.

The minor down-side is that if someone has never called before, they need to add themselves to the white list by pressing "0" in response to the Sentry warning, then call back. But mechanics, doctor's offices, etc, seem to get through just fine. And all future calls simply ring the phone without issue because they're now on the white list.

There is a one-time cost for the Sentry box, but I thought that was better than paying Ooma for a monthly thing that does something similar. Nothing could be more effective than the Sentry. In the last 4 years, one telemarketer added himself to the list and called back, and we didn't talk a single word about what he was selling, only about why he had ignored the Sentry automated warning to "hang up and remove my number from your list".

 

[braumeister]

Nomorobo (part of my Ooma subscription) works very well. Maybe 2 or 3 junk calls get through per year.

On my iPhone, my T-Mobile account includes ScamID and ScamBlock (blocks all known scammers) at no extra cost, and they work well, too. ScamID is automatic, and tells you if a call is from a known scammer. ScamBlock is activated easily from the phone and can be turned off if necessary.

So I really don't have any problem with these folks any more. The few that get through from my own area code and exchange are maybe one per month, and I've gotten used to just not answering those.

 

[RunningBum]

I put everyone in my contacts in a group, and set up a ringtone for that group. I set a different, quieter, default ringtone, which would ring for anyone not in my contacts. I could've made it silent, but I get enough legit calls from people not in my contacts that I don't want that. It is an option though.

This works really well for me. The default ringtone alerts me that this is likely a spam or solicitation call, so I usually just don't answer it. Often my cell phone is plugged in recharging, so I'd have to get up to see who is calling me if I didn't have the different ringtone.

I also use Mr Number which seems to block quite a few calls as well.

 

[walkinwood]

On my iPhone, my T-Mobile account includes ScamID and ScamBlock (blocks all known scammers) at no extra cost, and they work well, too. ScamID is automatic, and tells you if a call is from a known scammer. ScamBlock is activated easily from the phone and can be turned off if necessary.

Thanks. I didn't know about t-mobile's ScamBlock. I'll try it.

We don't have a land line - just mobile phones. I do have a separate ring tone for numbers no in my contact list, but the ringing still bothers me.

 

[scrabbler1]

I have bee using nomoroo for just over a year. It blocks abut 80% of the junk calls to my land line. A few still get through, they don't all get blocked. But it has been a big help. My cell phone gets lots of junk calls (and a few junk texts), all I can do is hang up on them, I pay per minute for my cell phone use, so I don't waste time any more dealing with them.

 

[MacsNMore]

We went with Ooma that uses Nomorobo. Most calls are eliminated now. We also have Panasonic cordless phones which announces the number and we don't answer if unfamiliar. Most robo calls hang up then without a message.

+1 for Nomorobo via Ooma. The few spam calls that get thru we instantly add to our blacklist log and they never get thru again. Great service!

 

[skipro33]

Not for cell phone, but home phone. Best money I've ever spent!
https://www.amazon.com/SENTRY-Screener-blocking-solicitor-election/dp/B019ERMS90/ref=dp_ob_title_ce

 

[Cobra9777]

My mobile number and landline are both free Google Voice numbers. The landline uses an Obi-200 VoIP adapter. I use Hangouts for all mobile voice and text communication using mainly WiFi or the Ting mobile data. My mobile has an "actual" phone number but I don't even know what it is. I disabled all incoming and outgoing calls in Ting device setup.

Google Voice does a great job of filtering out spam calls with no action required by me nor any hardware. Plus we only provide these numbers to friends, family, and certain businesses that we trust and have a long-term relationship with. If an unsolicited call does get through, it can be blocked with a couple of clicks. This happens 2 or 3 times per year.

 

[TromboneAl]

I have a Sentry 2 box wired so the phone doesn't ring unless the caller is on the white list.

The bottom line is that when the phone rings at our house, it's like the old days, we jump up and grab it because it's never been spam.

The minor down-side is that if someone has never called before, they need to add themselves to the white list by pressing "0" in response to the Sentry warning, then call back. But mechanics, doctor's offices, etc, seem to get through just fine. And all future calls simply ring the phone without issue because they're now on the white list.

Same here. This box is almost perfect.

They have a new version that makes it easier to add numbers ahead of time (with a keypad).

Over the years we've had a few friends who apparently have trouble following the instructions to press O and then call back (for the first time they call), but that's rare.