In the News
Spam Calls continue to plague customers, but phone carriers are taking notice. In T-Mobile says it has blocked 1 billion spam calls, is ready for call authentication, Dami Lee at The Verge discusses T-Mobile’s efforts to block spam calls and their readiness for additional requirements to reduce the threat of such calls on their consumers by allowing call verification. Lee explains that spam calls are increasing in complexity with many robocalls linking to a local area code to trick victims into answering a call from unknown numbers. Lee elaborates that some of T-Mobile’s services will be automatically deployed, while others require customers to enable them explicitly.
Our Take
No one wants to be bombarded with phone calls from unknown numbers. While this may seem like a simple inconvenience, many of these robocalls may be dangerous. Robocalls prey on individuals answering a call and providing personal information that may be useful in stealing finances or personal identities. The efforts of mobile carriers such as T-Mobile to filter such calls before they reach the customer reduces the responsibility placed on consumers to know whether a call is a scam. Increased filtration efforts by mobile carriers are positive initiatives to protect customers. However, with the spam calls becoming more and more sophisticated, it is vital that as the customer, we recognize the dangers that such calls pose and act accordingly when receiving a call from an unfamiliar number.
Recommendations
How can you protect your privacy from spam phone calls?
- Only answer phone calls from numbers you recognize or if you are expecting a call
- Refrain from discussing personal information on a phone call with an unfamiliar caller
- Hang up if you answer a phone call from an automatic and unknown source
- Choose to enable additional security measures such as T-Mobile’s Spam Block whenever possible