A robocall is a phone call that uses a computerized autodialer to deliver a pre-recorded message as if from a robot. Robocalls are often associated with political and telemarketing phone campaigns, but can also be used for public-service or
emergency announcements. Some robocalls use personalized audio messages to simulate an actual personal phone call. Here are the
current statistics on robocalls and scams:
·
Americans were harassed by more than
4 billion robocalls in May according to data collected by YouMail. More than 30
billion robocalls have been made in the United States in the first five months
of the year, easily a record pace.
·
By the end of 2019, over 90 percent of
all scam calls in the US will use area codes local to the recipient. (This is
called "neighborhood spoofing.")
·
1 in 10 US residents lost money from a
phone scam.
·
Mobile-originated scam calls will make
up over 80 percent of all scam calls by the end of 2019.
·
By the end of 2019, 44.6 percent of
phone calls in the US will be scam calls, reflecting the exponential growth of
the problem.
·
5.3 billion robocalls were made in April 2019. That's nearly 22 spam calls
for every person.
It's nearly impossible to be 100% robocall-free, but here are some tactics you can adopt to limit your number of robocalls:
·
Assign contacts-When you get a call, go to phone
settings, pull up the number and that's probably all you'll see, a bunch of
digits and the location of the call. On iPhone, click Create New
Contact and add the name of the caller. Click "Done." On Android
phones, it's even easier. Under the phone number in recent calls, there's a
"+" sign and "Add to Contacts." From there, add in the
details and click save. But for double protection:
·
Assign ringtones-Apple iPhones have dozens of free
ringtones available. Use them. You could assign everyone in your contacts
with the same, non-default ringtone that's already in place or apply different
ones to different folks. For instance, my mother, brother and wife each get a
unique one. How to assign a tone: On an iPhone, open the contact list and
click "Edit,"
This
will get you to an option for ringtone, which is now probably listed as default. Click
on Default, and you'll see a list of other potential free tones, as well as a
link to a "Tone Store," to buy new ones. Select the tone of your
choice, click done, and it's now assigned to your contact. On an Android
phone, go to your contacts, find the name, click edit, and at the bottom
of the page, select more. From there, you'll see ringtones. There are some 25
choices available. Select one, click save, and you're done.
·
Blocked call: Robocalls could be blocked by phone companies under proposed rules. Do
not call:
These robocalls don't want to talk to you; they just want you to call
back.
“If you answer the phone and say
‘Hello, you're on the air.’ most telemarketers will hang up quickly. (@SwedishCanary)[i]
[i] Sources used:
·
“30+ Phone Spam Statistics for 2017, 2018, 2019” by comparitech
·
“Americans were hit with 26.3 billion robocalls in 2018, a whopping
46% increase from the year before — here are some ways to stop them” by
Paige Leskin and Prachi Bhardwaj
·
“Robocall” From
Wikipedia
·
“Want to curb your robocall agony? Try these 3
things now” by Jefferson
Graham
·
www.robokiller.com
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