Often times when you apply for a credit card, to finance a car, etc., your phone number ends up on a list that is used for telemarketing. Even if you’ve registered your phone number with www.DoNotCall.gov to opt out, you may still get annoying calls and texts.
Florida Mortgage Firm finds it annoying when we receive such calls, so we don’t cold call, and we definitely do not offer our clients’ numbers to marketing companies. That being said, there are some options out there to help you.
We’ve listed some tips for you.
Use a phone app. These apps combine public databases with crowdsourcing to identify annoying and suspicious calls and texts. I don’t endorse any of the products listed here, but am listing them merely to show that you have several options.
- Truecaller (free for Apple and Android phones)
- PrivacyStar (free for Android phones)
- 1Blocker (free for both, but expect pop-up ads)
- Adblock (free for both, but expect pop-up ads)
You can also use the settings on your smart phone. To block those numbers from calling or texting again, tap the icon next the number and select “Block This Caller” at the bottom of your screen (Apple). For Android phones, click the three-dot menu icon and choose “Add to Auto Reject List.” If you pick up the phone and talk to a live person, ask them to add you to their do-not-call list.
If it’s a robocall, you may want to hang up and not press a button to opt out. Some people believe you are confirming that you are a live person, so you could expect even more robocalls from other spam callers.
If you are unsure about the phone number that appears on your cell phone when someone calls, let it go to voicemail. You can search the phone number on Google to see whether it’s a legitimate call. There are several Web sites where people report spam phone calls along with the phone number.
Take the next step
Getting started is easy. Just pick one of the options below and answer some questions. It only takes a few minutes.