Nuisance calls

[john_r1]

We still seem to be receiving unwanted nuisance calls despite having Call protect activated.  These are from people marketing stuff or services. It is more concerning that the recipient is a 97-year-old lady who cannot understand why these people are ringing her.  Each time I block the number in the call protect received calls list. We also have "withheld" and international calls blocked.  Also usually if I try to ring the calling number back, it is not a genuine number, so the callers are obviously cloning a number which looks correct, and thereby bypasses the filters we have set. Is the only way to stop this to get one of these call blocking phones which asks callers to identify themselves before being put through?

[Keith_Beddoe · Accepted solution]

@john_r1 

A call blocking phone is the only solution.

The BT 4600 is quite good, and has larger buttons.

https://shop.bt.com/products/bt4600-premium-nuisance-call-blocker---single-084665-BY4H.html

[Sundance2]

Keith, as a Distinguished Sage, I wonder if you can swat a few bees I have in my bonnet? It seems to me that BT sell British phone numbers to foreign companies so that they can get through our caller ID features, International calling etc which BT market to help avoid scam calls, and then they also manufacture and sell Call Blockers to us knowing that these calls are driving us to despair.  Am I being unreasonable to suggest that the solution is actually much simpler; that the morally corrupt BT should be stopped at Law which prohibits them from providing UK phone numbers to foreign companies?

[NeilO]

Hi @Sundance2 I'm sorry how you feel but that's incorrect, BT do not supply UK numbers to these unscrupulous companies, they are calling from an internet connection and spoof the number to make it look like it originates from the UK. 

[Sundance2]

Neil, thank you. I am really glad to be wrong as this was driving me nuts. Just as I was starting to feel a little less hostile towards BT and sending you my thanks, I got a pop up message asking if I would complete a survey for them. I agreed to do it when I had finished my message to you. True to form, BT ignored the ‘later’ part and took me straight to the survey so that my original message to you was lost. So they’ve promoted themselves straight back to “rude, couldn’t care a stuff about their customers, it’s all about getting what WE want” in my mind. Well done BT. Your job defending them will never be over Neil!

[john_r1]

Thanks for suggestion. This phone doesn't block all calls, only those you add to its black list. This is not much good as these marketing or spam callers often change their number. The only one I can see is the Premium which asks callers to state name so you can vet before answering.

[Keith_Beddoe]

@john_r1 

The BT4600 does block all calls that are not stored in the phone. It will tell callers that they have to announce themselves first, before they are put through to you. Automated spam callers do not get past that point. 

The other option is to send unknown callers to the answerphone.

This is a function of BT Call Guardian which is built into the phone.

You can of course add numbers to the block list, but that is only any use to callers who use the same number, so its of limited use.

[john_r1]

Sorry, you are correct. It was the BT 4000 I had been looking at....

[Keith_Beddoe]

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@john_r1 wrote:
Sorry, you are correct. It was the BT 4000 I had been looking at....

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Yes, that one is not really any help these days. I have the BT4600 and its fine. I normally only activate Call Guardian when I get a spate of spam calls, which thankfully is very rare.

Occasionally  I get misdialled numbers, as mine is very similar to a couple of local businesses. But if the same person keeps misdialling, I block their number.

[davidmhollander]

Hi NeilO

Great but I do I stop 0845 602 1111 from calling my landline. I have used the telephone service to request BT to stop text messages coming through during the night, but they still do.

Thanks, David