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Once upon a time spam callers could be more easily identified on your mobile phone. They would call from an area code that was so unfamiliar that you saw the number, chose right away to let it keep ringing, and went about your life without answering the call. This in itself was annoying enough, but add in the ways that spammers have become savvier in recent years — their call-back numbers now often mimic our own or look completely legit — and the practice has become even more aggressive and bothersome. Good news: there’s an iPhone setting that can help. Privacy experts say you should be using this one setting on your iPhone—it blocks spam and will put an end to those annoying disturbances.
According to Josh Wright, CEO of CellPhoneDeal, in most cases, in order to block spam and security threats on your iPhone, you’ll need to download third-party software from the App Store. But that isn’t the case if you’re simply looking for a way to block all of those spam calls you’ve been receiving — Apple has a built-in setting that can help (though it has its limitations and there is one caveat to keep in mind).
Silence Unknown Callers
The spam-blocking setting is aptly called Silence Unknown Callers. “This setting will prevent any unknown numbers from calling you, essentially blocking all spam calls,” Wright says.
The way it works is by blocking phone numbers that you have not been in contact with or saved in your phonebook, says Katherine Brown, founder of Spyic, a company engaged in parental control and remote monitoring programs. “Such calls are silenced and sent to voicemail but are still visible in your recent call list. However, the setting is halted for 24 hours if you place an emergency call to enable contact with unknown numbers for safety reasons.”
To enable the setting, go to general settings then phone, tap Silence Unknown Callers and turn on the feature.
So, what’s the caveat, you may be wondering? If you are enabling a setting that blocks all unknown callers and curbs spam, then it will also block people you may know who are calling from numbers that your device isn’t familiar with yet. “The downside to this is that you can’t get calls from unknown numbers that aren’t spam callers either, so if you want to receive those, it’s best to download an app that detects and blocks spam,” Wright says.
Instead, downloading an app like Robo Shield, RoboKiller, or Truecaller may be your best bet.
