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You’ve done everything you can to stop spam calls and still they come, ringing incessantly at all hours of the day and night. You’re desperate to find an easy and effective way to stop these annoying calls from coming in, but you haven’t had any luck so far. There are lots of tricks and tips out there for how to stop unwanted spam calls, but today we’re going to talk about an option that allows you to avoid phone scams forever - even if it’s not as widely known as some of the other solutions out there. That solution? Virtual phone numbers.
A virtual phone number is just what it sounds like - a number that operates over the internet, rather than a traditional phone network. Virtual number apps like Call.com allow you to pick an additional phone number to use through your internet connection. You can choose a number from several different countries and can do all kinds of useful things like sending and receiving messages, setting your availability, and setting a custom voicemail.
Having access to a second phone (or more) phone number can make it much easier to avoid spam phone calls because of a key factor in spam calling - phone number databases.
Phone number databases are by far the most common way for spam callers to acquire lists of numbers to call. Let’s take a look at how they work.
When using a service or signing up for an app, most of the time you will be asked to enter some personal information, including your phone number. Once you've signed up, that information gets stored into that business' personal database with all of your collected information. Because you signed up, some of those businesses have permission to sell or provide your information to other companies.
The data collected is then used for identity verification procedures (to make sure the number is active and correct), which in turn gets sold for cold outreach marketing. Along the way, some of these "buyers" end up being scammers and spam bots that use your information to make the unsolicited calls that you end up receiving on a weekly, and sometimes daily, basis.
Given that nearly 70% of websites sell and/or allow the purchase of data that they collect, simply avoiding sign-ups that sell your information is not a viable option. Instead, it’s time to turn to a virtual phone number.
If you're wanting to reduce the amount of calls your personal number receives from spam, start by using a virtual phone number.
Using a virtual phone number when you sign up for a form or a free trial isn’t any different from using your primary phone number. However, it will make it much easier to screen calls coming to that number. If you have a phone number that you only use for sign-up forms, then you know that you’ll never need to answer calls from that number. Even better, virtual number apps like Call.com will allow you to turn off your availability, so you can completely block spam callers from reaching you. Setting your virtual number to Do Not Disturb will allow you to keep your primary SIM open to communication.
Next time you're signing up for a service or a free trial, enter in a virtual phone number instead of your personal one. This will deter unwanted calls on your phone, while still giving you access to the tools you need. Just be sure to write down which apps use which phone number!
It may not feel like enough to just stop receiving spam calls. After all, most sign-up forms require more information than just your phone number; that other personal information is being sold just as frequently as your number. If that concerns you, then you can use virtual phone numbers to figure out what applications and sites are selling your data.
This approach requires a bit of set-up, but it’s easy to do. Prepare a list of services you'd like to sign up for or that you suspect of selling your data and set up different virtual phone numbers for each one. After signing up, wait to see if you get any spam calls coming through your numbers. If you start receiving calls from a certain phone number, then you know that service is selling your information. Then, you can choose to continue with them or find a different service.
Eventually, you'll be able to use a set of tools that you know don't give out your information, giving you ease-of-mind and better security.
Spam calls don’t have to be unavoidable parts of life anymore. Virtual phone numbers from services like Call.com can help you avoid spam callers on top of all the other benefits of using a virtual number service. Stop the spam call before it ever reaches your phone and try Call.com today.
