Best Spam Filter for an iPhone? (1 Viewer)

[Johnny Angell]

The subject is my question. BTW, my provided is AT&T.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I pay for an app called RoboKiller.

There is a 7-day free trial and then I believe $30 for a year subscription.

It does a GREAT job of identifying and blocking spam calls.

However, the best part is the auto-answer that has a funny selection of pre-recordings that talk to the spammer, making him think it's you. So, basically, the phone app answers the phone and keeps the spammer talking before they realize they are speaking with a recording. Then, you get to hear the entire transaction afterward for a good laugh.

I can't put this thing properly into works. Just go to the app store and download it. Try it for a week and see if you like it. I think you will.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Not sure if it's available for an iPhone, but I use Call Control on my Android phone. It includes a provided black list, and also allows you to block common spam callers, such as same exchange numbers. There is a free and paid version. The free one works fine for me.

You could also try Nomorobo. I use it for our home phone for free, but there is a monthly fee for using it with a cell phone.

 

[Clinton McClure]

Hey Johnny - When I was still with AT&T, I used their Call Protect app. It worked fine for what it was, although it would occasionally think appointment reminder calls from my dentist or doctor were SPAM.

I don’t even bother using one with Verizon. I was still getting the occasional SPAM call but now I keep my phone on DND 24-7 and only allow calls in from my favorites list which includes my wife, my parents, her parents, a couple of friends who I text occasionally, doctors and their respective appointment reminder lines, my boss, and two co-workers who may need to get ahold of me for urgent situations when I’m away from work.... maybe 15 people total. Everything else goes straight to VM and I check it at my leisure.

 

[DaveF]

@Johnny Angell Are you asking about email or text messages or phone calls?

Email, you need server side spam filtering, which most providers have some form of. And/or you set your email to POP (vs IMAP) and have your home computer apply filtering rules before your iPhone gets it. I don't recommend using POP over IMAP, but some people prefer that (including my wife), so YMMV.


As SPAM is properly dealt with on the server side, by the email service provider, so robo calls must really be dealt with on the carrier side. And they're not stepping up to serve their customers. So that leaves us the customer to deal with this garbage.

On the user side there's no preventative care, nothing like email spam filtering. There are services like RoboKiller that Ron uses. From what I've read, these don't really do anything except intercept incoming calls. I looked into a similar service and it wouldn't work for my home phone because we have it forwarded to my wife's iPhone for business use. And as a call intercepter, so far I can ignore calls for free more easily than a paid service can ignore them on my behalf. But again YMMV based on your volume of spam phone calls and how many legit calls you expect from unknown numbers. (If the number isn't in my address book I can 99% ignore it.)

If people have found real benefit in staunching the flow of robo callers, I'd love to hear about it.

This article can help understand the frustrating and futile state of dealing with robocalls:
https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/7/18069178/end-robocalls-lawsuits-do-not-call-registry-ftc

 

[DaveF]

Here's a short blurb from 2017 on call blockers
https://marco.org/2017/01/08/call-blockers

I tried NoMoRobo at home, but because I have the home line forwarded to the wife's iPhone, I can't enable the simultaneous ring required for NoMoRobo. And at $2/mo for mobile, I haven't been that motivated to try again.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Yeah, I wasn’t specific enough. I meant span phone calls. My wife is having trouble with one scanner, using multiple numbers. I’ve installed AT&T Call Protect. It’s free and it doesn’t mention it’s limited to AT&T customers. We’ll see how that one works.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I pay for an app called RoboKiller.

There is a 7-day free trial and then I believe $30 for a year subscription.

It does a GREAT job of identifying and blocking spam calls.

However, the best part is the auto-answer that has a funny selection of pre-recordings that talk to the spammer, making him think it's you. So, basically, the phone app answers the phone and keeps the spammer talking before they realize they are speaking with a recording. Then, you get to hear the entire transaction afterward for a good laugh.

I can't put this thing properly into works. Just go to the app store and download it. Try it for a week and see if you like it. I think you will.

Damn, it might be worth the $30 just for fucking with the spammer.