Year after year, millions of Americans are plagued by spam calls and unfortunately, the issue is far from being resolved. In fact, First Orion reported that, from 2020 to 2021, there was been a 118% increase in spam calls, and that percentage is only expected to grow in the years to come.
To help ensure consumers aren’t constantly bombarded with spam calls, phone carriers are starting to offer solutions, like SPAM RISK Caller ID, which is designed to alert customers of incoming spam calls. But spam ID technology isn’t bulletproof. Sometimes, numbers are incorrectly marked as spam. So what happens when your business number gets flagged as spam, and how do you ensure your callers won’t brush off your calls as yet another spam call?
What is SPAM RISK Caller ID?
When a call comes in, spam ID technology automatically runs the number through the phone carrier’s database of reported scam numbers. If the number calling matches a reported scam number, your calls will display nuisance call labels, such as “Scam Likely”, “Fraud Risk”, “Spam Risk” or some other variant depending on the carrier, device, or app. The call recipient can then decide whether or not to answer the call.
Why would my business number get marked as spam?
Unfortunately for businesses, spam ID technology will occasionally mark legitimate calls as spam. This doesn’t necessarily mean your business is doing anything wrong, but your actions may be considered suspicious if your phone number’s history has any of the following:
- Unusually high volume of outbound calls
- Reports of spam
- Incomplete/improperly set up outbound caller ID number (such as an invalid phone number)
Another possible explanation is that a malicious entity “spoofed” your number and made unwanted calls displaying your phone number as the caller ID.
If your business number gets flagged as a spam risk, your customers may see “SPAM RISK” pop up on their phones whenever you call — and who would want to answer a spam call?
How to remove your business number from SPAM designations
If your calls keep getting marked as spam, don’t panic. There are a few routes you can take to resolve this issue.
1. Get a new number
If your business number is new and not yet established, it might be easier to get set up with a new phone number. This is a great option if you’re planning on making a large number of outbound calls. However, note that a new number may come with a history of its own that may cause the same issue. Be sure to test your numbers after purchasing on a variety of carriers to see if you’ve inherited someone else’s scammy number.
If your business number is established, getting a new phone number should be a last resort. If you can, resolve this issue before getting a new number.
2. Register your number
Register your number(s) at a free caller registry, like https://www.freecallerregistry.com/fcr/ and https://www.calltransparency.com/. Free Caller Registry enables entities making legitimate outbound phone calls to submit their data to the three major providers of call management services supporting the major US wireless carriers once via a standard, centralized experience. Rest assured, your information will be shared with the three major Carrier Spam Monitoring Partners: HIYA, TNS (Transaction Network Services), and First Orion.
Whether your calls have been flagged as spam or not, it’s always a good idea to register your number through a free caller registry. Not only will doing so ensure your number is recognizable to the major carriers, which will make it less likely to be flagged as spam, but it’ll also protect you from being flagged in the future.
3. Contact the various phone carriers/spam blocking apps directly
Unfortunately, there isn’t one central database or place where you can request for your phone number not to be flagged as spam. Each carrier uses its own database or systems to track spam numbers and getting your phone number unflagged from all of them can be a process. But it’s not impossible.
To register your number and/or address any incorrect spam flagging with phone carriers and spam blocking apps directly, use the links and email addressed below:
Phone carriers:
- AT&T
Register on the Free Call Registry website. - Bandwidth
Register here: https://www.bandwidth.com/legal/report-a-phone-number/ - Comcast
Register on the Free Call Registry website. - FirstOrion
Register here: https://www.t-mobile.com/callreporting - Frontier Communications
Email: nospam@ftr.com - Hiya
Contact through website at hiyahelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/requests/new. Hiya provides a service for legitimate businesses to register, through connect.hiya.com. - Lumen (formerly CenturyLink)
Register here: https://www.lumen.com/en-us/contact-us-support/robocall-mitigation.html - Spectrum
Register here: https://spamreport.spectrum.com/charter/ - Sprint
Contact info: Call 888-211-4727 or contact TNS at reportarobocall.com/trf. - T-Mobile
Register on the Free Call Registry website, contact feedback.fosrvt.com or through First Orion at calltransparency.com. - U.S. Cellular
Register on the Free Call Registry website. - Verizon
Register on the Free Call Registry website and contact through website at https://www.voicespamfeedback.com/vsf/. - Verizon Wireless
Register here: www.reportarobocall.com - Windstream
Call 800-347-1991 or contact by email at website: https://www.windstream.com/support.
Spam blocking apps:
- Robokiller
Contact Info: support@robokiller.com
- Nomorobo
Contact info: reports@nomorobo.com
- Icehook
Contact Info: https://www.icehook.com/contact
- TrueSpam
Contact Info: https://www.truecnam.com/contact_us
- Telo
Contact Info: https://www.telo.com
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