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How to Block Spam Calls on Android

kantanya

United States

Spam calls are the bane of our existence. And while there's no way to prevent them from happening to you, there are ways to block them. If you're an Android user and want more control over how calls are handled, read on to find how to block spam calls on Android, so you never have to hear "Hello! Mr. Smith? This is your bank calling." ever again.

What are spam calls

Spam calls are unwanted and annoying phone calls that you receive from telemarketers, scammers, robocallers and even employers. They're also illegal. Spam calls can be dangerous because they try to trick you into giving away personal information or clicking on malicious links in the hopes of gaining access to your computer or smartphone.

How to block spam calls on Android

Register at donotcall.gov
You can register your phone number at donotcall.gov to prevent telemarketers from calling you.

Block a phone number one by one with the Android built-in feature
From your home screen, tap the Phone app.
Tap on the Contacts tab at the bottom of your screen to open up a list of all your contacts.
Find and select the contact you wish to block either by searching for their name in the search bar or scrolling through your contacts list until you find them and tapping on them.
Long-press the number you want to block and tap Block/Report Spam. You can choose whether to uncheck the box marked Report call as spam and then tap Block.

Block a certain area code
Toll-free phone numbers are preferred by telemarketers for telemarketing calls and scammers for spam calls. The popular toll-free area codes include 800, 866, 877, 888, and 855. Outside of toll-free numbers, there are also some local area codes you should never answers, such as 626, 502 and 915. If a certain area code is causing you to get too many spam calls, you can block it directly from your phone. To block an area code, you can install a call blocker app which can block a certain area code.

Use an app to block the spam calls
If you're tired of spam calls and want a way to block them altogether, there are plenty of apps that can help to block the spam calls. Some are free and some have a fee.
Some apps have lists of numbers that can be blocked, while others let you add numbers as they come in so that you don’t have to worry about missing anything by waiting until later. Also, if an app has both options—blocking based on categories or manually adding numbers—be sure to try both before deciding which one works best for your needs.