Robocalls Decline, but FCC's Efforts Still Have a Long Way to Go

Regulator moves to block overseas calls, where most robocalls originate. Consumers can also take steps to limit unwanted calls.

By Octavio Blanco

Consumers in the U.S. are receiving fewer robocalls than a year ago, but billions of unwanted calls continue to get through.

Phone providers were mandated last June to affirm that they have anti-robocall technology known as Shaken/Stir installed on their networks. The digital fingerprinting technology is designed to identify spoofed calls, which use a fake number to trick you into answering your phone.

Calls that aren’t recognized by the system get flagged, and the phone carrier can either block the call or tag it with a likely scam or spam call label, which appears on users’ phone screens.

Yet the number of robocalls this year is expected to reach 48.5 billion, down only slightly from 50.4 billion in 2021, according to the latest figures by YouMail, a robocall blocking and tracking firm. And while the improvement is welcome, it still breaks down to an eye-popping 4 billion monthly robocalls.

Getting Tougher on International Robocalls

“We’re on pace for at most a small decline from last year’s robocall volume, despite the rollout of Stir/Shaken,” says YouMail CEO Alex Quillici.

The problem is that Shaken/Stir can’t block all calls, particularly those from overseas, where the majority of robocalls originate. As a result, the FCC recently adopted new rules to target problematic overseas calls.

These rules will require that the U.S.-based phone service providers who manage international calls, known as “gateway providers,” ensure that their networks comply with Shaken/Stir and that they take additional measures to validate the identity of the traffic they are routing to the U.S. 

“Gateway providers serve as a critical choke point for reducing the number of illegal robocalls received by American consumers,” the agency said in a press release announcing the new regulations. “The new rules require gateway providers to participate in robocall mitigation, including blocking efforts; take responsibility for illegal robocall campaigns on their networks; cooperate with FCC enforcement efforts; and quickly respond to efforts to trace illegal robocalls to their source.”

More States Join the Fight Against Robocalls

The agency went on to say that a gateway provider that doesn’t comply may be subject to mandatory blocking by other network participants, “essentially ending its ability to operate.”

“The Stir/Shaken expansion is good, since there will be fewer ways for spoofed calls to get on the U.S. telephone network,” says Quillici at YouMail.

However, it’s just another speed bump—not a wall—because robocallers don’t just rely on spoofed numbers to place their calls. “The bad guys are getting real, authenticable phone numbers and calling from there,” Quillici says.

The FCC also said it’s expanding its partnership with individual states in order to fight robocalls, and this too could make an impact on robocalls.

“It’s important because you now have 36 states out of 50,” or almost two-thirds of the attorneys general, moving to take enforcement actions, Quillici says. “When it was one or two AGs, the robocallers could avoid calling those states, but that’s becoming impractical now.”

“It’s good to see state-level enforcement catch up with the FCC, FTC, and DOJ,” says Clayton LiaBraaten, senior executive adviser at Truecaller, a robocall tracking and mitigation service. “Catching and punishing these criminals, however, takes a fair amount of technical sleuthing and legal maneuvering.” The bottom line on both the international anti-robocall measures and the attorney-general partnerships: New countermeasures work for a while, but much like cybersecurity threat detection and patching, the bad guys inevitably circumvent the system.

In the meantime, while the industry and government continue working to solve the robocall problem, here are some things you can do to better block robocalls yourself.

Use Your Carrier’s Anti-Robocall Tools

Last year big phone carriers like AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon installed Shaken/Stir call-filtering technology that recognizes most legitimate phone numbers while weeding out or warning about suspicious numbers.

Carriers can also block suspect calls under the new TRACED Act that took effect last year.

For the most part, consumers don’t have to do anything to get these free services to work. Calls recognized as legitimate will be allowed through with an indication, such as a green check mark. Numbers not recognized as legit will be either blocked or allowed to ring with an alert indicating that the call is suspected to be spam or a scam.

But these services might not be automatically enabled for all phones on all carriers. You may have to activate the basic robocall blocking features on your phone. The steps below can vary depending on the carrier.

Note that customers of smaller carriers, such as rural phone service providers, might not have access to these services yet, because many of these carriers are still implementing Shaken/Stir technology.

AT&T

AT&T offers the ActiveArmor Mobile Security App (formerly Call Protect,) which will display a “V” (for verified) on your caller ID for calls considered legitimate. It will also block potentially fraudulent calls by giving a busy signal. You’ll still get spam calls, but your caller ID will display Suspected Spam and a category like Political, Nonprofit, Telemarketer, Survey, or Robocaller.

To access ActiveArmor, users need to just download the app to their smartphone from the Apple and Google App store.

T-Mobile

T-Mobile offers two free anti-robocall tools: Scam ID and Scam Block. Scam ID identifies and tags suspicious calls. T-Mobile One customers automatically get Scam ID. Other customers can activate it free. Scam Block is a more robust free tool, which, as the name implies, blocks calls before they ring. But customers need to activate this service.

How to Turn On Scam ID
Dial #ONI# (#664#), then press the call button.

How to Turn On Scam Block
Dial #ONB# (#662#), then press the call button.

Verizon

Verizon automatically enrolls eligible customers in the free version of Call Filter, which detects spam and blocks high-risk calls. This option is available on a wide variety of phones. See the full list of compatible devices.

Verizon also offers a more robust paid anti-robocall tool called Call Filter Plus, which can block unwanted calls. It costs $3 per month per line for up to two lines. It’s $8 per month for three or more lines. Most Verizon phones come preloaded with the Call Filter app, which is necessary to activate Call Filter Plus. If your phone isn’t preloaded with the app, it’s available for download at the app store.

How to Activate Call Filter Plus

Android: Open Call Filter app, then tap Account > Subscription Status > Subscribe Now.

iPhone: Open Call Filter app, then tap Get Call Filter > Subscribe.

Online: Go to your account’s My Verizon section. Go to the Add-ons and apps page in My Verizon and select Manage Call Filter > Manage Add-on. Select which line you want to manage, and select the Call Filter Plus bubble under Choose Your Call Filter product. Choose whether to apply Call Filter to all eligible lines or choose Selected lines. You can get Call Filter Plus (Multiline) for accounts with three or more eligible lines for $8 per month per account. Click Continue > Confirm when the Confirmation screen appears.

My Verizon App: Open the My Verizon app. Tap the menu in the top left > Plans & Devices, then scroll down and tap Explore Add-ons. Scroll down to find Call Filter and tap Learn More, then choose a line to manage and tap Enroll > Call Filter Plus > Next. To sign up for Call Filter Plus (Single line), tap the $2.99/month per line Call Filter Plus option. To sign up for Call Filter Plus (Multiline) (requires three or more eligible lines), tap the $7.99/month for three or more lines Call Filter Plus option. Review your changes and tap “I accept the Terms & Conditions,” then tap Confirm.

Add More Robocall Protection

Downloading a third-party call-blocking app or signing up for your phone company’s separate robocall blocking service could provide even more protection.

Some of these apps charge a fee, and others offer a free subscription. But some “free” apps are free only for an introductory period and will automatically begin charging you a fee unless you cancel your subscription before the free trial ends.

These beefed-up services use algorithms, lists of blacklisted numbers, and proprietary technology to filter out suspicious calls and can supplement the call-blocking and labeling functionality of Shaken/Stir. They also give you more control to manually choose which calls can come through and which ones to block.

But you should consider potential privacy implications before downloading third-party apps.

For even more privacy protection, there are premium services that offer tools such as access to a virtual private network (VPN) that can safeguard your data on public WiFi networks.

Correction: AT&T’s robocall protection service has been renamed as the ActiveArmor Mobile Security App.

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