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Fido needs a way to block spam calls

Techguy666
I'm a participant level 3
I'm a participant level 3

I know some phones can “auto reject” calls but there should be a way to do this earlier in the process.  Since most legitimate calls have Caller Name ID, and spam calls only have number ID, can’t we have an option to just filter out all calls lacking Name ID?  That may filter out important private or emergency services for some people but many more Fido customers would probably benefit from this option.

18 REPLIES 18

benzittlau
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

I find it very frustrating that Fido's response here seems to come down to "We're doing everything we can", "This is really a CRTC problem, not hours", but also "Oh, that thing that you're asking for that we don't do, that isn't a solution".  All while marking this issue as "Solved", when this issue clearly is far from solved.

If we, as your customers, are asking for that as a solution (that a competitor already offers) and you're refusing to offer it, then you're *not* doing everything you can to solve this issue.  Let us decide whether the fact that *some* automated phone calls for *some* of your customers could get filtered by a feature like Telus' dissuades us from turning it on.  Personally the constant spam calls are a much bigger issue to me, and if some automated phone calls get blocked that's just fine.

The attitude towards the customer in this thread is very frustrating.  If Fido continues to neglect this problem, and neglect the feedback from it's customers, this alone could likely drive me to move to Telus.  The constant spam is becoming a real, daily, frustration.

nobodyimportant
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

A way to manage a Whitelist/Greylist/Blacklist would help.

 

Ingress filtering to drop calls from numbers inside of their network originating from outside of their network.  I constantly get calls from numbers with my prefix, and get calls from people claiming I called them (which I did not).  I work nights, and get between 2 and 10 calls a day, meaning I have to turn my ringer off when I sleep, which also makes it impossible for me to respond to an emergancy call.

 

These technologies and techniques have existing for IP networks for over 20 years.  Even if Fido is afraid of implementing these things for everyone, they should at a minimum have them as an option, with a simple non-convoluted way to manage it for consumers.

Oliviergilbert
I'm a participant level 3
I'm a participant level 3

And how are the many available apps build specifically to block calls do it? Fido can't?

Hello Oliviergilbert,

 

  I can understand the frustration. I think everyone is rather fed up about getting SPAM and SCAM calls from spoofed numbers. Unfortunately, there currently isn't much that any of the mobile providers can do to prevent them. Since the spammers/scammers use spoofed numbers, it is not possible to identify the true spammers' number. The numbers shown on caller ID do not belong to the spammers. They often belong to innocent, unsuspecting people. Unfortunately, there isn't much that can be done to prevent numbers from being spoofed. In some instances, the spammers/scammers will use the recipients' own phone numbers to make the calls. Even the RCMP are not immune to being spoofed (see here). 

 

  Mobile providers and landline providers simply cannot block a number without absolute proof that the owner of the number is engaged in nefarious activities. If the spammers chose to spoof your number. I think you would agree that if they blocked your number simply based on its apparent use to make SPAM calls or send SPAM SMS, you would not be impressed. How about if you received a SPAM call from your own spoofed number? Would you insist they block your phone number? Should they block the RCMP phone number?

 

  I understand some apps might offer that service. However, that blocking list only affects people who opt to use those apps. Honest customers who might actually own those numbers can still use their services, just not to call people using those apps. If a mobile provider were to do the same, honest customers would have difficulties using their services.

 

  Everyone agrees that SPAM calls and SMS are problematic. However, blocking the spoofed numbers is not feasible. Blocking innocent customers for no reason is NOT acceptable. In the Western world, people are deemed innocent until proven guilty. It has been suggested that customers with blocked phone numbers could somehow verify their calls prior to calls connecting. An honest customer should not have to prove their innocence by having to call an operator to connect a call because their number was used in a spoofing SCAM! That would be a presumption of guilt.

 

  Since my previous post above, the mobile providers have implemented Universal Call Blocking which is meant to block calls from malformed phone numbers. That said, I'm doubtful whether it will have much of an effect on the amount of SPAM or SCAM calls since many of them appear to have properly formed phone numbers. In addition, a new technology, STIR/SHAKEN (Secure Telephone Identity Revisited/Signature-based Handling of Asserted Information Using Tokens) is being adopted to further reduce the amount of nuisance calls (see here). However, I have my doubts as to whether those measures will reduce the amount of SPAM calls. My understanding is the STIR/SHAKEN will only identify possible SPAM calls and mark the calls as suspected SPAM.

 

  Unfortunately, until the technology to unmask the true number of spammers/scammers is readily available (not simply the number shown on the caller ID), the only solution currently is to block the numbers on your phone.

 

Hope this helps 😀

 

Cheers

 

 


Ms1222
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

Wrong. TELUS provides the call control feature for free that requires spoof callers to press a digit before they can leave a vm. Completely solving the robocaller issue. If TELUS can so can fido. I will be switching to them as soon as this contract ends. 

Hello Ms1222,

 

  Welcome to the community!

 

  Thank you for making note of Telus' Call Control. I appreciate that system can be beneficial for some customers. However, it is not a solution to the problem. There are many legitimate automated calls which would also get blocked by that system (ie Pharmacies, doctor's offices, libraries, delivery notices, etc). Fido, and other providers, are likely focussing their efforts for options which can benefit all of their customers, not just some of them.

 

Hope this helps 😀

 

Cheers

 


woodbang
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1
Click here
 

I just switched to Fido today and tried to use call control which is unavailable but have been with Telus 20 years and Kudo 2 years until now which both provide the call control and lets you add approximately 20 numbers to let through where they don't have to press the digit.

I will be switching back to Kudo soon because this feature Works excellent for me!

Hey @woodbang,

 

We do have the option with spam call detect. 

 

Your device’s Call Display will automatically update the incoming number with a “Likely Spam” or “Likely Fraud” warning. You may also see additional information like “Political,” “Non-profit,” “Survey” or the business name.

 

You can find more information on our FAQ page here: https://www.fido.ca/support/account/spam-call-detect-faqs#what-is-spam-call-detect%3F

 



Petto
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

So it is better to not solve the problem at all and give your cusomer no options at all? 

 

As customers, we evaluate our own risk of using the call control service.  The lack of option to protections is the problem.  I am getting over 10 spam calls a day.  What has Fido done about it?  When you offer the call control service like Telus, you can list the risk of missing important calls.  We can make an informed choice ourselve if we want to use it or not.

Hey @Petto, welcome to the community, Alex here! 

 

I know that getting spam calls can be very annoying as I do get some of them myself. We definitely appreciate your feedback in regards to the call control feature Telus offers, we're always looking for ways to improve our services so we love getting comments like yours. 

 

As for what we do here at Fido, we do have a spam call detect feature. With this feature, you’ll be able to see if incoming calls could be fraud or spam. You can read more about this feature on our website here

 

We also have an article on our website here with general tips and information on how to protect yourself against ID spoofing and spam calls.

 

I hope that this helps and don't hesitate to reach out to our customer service if you ever need more help! 



steven314
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

It is the physician's offices (and other health care providers) responsibility to ensure that the patient has responded and confirmed an appointment. No one physician would send an automated message to a patient over telephone and document that as adequate - if a patient has not picked up an automated message you can be certain there is a direct phone call made by a person after to look for appointment confirmation. No shows are expensives to doctors, so the offices do what they can to minimize this to keep revenue up.  You can be certain there is an office assistant/secretary or a person on the line who can press whatever RGN the call protection generates. This is pretty standard of care amongst doctors and other health care providers. Appointment reminders are sometimes automated but in my experience are almost universally text message now. 

 

Has Fido actually spoken with each of those fields you've stated? "(ie Pharmacies, doctor's offices, libraries, delivery notices, etc). " I guarantee you most of these have pivoted around call protection since many Telus patients have this feature.

 

PS - I am a physician who is equally annoyed at Fido's lack of call protection.

patrickchan
I'm experienced level 1
I'm experienced level 1

fido aka Roger's need to block spam calls such as robots calls. not fun . seniors can be scammed with scare calls

Cawtau
Senior MVP Senior MVP
Senior MVP

Hello Techguy666,

 

  I understand receiving nuisance and SPAM calls can be frustrating.

 


@Techguy666 wrote:...Since most legitimate calls have Caller Name ID, and spam calls only have number ID, can’t we have an option to just filter out all calls lacking Name ID?

  That statement is not necessarily true. Many, if not all, prepaid phone services do not provide Caller Name Display. Your suggested filter would block a significant portion of cellular phone users -- not just spammers using spoofed numbers.

 

 


@@Techguy666 wrote:...That may filter out important private or emergency services for some people but many more Fido customers would probably benefit from this option.

  No provider will set in place a practice which will selectively and negatively affect a portion of customers for the benefit of other customers. That's discrimination.

 

  Unfortunately, there is currently not much that can be done to prevent such nuisance calls. However, it's hopeful to note that the CRTC is trying to implement measures to certify and authenticate caller ID (see here and here).

 

Hope this helps Smiley

 

Cheers


Dabmedia
I'm a participant level 3
I'm a participant level 3

I know I’m not alone, but I am really tired of spoof/spam calls from Chinese , same msg over and over multiple times a week. I reject calls but goes to voicemail, I only have small plan so only 3 voicemail allowed. It fills them up and doesn’t allow serious callers to leave msg. 

 

I have started to fill my voicemail myself and save every 3 days so when I reject the call they cannot leave a msg. 

 

Canada is way behind in this blocking technology. Are there any cell companies that do anonymous/ number blocking? 

 

I like Fido but I’m ready to switch so I don’t have to listen to theses calls that I cannot even understand. 

Hey @Dabmedia,

 

I've moved your post to this thread as it already includes the answer to your question. Hope this helps Smiley



FidoJulien
Former Moderator
Former Moderator

Hey @Techguy666

 

I can assure you our teams are doing everything they can to stop these calls.  I'll make sure to share your feedback with the team in charge though!



Avatar2
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

Have they done everything they can? Perhaps Fido should make all voicemail plans unlimited messages. My voicemail is being filled faster than I can empty by scam calls. Legit callers can't leave a message in my constantly full voicemail box.

Hello Avatar2,

 

Welcome to the community!

 

   I think everyone is rather fed up about getting SPAM and SCAM calls from spoofed numbers. Unfortunately, there currently isn't much that any of the mobile providers can do to prevent them. Since the spammers/scammers use spoofed numbers, it is not possible to identify the true spammers' number. However, the mobile providers are implementing Universal Call Blocking which is meant to block calls from malformed phone numbers. That said, I'm doubtful whether it will have much of an effect on the amount of SPAM or SCAM calls since many of them appear to have properly formed phone numbers.

 

  Unfortunately, until the technology to unmask the true number of spammers/scammers is readily available (not simply the number shown on the caller ID), the only solution currently is to block the numbers on your phone.

 

Hope this helps 😀

 

Cheers