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Getting Chinese spam calls every day (multiple times)!

bo12
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

I've been getting spam calls - automated recording in Chinese mandarine - everyday and multiple times. Most of these calls were from Ontario and today I noticed the numbers starting to come from US and Mainland China. I've been in this situation for a ocuple weeks now. Please advise. 

8 REPLIES 8

Redzzy
I'm a participant level 2
I'm a participant level 2

IMG_8236.jpeg

 soooooo annoying

godloveyou
I'm a participant level 2
I'm a participant level 2

Fido should have Call Control like TELUS does. Waiting for the feature for a long long time but never happened.

Nobody is truly safe from receiving those calls. There is nothing we can do to stop them from contacting any of us because there are no laws stopping them from doing so, but we do everything we can to lower their chances of getting in touch with anybody. Here are some of our own latest features we've already implemented on our network:

 

- https://www.fido.ca/support/mobility/stir-shaken-caller-id-identification
- https://www.fido.ca/support/account/spam-call-detect-faqs



Hello @Redzzy 

We do understand how frustrating receiving those types of calls can be. Our support team is working continuously to reduce those types of calls to our customers. 

We have new tools like the Spam Call Detect which helps reduce those types of calls. It's an ongoing battle in order to make things better for you, but with the technology always progressing, the spammers always find new ways to reach cell phone users.

Thank you for flagging this, our support team is aware of the situation. Smiley 
 



Redzzy
I'm a participant level 2
I'm a participant level 2

These calls are BEYOND annoying!! Literally 4 calls a day!  What's this "Spam Call Detect"tool you mentioned ? Where/how do I get it (I hope it's not a paid service )  I started getting these calls after being on phone with Fido customer service .... they have been non stop for about 3 weeks now and calls start coming at 10pm sometimes ! I only have the "mini voicemail" with my plan and these stupid Chinese calls fill my voicemail (3 message limit) every day!!! I am getting to the point that I am considering changing my number just to get some relief. 

please let me know if the spam tool you mentioned is an option. 

thanks. 

KCBC
I'm a participant level 1
I'm a participant level 1

Just received one this morning in BC.  Shows as a 1800 number. 

Hey @KCBC! Spam Call Detect, also known as Nuisance Call Filtering, is the latest advancement in our fight against frustrating spam and fraud callers! You can find more information about this here



Cawtau
Senior MVP Senior MVP
Senior MVP

Hello Bo12

 

 Welcome to the community!

 

  Fido does have Chinese speaking customer service representatives. However, those calls are not from Fido. They are from spammers/scammers trying to target Fido's Chinese immigrant customer base. I understand many people who do not speak or understand the language are also receiving the calls. It's easier for the spammers/scammers to simply call all of Fido's phone numbers rather than to determine which phone numbers belong to Chinese customers. In fact, it appears that they aren't even bothering to only target Fido customers anymore. Some people from other providers have also received similar messages.

 

  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 and here). Reporting those phone numbers do not lead back to the spammers/scammers. Any filter would block innocent customers from accessing their services, not the spammers/scammers.

 

  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). While there have been some delays as to its implementation, 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. You should note that blocking the calls only prevents the calls from ringing your phone. It does not prevent the callers from leaving voicemail. There are (at least were) some apps which claimed to also prevent callers from leaving voicemail. They worked by answering and almost simultaneously ending the calls. While those apps do prevent calls from going to voicemail, the calls are also considered 'answered' and therefore count as airtime.

 

Hope this helps 😀

 

Cheers