What are Spam Risk Calls, and How Can You Protect Yourself?

Have you ever received a spam call? If so, don’t ever think about receiving them. 
Do you want to know why? Keep reading. 
A Truecaller survey in 2024 revealed that spam calls or scams affected 56 million people last year in the US. 
The same study revealed that it results in the overall loss of US customers of over $25 billion. 
If you are unaware of the term “spam risk,” you should understand the overall meaning of this phrase.
Here, we will explain the exact meaning of spam calls and whether you should receive them. We will also share some helpful tips for fighting against these calls and avoiding spam. 

So, get yourself ready to fight against this risk with us. Let’s get started. 

Spam Risk – Overview

“Spam risk” serves as a general phrase that mobile operators use. They use it when they automatically catch spam calls to warn users that they are receiving possibly calls from a scammer or fraudster. It means that your mobile operator has identified the incoming call as spam call. They flagged it as spam because it came from an unknown or suspicious source. Carriers may also flag certain numbers as spam if the caller makes a lot of short calls or if users frequently report that number. The spam risk is not only the term you see when a call is potentially spamming. You may also get calls with terms, like “Spam Risk,” “Spam Likely,” “Suspected Spam,” or something similar. You can ignore the call when you simply see these terms on the caller ID. 

Also read – Introduction to LLaMA model: A Powerful Language Model

Should you answer spam risk calls? 

When you get spam risk calls, the common question that appears in most people’s minds is whether you should receive this call. The simple answer to this query is that you should ignore these types of calls directly because they confirm that your number has become active and open the door for more spam or fraudulent calls. If the caller is a spammer, the fraudster will try to manipulate you with a social engineering technique to scam you. Therefore, it is better to ignore or use spam call blocker for these types of calls to be safe from these kinds of calls. Keep reading to learn how to block these calls and other tips to stop getting these calls on your mobile number. 

Why do you keep getting spam risk calls?

Several people keep getting calls with terms like spam risk. 
When you keep receiving these calls, it means that you are at high risk of getting scammed by fraud. Do you know why it happened?
If not, read the following reasons behind getting these calls:
1. Data brokers gather data from public sources and sell it in bulk & cheap rates. If you are getting many of those calls, it means your number may be one of their lists.
2. Somebody has tagged you in a social media post or shared your number in the same post. 
3. Spammers may have acquired your phone number from a number generator. These automatic programs generate a random phone number simultaneously. 
4. Scammers use a technique called web-scrapping to get countless mobile numbers. In these strategies, it use automated bots that browse the internet and extract the data in a copy-paste style. 
5. You are getting a robocall that randomly runs through a list of numbers. 
You must take action against these calls because no matter how they get your phone numbers they will continuously call you if they know your phone number is active. 

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What will happen when you answer spam risk calls?

As we mentioned above, answering or receiving calls with a phrase like spam risk will potentially lead you to meet severe situation.

If you still want to receive these calls, you might meet the following cases:

1. Your number might be marked as “live,” which will increase the chances of getting more spam calls. 
2. Sometimes, fraudsters use vishing techniques, posing as bank representatives, official representatives, or law enforcement agencies. If your spam caller uses the same strategy, they can steal your personal or financial information and gain access to your bank account.
3. If you pick a spam call, the spammer will trick you into saying “yes.” If this is the case, you should avoid saying “yes” because they can use your call recording for fraudulent activities. 
4. If you pick a spam call, you may receive a prerecorded call with menus that ask you to navigate them using your phone keypad. Your number will become a good number for continue calling if you press any key. 
5. Cybercriminals might also record your voice and use the same voice to do a scam with others who know you. 
6. If nothing serious happens to you while receiving these calls, you will definitely waste your precious time that you may use on better things than this. 

Apart from receiving this kind of call, many call back these numbers accidentally. Remember, you will meet the same cases when you call back as you meet when you meet these numbers. The best way to prevent experiencing these scenarios mentioned above is to avoid these calls or block these numbers.  Keep reading to explore ways to avoid getting these calls and getting scammed. 

How do you identify spam risk calls?

Mobile operators are making too much effort to identify spam risk calls and prevent you from getting these calls. Spammers are also taking significant steps by using caller ID spoofing to appear that the number is from a reputable source.

Getting a spam call is possible even if it doesn’t say “spam risk.”

The following are the signs that you might identify that the call you are receiving is a spam call:

1. Unknown calls

Receiving unknown calls can also mean the call is from a spammer. Most spammers doing spam calls will not reveal their mobile numbers to prevent getting caught as spammers. Therefore, you should be extremely careful when receiving these kinds of calls. 

2. Urgent demand and urgency

Have you ever listened to the news about someone getting scammed because a scammer made them feel urgent via call or message?
Similarly, scammers on spam calls want you to feel under pressure. So, they will convey a sense of urgency for their request. 
For example, they can tell you that your bank account is going to be blocked and ask you for information related to your bank account, like CVV, OTP, or more. Moreover, they may tell you that your closest person is in the hospital and you need to transfer them money for treatment. 
In this strategy, the aim of the scammer is to put so much pressure on your brain that you abandon logical thinking and make foolish decisions in urgency, 

3. Silence on the other side
   We are sure that most of you have received calls from unknown numbers that don’t say anything from the other side. 
   Indeed, you have guessed it right! This is additionally a part of spam calls.
   If the scammer aims to record your voice, they will say nothing to let you speak and they begin recording. 
   In these calls, you might also hear a clicking sound in the background as no one is talking from the other side. 

4. Calls late at night
   Do you know that picking up a call late at night can also potentially cause scams?
   Indeed, you have read it right!
   Most scammers perform scams via call outside business hours, even late at night. Hence, you should think twice before answering to the unknown number at the late night. 

Also read – The Growing Threat: How to Prevent Spyware Invasions

How to stop “Spam Risk calls”?

It’s not completely possible to stop spam risk calls from your calls. However, you can send them to voicemail. It would also be great to use spam call blocker for  these spammers after they call or message you. 

Let us understand the top steps you can take to filter or blocking spam risk calls:

1. Block spam risk calls on Android

You can block spam calls with the Android built-in “caller ID and spam risk calls protection” setting.  Let us look at the steps you need to follow to enable this setting:

1. Open the phone app. 
2. Tap the 3 vertical dots located at the top of your device’s screen. 
3. Now, you should touch the settings option. 
4. Now, scroll to find and touch “Caller ID and Spam protection.” 
5. Lastly, turn on See Caller and Spam ID and filter spam calls. 

It will protect you from getting spam calls. However, you may still receive some of those calls. Therefore, you should block individual numbers by following the steps mentioned below:

1. Open the same app and navigate to the recent option located at the bottom of your screen. 
2. Tap the number you wish to block
3. Select the info or “i” icon
4. Lastly, tap block. 

2. Silence unknown callers on iPhone

You cannot directly block or filter calls from scammers on iPhone. However, you can silence unknown callers on your iPhone to stop these calls by following the steps mentioned below:

1. Open “settings”
2. Tap on Phone
3. Lastly, toggle the “silence unknown callers.” 

3. Stop /avoid spam risk calls on Landlines

If you want to stop/ avoid receiving unwanted spam calls, consider registering your landline phone number with the National Do Not Call registry or calling 1-888-382-1222 from the number you wish to register.  By doing so, you should get some telemarketing calls within 31 days of registry. However, it does not filter out scammers who ignore the registry. 

Also read- What is Data Lifecycle Management?

Conclusion 

Spam risk is a term that most telecom companies to prevent you from getting scammed. These calls are harmful calls that may lead you to financial loss. However, the best way to ignore spam risk calls is to ignore or block these calls.