I’ve been wondering about something that probably resonates with many of us who still use our phones for calls and not just texting or apps. What percentage of phone calls are actually legitimate?

Even with my carrier’s “junk call” blocking, I find myself receiving 4 to 5 calls daily with no caller ID. It’s become second nature now to reject these unknown callers. But if I do answer, it often turns into a choice between being pitched a Medicare scam, a car insurance scam, a social security scam, or even a utility scam.

It makes me curious – how much of our call traffic is just a relentless barrage of marketing ploys and fraudulent schemes? The few times I still get a phone call, they either have caller ID and it’s someone I know, or it’s just a phone number and there’s a 99% chance it’s junk.

  • poweruser@lemmy.sdf.org
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    9 days ago

    I called 911 a few years ago and they had a police officer call me back when he got to my neighborhood. I had to do this a few times as the incident repeated a few days later. Each time the officer called me his number was hidden.

    That’s the only time I’ve ever had a call from a hidden number that was not a scam, but I would be hesitant to block them all

    • FireRetardant@lemmy.world
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      8 days ago

      Whenever I call 911, my phone notifies my that blocked numbers will be able to call for a little bit after dialing 911.