If you’re old enough to remember the days before caller ID, you know just how great it is to be able to see who’s calling when the phone rings.
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Unfortunately, though, there is a new challenge these days: unknown numbers that come from scammers who call you every day and sometimes multiple times a day.
If you are the type of person who doesn’t like picking up the phone when an unknown number appears on your caller ID, you have likely had to deal with quite a few scam calls, and that is immensely frustrating.
Thankfully, there are some strategies you can try to figure out if it’s worth taking a call, and a few of them are discussed below.
Check a People Search Website
A people search website is a fantastic resource to use when you want to figure out if someone legitimate is calling you.
To see what we mean, go to Nuwber and type in someone’s phone number. You should discover some information about the person who owns that number.
If there’s something more you want to know, such as whether this person is a telephone scammer or not, you can google their name.
See how quick and simple it is?
So, the next time that you get a call from a number that you don’t recognize, you can use this single step to get some answers.
If you see that the call was legit, you can call the person back and find out what they wanted to talk to you about.
Use a Search Engine
A search engine like Google is another great place to go when you want to learn more about the person who owns a phone number that showed up on your caller ID.
Once again, you can just type in the full number in the search field and then see what results appear.
A lot of people like to use this strategy to get answers because of the varied results that can appear.
For instance, people searching websites might show up in the results, or you might figure out that a call was from a scammer if other people have posted warnings about the number and the scam.
Just bear in mind that this might take more time than, let’s say, searching directly on a people search website, but it will yield more diverse results that might shed additional light on the caller.
Use an App for Hidden Numbers
What if you get a call that shows up as “Restricted” or “Hidden” on your caller ID? In other words, what do you do when even your caller ID won’t display the phone number that is calling you?
Well, there are handy apps that you can try, such as TrapCall, to tackle this problem.
With this particular app, you decline a call from an unknown number and wait for the app to work on figuring out who was calling you.
After the app unmasks the caller, your phone will ring again (it should only take seconds) and display the number so you can decide whether to take the call or block it.
Plus, there are other apps that are similar to TrapCall, so you can try a few to see which one you like best.
Try a Reverse Phone Lookup Website
Another option that is worth trying is a reverse phone lookup website.
There are many of these, and you can find them easily by doing a basic search on Google or any other search engine.
Once you find a reverse phone lookup site, it’s a matter of typing in the phone number that called you so you can perform a search and see what results come up.
You might find that the number is associated with an individual, a business, or perhaps even a scam of some kind.
A phone lookup site works in a similar way to the people search websites discussed above.
So, it can be an alternative to a people search site or it can be used as an additional resource that could help you confirm if the information you’re finding about a caller is correct.
As long as you are using a website that has a large database of accurate info, you should find that this is a quick and simple way to get the details you need.
Check Social Media
Some social media platforms allow you to search for people using their phone numbers. Also, the Instagram Viewer apps could be helpful in the research.
Therefore, another way to figure out who is calling you is by typing their phone number on a social media site like LinkedIn or Facebook.
Just bear in mind that this will not work for individuals who have profiles on those platforms but haven’t provided their phone numbers for public view.
In other words, if someone created a profile but didn’t give their phone number or hasn’t made it possible for people to find them using their phone number, this strategy will not yield any results.
If someone has called you and their name shows up on your caller ID but you don’t know who they are, you could instead search for them on social media using their name.
This can give you a better idea of who they are, where they are from, and why they might be calling you.
They might have dialed the wrong number or they might be friends with someone you know, as a couple of examples.
Block Numbers to Prevent Them from Calling Again
If you find that you are getting a lot of calls from scammers, always remember that you can block the numbers using your mobile phone.
But what if you have a landline?
Well, landline phone service providers may also have features that include call blocking, or you can look into the call-blocking devices that are available for landlines.
Once the numbers are blocked, they won’t be able to contact you again.
A Host of Great Options to Choose From
There are several ways to figure out who’s calling you so you can decide if you want to take their call. Just try multiple strategies to see which one works best.
