[Hidden-tech] Ways to reduce junk phone calls?

[James Triplett]

On (21/09/20 18:38), Val Nelson via Hidden-discuss wrote:
> Date: Mon, 21 Sep 2020 18:38:45 -0400
> From: Val Nelson via Hidden-discuss <hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net>
> To: Hidden-Tech Listserv <hidden-discuss at lists.hidden-tech.net>
> Subject: [Hidden-tech] Ways to reduce junk phone calls?
> Reply-To: Val Nelson <val at valnelson.com>
> 
> Hi HT community,
> I'm increasingly bombarded with junk phone calls. Multiple a day.
> Especially in the last month.
> 
> Any creative ideas to reduce that? They are all mostly on the same topic of
> selling business visibility online. Argh.
> 

We've basically eliminated robocalls with the following:

1. Move (called porting) our "landline" number to a VOIP service, such as voip.ms .
2. The VOIP service has an automated attendant function, which answers the phone
   and says, "Marketing calls not accepted.  If you're human, press 3"
3, If, and only if, the caller presses '3', the automated attendant "dials out"
   to a second secret number, which then rings our phone.

To my surprise it works perfectly, even human callers at call centers don't seem to
be able to get past it.

The VOIP service (which we got originally to save money) costs around $6 per month per line.

cheers,
James