Has someone called you on your mobile and you don’t know whose number that is? If you don’t want to call back to find out, we tell you what other ways there are to find out. With applications, web pages with phone listings, or using tools as basic as Google: if the phone is not hidden, you will surely discover your interlocutor.
We have all suffered more than once the call of someone that we did not have on the agenda. It is most likely that it was an advertising communication, but we cannot always bet on it: perhaps a contact has changed its numbering; or they may call for a job offer, who knows. If you were also left with doubt about knowing who a telephone number belonged to, we tell you how you can find out.
Turn on spam protection in your phone app
As we said in the previous paragraph, it is most likely that the unknown number you are trying to contact only wants to sell you something. To filter any possible advertising calls, it is best to activate an anti-spam filter, an option that is usually already included in your mobile.
Brands like Samsung, Xiaomi, Realme, Vivo, and Google include a spam filtering phone app. This application will warn if the number is likely to be classified as spam. It can even show who it belongs to even if you don’t have it in your address book like Google’s phone does.
To activate the spam filter on your phone you must do the following:
- Open the calling app and go into its settings.
- Look for something like ‘ Caller ID & Spam Protection ‘ (Samsung) or ‘ Caller ID & Spam ‘ (Google phone; included in Pixel, Xiaomi, OnePlus…).
- Activate protection against spam calls: your mobile will notify you if the caller is suspicious, it will also show you who is behind the number if it belongs to a known business or institution.
- Activate the ‘See person and caller ID’ function if you have it available.
With the application integrated into a large part of smartphones, it is possible to rule out most unknown numbers since the phone will notify who is the caller or, at least, if they are suspected of making a business call. In this way, many possibilities are ruled out: if the number does not appear as spam, and the phone does not identify it, there are more ways to close the circle.
Apps to identify unknown numbers
Before recommending any application of this style, we must warn about the risks related to privacy: since this type of application has access to data as sensitive as telephone numbers and contacts, you must assess the cons and also the benefits. However, they offer just what we are looking for: identify a good part of the numbers that call even if they are not in the phone book.
There are many applications of this style. TrueCaller is one of them, surely one of the best at its job: identity calling numbers. It is recommended only if the numbers constantly harass you and the phone does not have a standard app that filters spam efficiently: TrueCaller shows who is calling, allows you to filter calls, uses updated databases, and can block unwanted communications. It is valid for Android and iOS.
Truecaller: Caller ID & Log, Spam
- Developer: Truecaller
- Download it at Google Play
- Download it at App Store
- Price: Free
- Category: Communication
Look up the number in identification services
That the previous methods have not served you? You can look up the number in online identification services. There are many of them, although first, we recommend that you do a simple search: copy the phone number that called you and paste it into the Google search engine. You will most likely find out who is hiding behind even without accessing any results.
Apart from the always welcome Google search, there are plenty of pages with telephone directories. These will tell you the people behind the number and also the companies; as long as they are listed. They are perfect to rule out any spam calls.
- Yellow Pages. The telephone book of a lifetime: most businesses are available here with their information and telephone number. The page incorporates the aforementioned Yellow Pages and the former White Pages.
- Listspam. A directory specialized in registering phone numbers that harass you with marketing calls.
- Who has called? Another directory with phone number information. Updated by users.
Extra: open the number on WhatsApp
If the unknown phone number belongs to a mobile phone, you can do a little trick to discover information about the person: view their WhatsApp profile. To do this, all you have to do is open a chat with that number, always without sending any message: write the URL https://api.whatsapp.com/send?phone=34xxxxxxxxx in the browser, changing the ‘xxxxxxxxx’ to the mysterious phone number. If the number is not Spanish, change the ’34’ to the country code.
Once you have created the URL, access it on your mobile so that WhatsApp opens. If the number has an account in the application and does not have limited profile viewing, you will see their photo and you will have access to the description they have entered (click on the top of the chat, on the phone number). With this data, you can determine if you know the person behind the number that has called you.
Sharlene Meriel is an avid gamer with a knack for technology. He has been writing about the latest technologies for the past 5 years. His contribution in technology journalism has been noteworthy. He is also a day trader with interest in the Forex market.
