British consumers are set to be better protected against scammers who call from abroad and imitate UK landline numbers, under strengthened industry guidance, which Ofcom claims will lead to more calls being blocked before they even reach their intended victims.
So-called “spoofing” has been an issue for a number of years as rogue telemarketers use phone numbers from a trusted person, organisation, or Government department, as they know people are more likely to pick up these calls than if an unknown international number is displayed.
Following a consultation, Ofcom is further strengthening its guidance in this area. Phone companies will now have to identify and block calls from abroad which falsely display a UK telephone number as a ‘Presentation Number’, except in a limited number of legitimate cases.
Evidence gathered during its consultation suggests that these blocking measures will have a significant impact on protecting the public from scam calls. BT has already prevented a staggering 1 million calls per day from entering its network within the first month of implementing these measures on a voluntary basis, and Ofcom claims its guidance will ensure this becomes standard practice across the industry.
Building on this work, the regulator is also publishing a Call for Input, seeking views and evidence on the effectiveness, costs, risks and timescales of different technical solutions to tackle scam calls from abroad which spoof UK mobile numbers.
The move follows Ofcom research that shows many consumers are still receiving suspicious calls and texts, despite a slight decline from a peak of 2021.
In 2024, just under half of UK landline users (48%) said they had received a suspicious call in the previous three months – down from 56% in 2021.
Mobile users also reported a decrease in receiving suspicious calls, from 45% to 39% over the same period. Mobile users are most likely to receive a suspicious text message, although incidence has also fallen from 74% in 2021 to 56% in 2024.
Ofcom group director for networks and communications Lindsey Fussell said: “Criminals who defraud people by exploiting phone networks cause huge distress and financial harm to their victims. While there are encouraging signs that scam calls and texts are declining, they remain widespread and we’re keeping our foot to the throttle to find new and innovative ways to tackle the problem.
“Under our strengthened industry guidance, millions more scam calls from abroad which use spoofed UK landline numbers will be blocked – with similar plans underway for calls which spoof UK mobile numbers. We’re also challenging the industry and other interested parties to provide evidence on the best solutions to tackle mobile messaging scams.”
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