Scam phone calls

[Jouska]

Is there anyway of only allowing specific phone calls to a land line?

Mum is receiving scam calls which throw her into the pits of despair and anxiety every time.

She does have call blocker but is not able to use it herself , she is tps etc but that makes no difference.

Report to Everyone. ICO, Trading Standards, her phone company.

And your MP.

That's step 1.

Phones are so important to a person stuck at home and it feels like a terrible intrusion over which you have little control. I get that a call blocker might be a tough piece of kit to get used to. It probably feels horrible for her to even have to think of it.

My late mum was a kind hearted person who always believed the best in people and it took careful conversations with her to make her feel any degree of control over this. I tried to get her to realise that these people- even ones promoting charities- don't give a [whatever word she likes ] about the widget they are selling, it is just a widget. It is not her job to be nice to the people she talks to.

She won't want to change her number but it might be the only alternative to a call blocker.

I've just had one for visa on my landline.

Be warned about that one too

Sky call guardian or whatever it's called has mostly worked for my grandfather. We added our numbers and his friends, the GP etc to the 'allowed' list and they ring straight through. Then numbers not on the list go through to a message service..So you have to leave a message stating who you are etc then it rings through to my grandad who hears the message that has been given and you press one button to accept the call and another button to decline. We told him if no message is given then always decline as these scammers never put a message through and anyone real who wants to speak to him would always give a message. Don't know how old your mum is but my grandad gets on ok with this system, he is 80, he says it reminds him of the telephone exchange service when he was young and calls had to be put through. So this suits him well in that it feels a bit familiar I think?! Then I can see online who has rung him and if he tells me a dodgy call got through I can block the number from my laptop etc and I can add any new numbers to the approved list this way too. Anyway maybe something to look into!

TPS you mentioned, also go ex directory, cuts a lot of calls eventually.
Maybe caller display, and anything "withheld" not to answer ?

Thanks for all your replies I will look into them all. She is still worrying about it 12 hours later

Poor mum. What are her specific worries ?
If it's "where did they get my number from?" chances are it was randomly generated at least once and when the bastards got a "hit", they had a) a live number for them to use and b) a live number to sell on. There are laws in this country about that and have been for over 10 years but the enforcement regime wasn't beefy enough (it is better in the past couple of years-new powers given to the regulator and more joined up action). However, it only applies to UK entities and, to an extent EU countries. If the buggers are legally incorporated offshore it's harder to get them. Or they just reinvent themselves legally faster than they can get caught.
She may have unknowingly given her number out at some point as well. And then it gets on a list that way. Again, the trade in that is being tightened up but, sadly, it still means things like call blockers or schemes set up by network providers which put the onus on you to do something.

She just worries they are "out to get her" and "why me" she takes it very personally.

She has been told and reasurred how it works etc but can not take this on board.

She has mild cognitive impairment and has always been anxious. Unfortunately her cognitive impairment means she can not block numbers herself or check on caller id before she answers the phone caller accept would also be beyond her I am afraid.

I would love her to have more support and care but she is fighting against this tooth and nail.

does your mum have a mobile? It could be permanently set to the Do Not Disturb mode where only certain calls get through?

Op, I totally get it. You have to gently explain that it doesn't work line that and hope for the penny to drop. Does she have any pals who might know more about it? Does she speak to anyone at Age UK?
Poor her. And you obviously.

Thank you for all your thoughts. Mobile signal is non existent in her village (and she would never learn to use it)

I think we will just have to keep chipping away that it is not a big issue and it happens to everyone - her carers are fantastic and always help to cheer her up a bit.

Leaving in fear must be horrendous :(

There was another thread about this recently.
There might be some tips on there?
The best thing I did for mum was to get a phone with caller display and persuade her never to answer an unknown caller. Anyone important will leave a message, scammers don't leave messages.

Mum was being bombarded by charities and scams. We’ve done the TPS but they still get through. She only answers the phone if we all ring twice. If she misses anything important they leave a message.

www.sky.com/help/diagnostics/sky-talk-shield/what-do-you-need-help-with

This seems to work

Thank you I really do appreciate all of your advice and help