How To Recognize Spam Sales Calls and Text Messages

As technology advances, the risk of being scammed or targeted with spam sales calls and text messages increases. 

We all know the feeling of receiving an unsolicited sales call or text message. Whether it’s a friendly voice on the other end or a robotic one, it can be annoying and time-consuming. 

While some people can easily recognize a fraud call or text message, for others, such as the elderly, it can be more difficult.

Knowing the signs of a scam and how to protect yourself and your loved ones from these malicious attempts to access your personal information is very important. Fortunately, eSTAR’s new mobile phones can help you recognize and protect yourself from spam sales calls and text messages.

Phone Spam — an increasing problem 

Phone fraud, whether by call or text message, is growing and becoming a huge problem. With the advance of automation and bots, we know that the number and damage of spam calls and text messages are significant. However, we have discovered some studies proving that the problem is greater than we imagined. (Data from the U.S. market). 

• Truecaller released its annual scam call report, revealing that in the year up to June 2021, Americans lost an estimated $29.8 billion to fraudulent calls.

• A phone scam saw a 270% surge in victims in 2020 compared to the previous year.

•  According to recent data, scammers have predominantly targeted individuals through phone calls in 2021. In comparison, the likelihood of being texted by a scammer was almost half that of receiving a call. However, figures from the first half of 2022 suggest an even split between scammers using telephone and text message communications. 

• The Hiyas State of the Call 2022 report released findings on the costs of scam calls per victim. In 2021, victims were estimated to have lost an average of $567.41 due to scam phone calls, representing a considerable increase from 2020 when losses averaged $182.

What’s a spam sales call? 

First, let’s look at what spam sales calls are. Spam sales calls are automated calls from companies trying to sell you something. These calls often come in robocalls, allowing companies to reach out to thousands of people at once. People receiving these calls often feel harassed, as this messaging is intrusive and unwelcome.

The same thing happens with spam texts. These are unwanted texts sent to you by companies trying to sell you something, often using the same technique as the spam sales call. 

You can protect yourself from them now that you know what they are.  

How to identify and block spam sales calls and text messages 

1. Awareness of the signs of a spam call or text message is important. Such messages often contain words like “free” or “guaranteed”; if they seem too good to be true, they probably are. It is important to be vigilant in recognizing the signs of a possible scam, as these can lead to serious financial and personal losses.

2. If you ever realize you are receiving a spam call or text message, it is best to immediately hang up or delete the message without responding. Responding may lead to more unwanted calls or messages, so it is important to remain vigilant and take appropriate action at the first sign of a potential spam call or text.

3.  If you receive a suspicious text message, contact your mobile phone provider or the police to report it. Taking these steps can help protect yourself and others from the potential dangers of text message spam.

At eSTAR, we are committed to helping our customers stay safe by identifying and responding to spam calls and text messages. As the number of spam text messages continues to rise, everyone must be aware of the potential risks of falling victim to a scam. However, it can be especially challenging for older people to spot the signs of a scammer due to their lack of familiarity with modern technology. Therefore, seniors must be extra protected. 

With that in mind, eSTARs new batch of feature phones has a new function, focusing on protecting the elderly and the less digitally literate. 

You must enter your contacts in your phone book and then switch on the function “Reject unknown callers” in the Security menu. That’s it. Now only the people from your contacts can reach out to you. Any unknown number will be rejected, and you will remain saved and unbothered.

This feature helps older people to avoid being spammed by call centers offering to buy something or to prevent scammers from reaching them. In the eSTAR assortment, you can find a wide variety of phones with this helpful feature, such as the eSTAR X35, X28, X18, and S20. Also, our newest model ROCK rugged phone will also come with this feature in 2023. 

Would you like to know where to find this and other eSTAR tech goods? Click here to find your nearest vendor. On the other hand, if you represent a company and would like to sell eSTAR products on it, let’s talk! We are always looking for new distributors and commercial partners.