Why do they call and hang up: what is the point and who is behind it?

When a subscriber receives a call and is hung up, it inevitably attracts attention. The user wants to find out what kind of unknown number is displayed on the phone display and who is hiding on the other end of the line. This method of attracting attention is used not only by scammers or scammers, but also by marketing geniuses. A dropped call intrigues the caller and forces him to dial back to find out the situation. As a rule, in this situation, the SIM card user is waiting for a message from a robot at the other end, which reports the text of the current promotion.

How to behave when they call and hang up

When dialing the number in response, the subscriber must remember that funds may be debited from the account for an outgoing call. Especially if the number belongs to another operator or region. And since an outgoing call is considered a voluntary action, money will not be returned to the account.

If an unfamiliar number appears on your phone and the conversation ends before it even begins, you should not call back. You should copy the number and enter it into the Internet search bar to determine who owns the SIM card. In the event that scammers called, comments from network users will help determine this. In addition, there are special applications for smartphones that perform caller ID functions so that the user can always see who is calling him.

They call and hang up, as a rule, only on mobile phones. Since home devices in most cases are not equipped with number identification equipment. And thanks to this, the meaning of calls for fraudulent purposes is lost. The subscriber will not be able to call back, which means he will not listen to the advertisement or money will not be debited for the outgoing call.

Promotion “They hesitated the subscriber”

Some people are beginning to suspect mobile operators of engaging in a campaign called “Get the Subscriber Confused” (or, alternatively, “Finish the Client”) so that the user will give up and connect to a paid service that protects him from spam calls. Often, after another such call, a message comes: “We know who called you. This is a “mass call”. Do you want to identify unknown numbers? Turn it on for 2.5 rubles/day...”

However, the operators themselves deny such speculation. At the same time, they do not deny that they send SMS with such content.

— If the system recognizes a mass call, the client can automatically receive an offer to connect to additional services in order to protect themselves from such calls. However, only the subscriber himself can decide whether to take advantage of the recommendation or not,” Megafon replies.

MTS also has a similar service that filters out unwanted calls - “Spam Call Blocking”. You have to pay for peace of mind, so the service will cost money.

Why do they call and hang up from different numbers?

Cases of calls and calls from different numbers have become more frequent over the past 2-3 years. This is due to the tightening of laws regarding SMS mailings and advertising calls. Users complained about having to receive PR messages and marketers came up with a new way to interest the client. If a subscriber receives a call from an unfamiliar number and then hangs up, he will want to call back. This usually happens due to anticipation of an incoming call from another subscriber, ignorance or simple curiosity. The consequences of this action may be as follows:

The subscriber will have to listen to an advertising message from an advertising bot.
This will turn out to be the number of some organization and a call center specialist will answer the subscriber.
Fraudsters, through simple manipulations, will write off money for the conversation from your personal account.

But it happens that the number is dialed by mistake and on the other end of the line there will be a subscriber who is not involved in the fraud. But be that as it may, you should not call back to an unfamiliar number after a broken conversation, in order to avoid spending on communication services. If the subscriber on the other end needs to make a call, he will definitely redial the number.

There is another way to cheat. In this case, the call is dropped even before the ringtone starts playing on the device. Thus, the subscriber does not understand that he was deceived and sees only a missed call that needs to be called back. Then the same thing awaits him as with the reset call. But this format of deception arouses less suspicion.

This method of PR and fraud is thought out to the smallest detail. The scammers act cunningly and competently. No one calls the subscriber or offers services or goods. The user dials the number himself and voluntarily listens to the message or enters into a conversation with a representative of the advertiser. Therefore, filing a complaint with higher authorities against the owner of the number makes no sense.

Why do they call from different numbers and remain silent?

There is another method of negatively influencing mobile network users. When they call and remain silent on the phone. The following categories of subscribers may be hidden behind these actions:

Debt collectors. In this case, the method of psychological influence is used. The person receiving the call begins to get nervous and worried.
Statisticians checking the activity of the number. After collecting data, inspectors transfer the database of current phone numbers to advertising companies for subsequent calls.
All kinds of organizations and companies for advertising purposes. PR is carried out by attracting attention and intrigue.
Representatives of banks and financial organizations in order to sell their product.
Fraudsters and scammers.
Detractors.

There is a scam format where funds can be charged for an outgoing call if the user calls back to an opponent. At the other end, a representative of an advertising organization or a fake “medical center,” for example, tries to talk with the subscriber for as long as possible so that the maximum amount of funds is debited from the personal account. There is only one advantage in this case - by law, the subscriber is required to warn that the telephone number is a paid one and the money will be debited based on the outcome of the conversation. If there was no warning, the user has the right to return the spent funds by contacting his telecom operator. And you can sue the scammer’s number for extortion.

No matter who is hiding on the other end of the number, the actions of calling and hanging up should be considered harassment and an invasion of personal space. In this regard, the subscriber has the right to file a complaint with higher authorities using the caller's phone number.

What to do when receiving calls

Receiving calls that result in people hanging up is usually the result of fraudulent or promotional activity. By encouraging such actions, calling back and not notifying higher authorities about the fact of a violation, the subscriber only helps the deceivers develop and act more cunningly. When receiving calls that are followed by a hang up or silence from the person on the other end, you should respond to them as follows:

Under no circumstances should you call back, even if the call has been made several times.
Search for a specific number on directory sites. As a rule, if a number is noticed for such actions, the information can be found on the Internet.
Add the phone number from which they call and blacklist it. This will not stop advertisers and scammers, but no one will be able to bother you from this particular number anymore.
Download the application or use special services to identify a subscriber by phone number.
Contact your mobile operator to connect. Operators have thought through the protection of their subscribers from unwanted calls and are always ready to meet halfway in this matter. In order to protect your number from calls that are subsequently dropped, you will need to submit an application.

Any of the above methods is only suitable if the number is determined on the communication device. Sometimes scammers go further and hide the numbers so they don't show up. In this case, you can try to contact the operator with a request to protect your number from such calls.

We use special software to protect against scammers

Often, the situation with calls and subsequent drops gets out of control. Fraudsters call even at night and in the morning. Blacklisting every number that calls from does not solve the problem. But you shouldn’t radically correct the situation by throwing out your SIM card and purchasing a new one. Moreover, this will not help, scammers who call and hang up are coming up with new loopholes and methods of deception every day. To combat such a blatant violation of subordination, there is special software.

Applications have been developed to block unwanted calls, such as the successful and popular “Call Blocker”, “Don’t Pick Up” and “Vlad Lee”.

These programs, like their analogues, automatically recognize unwanted numbers and do not accept them, ending the call. Unsolicited call blockers work based on data provided by regular users. And if subscribers are called from the same number and then hung up or remain silent, this phone will be added to the application’s stop list.

Yandex application

The Yandex application acts not as a blocker of unwanted calls, but as an automatic caller ID. The call comes in and the screen shows who is calling. This is convenient because in this situation the user himself decides whether to answer the phone or reject the call.

Yandex collects up-to-date information on numbers using Internet directories and user reviews, which allows the application to see the full picture for each of the numbers registered in Russia.
Using Yandex, you can track unwanted calls and add them to the blacklist.
In the Yandex application, you can evaluate a subscriber by phone number. For example, if an application user has information that someone is calling from a specific number and hangs up, but information about the caller’s phone number is not provided, you can independently add tags and fill out a profile. This will help other users not to fall for scammers.

Using blacklists from operators

Telecom operators provide a special one. By activating the option, the subscriber can avoid unwanted calls from numbers that are subsequently dropped. To do this, you need to contact the telecom operator’s office and fill out an application, as well as indicate the numbers from which the user was harassed by scammers or advertisers.

The operator will blacklist the numbers, and the subscriber will never receive incoming calls from them again. In the office, you can also file a complaint about a specific number if there have been cases of calls followed by silence on the phone or hanging up. If desired, you can request screening out contacts with similar activities. A special algorithm and an extensive database will allow the operator to track unwanted numbers, from which the subscriber will also subsequently be protected.

New evil

This question arises whenever an annoying situation arises with incoming calls. You are in a hurry to pick up the phone, but the call has already been dropped, although only one call has passed, or the reset occurred immediately upon answering (the fact of connection is recorded). Or even the call did not go through at all, only there is a mark about a missed call from an unknown number.

Such a call is also called a “silent call”, because even if you managed to pick up the phone, you can’t hear anything, sometimes you can hear someone’s breathing on the phone, music is playing, the auto-informer periodically asks you not to hang up and wait for a connection, etc.

Some jealous spouses may suspect this as signs of an affair, but I ask such ardent people not to rush to start a scandal. This phenomenon has now become widespread and, as a rule, is caused by other reasons. But whatever it is, people are worried, fearing the unknown, lack of understanding of the causes, and subsequent troubles.