One of the things we at Privacy Council strive to combat is unsolicited telemarketing phone calls. Few people enjoy receiving calls from telemarketers, which is why the national Do Not Call registry is so popular. Now, there’s a new tool in the arsenal to fight telemarketers and other unwanted calls: TrapCall.

TrapCall is a free service from NJ-based company TelTech that identifies the source of the blocked calls you receive to your cell phone. According to sources like lifehacker, when you miss a call (or choose not to answer it), this service forwards the call to TrapCall’s toll-free number. TrapCall deciphers the source of the call and sends it back to your phone, this time with the source number in plain sight. Then, you can choose whether to answer it or not (ignoring it this time will take the call to your regular voicemail). The caller never knows about this process; they hear only ringing on their end.

As Gizmodo notes, TrapCall’s upgraded (not free) options include recording incoming calls (which cell technology has never been able to do before), voice mail transcription, and other features (the “Mouse Trap” and “Bear Trap” options). They also point out that the only way to defeat TrapCall is with TelTech’s other notable service, SpoofCard (what a surprise). 

Does it work? Yep, according to those who have tried it. Does it have any flaws? A few: TrapCall isn’t available on all carriers yet, for one thing. For another, call blocking has long been one of the methods of defense for victims of domestic abuse and others who must hide their identity for safety reasons, and TrapCall could out those victims. But that’s a consideration for another time. For now, TrapCall works, and it’s gaining popularity.

At Privacy Council, we strive to put an end to unwanted SPAM, junk mail and phone calls. TrapCall may help with the phone calls, but don’t forget to sign up for Privacy Council’s list removal service today to cut down on the rest of the unwanted communication that annoys you (and harms the environment)!