As for getting connected to the phone system - Yeah, they have to jump on the phone network somewhere and, in theory, the best way to stop these guys would be to at the ingress point.
The problem is that the phone system is built for interconnection. Even just one bad actor letting the traffic on spoils the system. Layer on top of that the way the network routes calls through multiple hops through multiple carriers and tracking the calls back to the source is nearly impossible. Throw in common carrier regulations (you can't just willy nilly block calls coming over the network) and it amps up even more. Finally, allow all this to be done for fractions of pennies and you get the perfect storm for robocalls.
As for the neighbor spoofed calls, make sure that you enter your phone number in Nomorobo so that we can make sure we protect the correct number block ([Area Code]-[Exchange]-[0000-9999]). In our initial release, we were only able to identify these calls but not block them. It had to do with blocking calls from families with sequential phone numbers. But, in our last release, if you give the app contact access, we can now scrub those numbers and fully block the neighbor spoofed calls.
It's been a bit of a balancing act between being privacy conscious (not needing your email/phone number/invasive contact access) and getting the job done. The balance that we've struck is this - you don't have to give us any of that and you'll get really good protection. But, if you try out the service and start to trust us more, we can do an even better job.
And finally, yes - it's going to take a lot of effort to tackle this problem. While Nomorobo isn't perfect - admittedly, the sim ring landline version is just a crazy hack that the carriers can't stop - the past 4 years have seen some great progress in the fight.
As more and more people become aware of robocall blockers and we show that it's actually a very safe way to protect people, only then will the larger industry come along (kicking and screaming the entire way).
However, I still get the neighbor scam calls, and it’s one of the most annoying things I deal with on a daily basis.
I’ve been thinking that I should write my own whitelist-only call screening app on top of twilight, and maybe becoming one of your biggest competitors.
That is, unless you want to take this idea and implement it yourselves, and saving me the trouble. ;)
You're blocking 1300 numbers a day. I assume the spammers rotate numbers, so if someone gets a recycled number that was on your list, what happens?
These spammers get connected to the telephone system somehow. Is there nothing that can be done to force the telecom providers to more carefully check the companies they lease mass lines to?
I tried your service before, but the calls spoofed as if they come from my area code and exchange were never blocked. Why is that?
Spam calls infuriate me like little else. I'm glad you're working to stop them but it seems to be something that will require a larger industry and/or government intervention.
Thanks for sharing any insight you have!