How to Block Spam Calls on Android and iPhone in the UK

Your mobile rings with a number that looks almost local. You answer, and it is a recorded voice about a car accident you never had, or a loft-insulation survey you never asked for. Nuisance and scam calls are a daily irritation for millions of people across the United Kingdom, and no single switch turns them all off. But a layered approach — your phone's built-in settings, your network's tools, the Telephone Preference Service, and a blocking app — can take most of the ringing out of your day.

Know what you are dealing with

Not every unwanted call is the same, and the right response depends on the type:

• Live telesales: energy deals, broadband upgrades, double-glazing offers. Often legal if you have not opted out, and covered by the official opt-out register.
• Recorded marketing messages: automated sales calls played from a recording. In the UK you generally must have consented to these in advance.
• Silent and abandoned calls: you answer and hear nothing. These usually come from predictive diallers in call centres that connect agents a moment too late.
• Scam calls: fake bank alerts, HMRC threats, broadband disconnection warnings. These are criminal, ignore every register, and need reporting rather than just blocking.

The number on your screen proves nothing. Spoofing lets callers display almost any number they like, including ones with your local dialling code, which is why blocking a single number rarely helps for long.

Block calls on Android

On most Android phones, using Google's Phone app or your manufacturer's dialler:

1. Open the Phone app.
2. Tap Recents and find the number you want to block.
3. Tap the number, then choose Block or Block/report spam.
4. Confirm, and tick the option to report the call as spam if offered.

You can manage the list under Phone app → Settings → Blocked numbers. Many Android phones also offer Caller ID and spam protection in the same settings screen: switch it on and suspected spam calls are labelled before you answer. Samsung phones have a similar feature called Smart Call under the Phone app's settings.

Block calls on iPhone

On iOS the process is straightforward:

1. Open Phone → Recents.
2. Tap the ⓘ button next to the number.
3. Scroll down and choose Block this Caller.

Manage everything under Settings → Phone → Blocked Contacts. Also consider Silence Unknown Callers (Settings → Apps → Phone on recent iOS versions), which sends calls from numbers not in your contacts straight to voicemail while still listing them in Recents. Legitimate callers — GP surgeries, schools, delivery drivers — can leave a message, and you can call them back.

Use your mobile network's free tools

The big UK networks all offer spam protection, usually free:

• EE offers spam-call warnings and blocking through its account and app settings.
• O2 provides caller identification and spam filtering options for its customers.
• Vodafone includes spam detection and call-blocking features in its services.
• Three offers spam-text reporting and call-filtering help through customer support.

The exact names and menus change over time, so check your network's app or help pages for the current options. If nuisance calls persist on a landline, ask your provider about anonymous-call rejection and similar line features.

Register with the Telephone Preference Service

The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) is the UK's official opt-out register for unsolicited live telesales calls, and registration is free at tpsonline.org.uk. Once your number has been on the register for up to 28 days, legitimate UK companies must not call you with sales pitches unless you have given them specific consent.

Two things to keep in mind. First, the TPS stops compliant telemarketers, not criminals: scam callers ignore it completely. Second, a sales call that arrives after you registered is itself a useful signal — it is either a company breaking the rules, which you can complain about to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), or a scam, which you should report and block.

Report the worst offenders

Blocking protects you; reporting protects everyone:

• Forward suspicious texts to 7726 (free, spells SPAM on the keypad). For scam calls, you can text the word Call followed by the number to 7726.
• Report fraud and attempted fraud to Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, report to Police Scotland on 101.
• Complain about rule-breaking marketing calls and texts to the ICO, which fines companies behind nuisance marketing.

Reports feed real enforcement. Ofcom, the UK's telecoms regulator, publishes research on scam calls and works with industry on call-blocking measures, and your reports help shape that work.

Add a dedicated blocking layer

Built-in tools block known offenders, but spoofers rotate through countless numbers. Call-blocking apps such as NoCall add a real-time layer: incoming calls are checked against continuously updated spam and scam databases, and likely nuisance calls are flagged or blocked before you pick up. For anyone getting several unwanted calls a day, this is usually the change you notice most.

A routine that works

1. Turn on your phone's spam filter and your network's blocking features.
2. Register every number you own with the TPS.
3. Send unknown iPhone callers to voicemail, or screen Android calls before answering.
4. Report scam calls to 7726 and Report Fraud.
5. Never confirm personal details on an inbound call — hang up and call back on the official number.
6. Use a blocking app for real-time coverage of new numbers.

None of these steps alone stops everything, but together they turn nuisance calls from a daily disruption into a rare, labelled, one-tap block.