Insights

CallerID Reputation Explains How DNO Lists Provide Protection Against Spoofed Calls

Mar 02, 2023

Robocalls.

I wince every time I pick up the phone and “Dean Pritchard” is calling “in regard to my federal student loans” (I didn’t take out any federal student loans). And when “Marie Schrader” reaches out to me to “discuss my Medicare options?” I recoil (I have private insurance coverage).

Unfortunately, when it comes to being unwelcomingly inundated by robocallers and spoofers, I’m not alone. In fact, according to Truecaller’s Insights 2022 U.S. Spam & Scam Report, 1 in 3 Americans (33%) admit that they have been the victim of a phone scam (even worse – 20% of the respondents reported being tricked on more than one occasion!).

And as if those statistics weren’t disconcerting enough, according to the same report, nearly 3 in 5 Americans (58%) reported that they received more spam calls and/or text messages last year (2022) than they did in the year prior (2021).

While sure, fellow consumers and I can block calls placed by the “Deans” and “Maries” of the (unsavory) world, therein lies a much deeper question: “What can be done to ensure that we don’t get these calls in the first place?”

Enter Do Not Originate (DNO) Lists.

For those not familiar, a DNO list is a database of phone numbers that have been identified as numbers that should never make an outbound call. If a call is received by a number that has been marked as DNO, one can automatically assume the call is being used to facilitate illegal, fraudulent or otherwise malicious activity. Some common examples of non-originating numbers include conference call bridges, inbound-only contact center customer service lines and vanity numbers being used for advertising purposes.

In short, a DNO list provides a valuable solution for:

• Service providers looking to stop fraudulent calls from getting on their networks and subsequently to innocent consumers.
• Contact centers interested in adding an added layer of protection and security via a comprehensive blacklist database. Not only can blacklists help stop illegal calls from ever getting to agents—it allows agents to spend more time with REAL customers.
• Enterprises resolute in protecting their brand identity. For businesses with numbers that would never originate a call, having said numbers listed on a DNO list can help ensure that they are not being illegally used in fraud schemes.

While there are more than one “reasonable” DNO lists, there’s only one that, according to the recent article from CallerID Reputation, How DNO Registries Provide Protection Against Spoofed Calls:

Lets Responsible Organizations (Resp Orgs) list their in-bound only numbers to help stop fraud. 

To learn more about how RealNumber DNO database of over 6 Billion Toll-Free and local 10-digit numbers can help “ensure that call spoofers will struggle to continue their illegal practices,” check out the full article from CallerID Reputation

Kyle Belcher

Senior Product Manager