Protecting Your Personal Number in the Age of Spam
How many unknown numbers did you have to deal with today? Do you feel apprehensive as soon as you see spam call notifications? You are not alone in feeling concerned about the actual privacy afforded to your personal number. Millions of people in India and abroad try to prevent spam calls and fraudulent messages by using Do Not Disturb services but are they really effective? A recent survey by online platform Localcircles indicated that 95% of the respondents received pesky calls and SMSs despite their personal numbers being registered in the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s 'Do Not Call' registry.
Popularly known as the DND list, this registry is aimed at limiting the number of spam calls on your personal number but the survey displayed the systemic inadequacy of the initiative. The survey further emphasised the gravity of the problem, stating that about 64% of Indian mobile phone users receive at least three spam calls every day. This finding puts the focus back on a basic question – is your personal number truly private? Or is it just a façade, wherein you are made to believe that your number is sacrosanct, only to end up finding yourself on the call list of multiple telemarketers and fraudsters?
According to the survey, "Many people face issues of unwanted calls made to them by fraudsters, spammers and telemarketers despite registering on TRAI's Do Not Call registry.” In response to a media query on the survey, a senior official at TRAI rued the fact that even as the regulator is leveraging blockchain-based technology to curtail spam, unregistered telemarketers manage to escape the clutches of the system and continue to trouble individuals with daily calls and messages.
When the landscape is so bleak, and notorious telemarketers and fraudsters are finding innovative ways to override your privacy, what should you do to safeguard your personal number? Often considered an extension of your identity, you can protect your personal number by leveraging the services of Doosra, a trusted virtual number provider in India. Aimed at enhancing privacy by blocking calls from both registered and unregistered telemarketers and ensuring users are not bothered by spam in any manner, Doosra believes in the privacy manifesto and brings you undiluted confidentiality.
With a Doosra virtual number, you never have to part with your personal contact information, be it at shopping centres or the supermarket. Further, Doosra’s features permit you to block spam and only receive calls from your contact list, mitigating the strain caused by unidentified callers. Even while accessing online services, you can avoid inputting your personal number and use Doosra virtual phone numbers for OTP purposes.
In the words of Bill Gates, “Historically, privacy was almost implicit, because it was hard to find and gather information. But in the digital world, whether it's digital cameras or satellites or just what you click on, we need to have more explicit rules - not just for governments but for private companies.” As the world becomes more connected, we begin to place greater value on privacy. And, with a Doosra virtual number, you can go ahead and protect your private number in the most seamless way possible.