There are a few things we can always count on in life: death, taxes, and those pesky spam calls.
Robocalls have surged recently, with about 2.5 billion calls made to people in the U.S. every month. Instead of just letting your phone ring incessantly, you might want to check out a free spam-blocking tool available for Apple iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, and Google Pixel users.
Modern smartphones come equipped with anti-spam features, making call blocking simpler than ever.
Blocking spam calls on an Apple iPhone
To utilize Apple’s latest call-blocking feature, make sure you’ve updated to iOS 26. If the new look isn’t to your liking, don’t stress. There are some straightforward adjustments you can make. First, open the Settings app, scroll to Apps, and select Phone. Then scroll down to “Unknown Caller Screen” and choose one of these three options:
- Never: Keep allowing spammers to bother you.
- Ask why they’re calling: This feature employs AI to send a message to the unknown caller, asking why they called. You’ll receive a notification with their response, letting you decide if it’s worth picking up or not. Often, those trying to scam will hear the message and simply hang up.
- Do Not Disturb: This stops your phone from ringing for calls from unknown numbers.
In this section, you’ll also find call filtering options that mute any missed calls and voicemails from unknown numbers. This setting can be a real lifesaver if you’re overwhelmed by unwanted calls.
Blocking spam calls on a Samsung Galaxy Android phone
Samsung Galaxy devices from the S8 onward include a Smart Call feature powered by the anti-spam service Hiya. To activate it, open the Phone app, tap the three dots in the upper right corner, go to Settings, and then select Caller ID and Spam Protection. Switch the toggle on. You can go a step further and decide if you want to block just high-risk or all spam calls.
After setting this up, incoming calls will be verified against Hiya’s extensive spam detection database. If you opt to block high-risk numbers, you’ll see alerts for other potential spam callers, giving you the choice to report or block them. Blocking all spam calls means you won’t have to deal with the noise from suspected scammers at all.
Blocking spam calls on a Google Pixel Android phone
Specifically designed for Google Pixel phones, the Call Screen feature uses AI to detect suspicious numbers. When a call comes in, Google Assistant will answer it for you, asking the caller their reason for reaching out, while providing a live transcription of their response for you to review. Additionally, Call Screen enables you to automatically reject calls from spam numbers without any alerts or notifications.
To activate Call Screen and other anti-spam features, open the Phone app, tap the hamburger menu at the top left, go to Call Assist, and then Caller ID and Spam to identify spam numbers. Activate Spam Detection to receive real-time alerts during active calls if a scam attempt is detected. Lastly, choose one of the three available settings for Call Screen:
- Maximum Protection screens and rejects all unknown numbers.
- Medium Protection screens suspicious numbers while rejecting only spam.
- Basic Protection only blocks spam, leaving you at risk from unknown callers.
A word of caution
While most spam-blocking features will help keep robocalls at bay, keep in mind that scammers have gotten clever. They can use AI to leave messages that mimic your friends or family, creating a sense of urgency for help or money. To safeguard against this, consider setting up a verbal password with your loved ones—something unusual, like “Platypus” or a random number—so they can confirm their identity when calling from an unknown number.
At the end of the day, dealing with robocalls can feel trivial, but blocking them has never been easier with built-in features on Apple, Samsung, and Google devices. So, activate those settings and finally enjoy some peace from unknown callers.
