Landline Call Blocking

AT&T, Verizon, and others have a feature for home landline phones that blocks 'Anonymous' and 'Private' callers. It will not block 'Unknown' or 'Out-of-Area' callers, so aunt Bertha's call will get through.

Pick up your phone and dial *77. This will activate the Anonymous Call Rejection feature on your landline. Anonymous and private numbers will not cause your phone to ring. When Anonymous Call Rejection is turned on, private callers will hear an automated message. The automated message will prompt them to hang up, unblock or “un-private” their number, and call again. If the caller makes their number visible and calls again, your phone will ring. If they remain private, your phone will never ring.

To turn off this feature, pick up your phone and dial *87.

There are also other options, such as dialing *60 for AT&T landline phones to block 10 local numbers, but the company charges a monthly fee for the privilege.

Block That Call

There are many ways to block calls using the various carriers, but some are difficult and some cost a monthly fee and some smart phones have apps to do it.

If you have a regular cell phone and there is someone you just do not wish to talk to, use the call ringing feature. Just put in the offending number and assign a no ring-tone, so when that person calls, your phone will not ring.