To avoid unwanted calls you can use many services offered by your phone company.

Call screen (*60):
Your phone can be programmed to reject calls from selected numbers with a service called call screen (Phone companies might use different names). Instead of ringing on your line, these calls are routed to a recording that tells the caller you will not take the call.

With Call Screen, you can also program your telephone to reject calls from the number of last person who called. This allows you to block calls even if you do not know the phone number. Most phone companies charge a monthly fee for this service.

However, Call Screen is not a foolproof way to stop unwelcome calls. A determined caller can move to a different phone number to bypass the block. Also, Call Screen does not work on long distance calls from outside your service area.

You can also use Priority Ringing:
You can assign a special ring to calls from up to 10 numbers – calls you are most likely to want to answer. The rest can be routed to voice mail. There are ways callers can get around Priority Ringing when it is used as a screening tool. Harasser can switch phone lines and avoid the distinctive ring.

You can try Call Return (*69):
This service allows you to call back the number of last person who called, even if you are unable to answer the phone. Some people suggest that call return can be used to stop harassing callers by allowing you to call the harasser back without knowing their phone number. Use caution with this method of discouraging harassing callers, however, as it could actually aggravate the problem. This service is paid on a per-use basis.

You can use caller id to identify the caller if they are not blocking their number or use a service offered by most phone companies called Privacy Manager. It works with Caller ID to identify incoming calls that have no telephone numbers. Calls identified as “anonymous,” unavailable,” out of area” or “private” must identify themselves in order to complete the call.

Before your phone rings, a recorded message instructs the caller to unblock the call, enter a code number (like inbound call blocking devices mentioned above), or record their name. When your phone rings, you can choose to accept or reject the call, send it to voice mail, or send a special message to telemarketers instructing them to put you on their “do not call” list.

What does it mean when sometimes my phone rings and there is no one on the line?
Oftentimes, when you receive frequent hang ups on your phone line it could be that someone is checking to see if you are home or its simply harassment. It could also be calls from telemarketers who use computers for “predictive dialing” to call consumers where the computer dials many phone numbers in a short period of time. When anyone answers, the computer finds a sales representative who is not occupied at that time and connects the call.

If all sales reps are busy then consumer may hear only silence. These type of calls are called “abandoned calls.” If you are receiving many abandoned calls in a day, you can call the annoyance department of your local phone company. If these repeated calls are from a malicious individual who is harassing you rather than a telemarketer, the phone company will generally report the number to law enforcement.