Troubleshooting

Why does my number show as spam, or ask me to press a key to connect?

Short answer

Spam labels come from caller ID apps on the phones you call. Press-a-key prompts come from the network you're calling, usually because a number's calling pattern looks like a scam caller's. The quickest fix is to call from a different number, and then spread calls across more numbers.

Applies to
Phone Numbers, Cloud SIP
Who can do this
Whoever runs your outbound calling or dialer

Check for a known incident first. If there is one, we're already working on it, and there's nothing to change on your side.

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On this page
  1. What are you seeing?
  2. Your calls show as spam or fraud on the phones you call
  3. Calls play a message asking you to press a number to connect
  4. The wrong business name shows when you call
  5. People say your number called them, but it didn't
  6. Calls fail when your caller ID is a 1300 or 1800 number
  7. Can Enfonica get my number whitelisted?
  8. How can I check whether my numbers are flagged?
  9. How do I stop this happening again?
  10. What to send us
  11. Related

What are you seeing?

Spam labels and scam screening are applied outside Enfonica. Labels come from the phone you're calling and the apps on it. Screening comes from the network that phone is on. They don't show up as an error on your side. You usually notice them as a lower answer rate, or when someone tells you what they saw.

Your calls show as spam or fraud on the phones you call

Suspected Spam

These labels come from caller ID apps and services on people's phones, such as Hiya (which powers Samsung Smart Call) and Truecaller. Australian phone networks don't label numbers as spam. Enfonica doesn't apply them and can't remove them. The fastest way to stop the label is to stop using the number for now.

The number's calling pattern looks like a scam caller's

Caller ID apps look for the patterns that scam calls tend to have. Phone networks use similar patterns when they screen calls. The industry code for reducing scam calls (C661:2022) describes them as:

  • Very short calls, with an average under 20 seconds.
  • More than 1,000 call attempts from one number in a day.
  • Numbers that can't be called back.

A number that breaks one of these isn't necessarily flagged, but it gets extra scrutiny.

Check

Look at when the label appeared. This is the likely cause if it appeared:

  • After a number with little history started making a lot of calls.
  • After a campaign with many short or unanswered calls.
  • On a single number that many people or sites call from nationally.

Fix

  1. Move today's calls to a different caller ID. The current number keeps its label for as long as it's in use.
  2. Spread your calls across more numbers, so that no single number carries all the volume. If several sites share one caller ID, give each site its own local number.
  3. Make sure that people can call your caller IDs back.
  4. Rest the flagged number. A number recovers if it's left unused for long enough.

People you called have reported the number

People can report a number in these apps, even for a call they didn't answer.

Check

Look at when the label appeared. This is the likely cause if it appeared suddenly, or after complaints from people you called.

Fix

Request a correction from the service that shows the label. For Hiya and Samsung Smart Call, use Hiya's request form. Labels aren't permanent. A correction can take from a few days to a few weeks to reach every phone, so call from another number in the meantime.

Calls play a message asking you to press a number to connect

Some mobile networks screen calls that they think might be scams, such as Telstra with Telstra Scam Protect. Before the call rings, the caller hears a recorded message that asks them to press a random digit to connect the call. A person can press the digit and carry on, but a dialer usually can't. The network answers the call itself to play the message, even when the number you called is disconnected, so a dialer sees an answered call instead of a failed one. The network you're calling does the screening, not Enfonica.

The number is calling faster or more often than the network expects

Screening usually starts when a number's traffic changes sharply. A new number that goes from no history to more than 1,000 calls in a day can be enough, even with a small team.

Check

Look at which calls play the message, and when it started. This is the likely cause if the message plays on calls to one mobile network, and it started either after a jump in volume or on a campaign with a low answer rate, short calls, or many disconnected numbers in the list.

Fix

  1. Switch to a different caller ID. This works around the screening for now. Local (geographic) numbers tend to be screened less quickly than mobile numbers.
  2. Reduce how hard your dialer dials. If you use predictive dialing, lower its aggressiveness.
  3. Remove disconnected numbers from your lists, so that fewer calls go to numbers that don't answer.
  4. If you can, answer the prompt by hand on some calls. Over time, this might remove the screening from the number.
  5. If the number is still screened after you've reviewed your calling pattern, ask us to request whitelisting. See Can Enfonica get my number whitelisted?

Your caller ID is a mobile number from another provider

Calls through Enfonica to a mobile network's customers can trigger that network's screening if they show a mobile number that belongs to the same network. The exception is a call that's being forwarded with the original caller's number.

Check

Look at your caller ID. This is the likely cause if it's a mobile number that you hold with another provider.

Fix

Show a number you hold with Enfonica as your caller ID instead.

The wrong business name shows when you call

Enfonica sends only your number. The name people see comes from databases kept by Google, Hiya, and apps such as Truecaller.

The number used to belong to another business

Australian phone numbers are recycled. When a number is disconnected, it rests in quarantine for at least six months, and then it can be issued again. A number can pass through several businesses over the years. The databases don't always update when that happens, so a previous owner's name can linger.

Check

Look at the name. This is the likely cause if it belongs to a business you've never been.

Fix

Request a correction from each service, or ask us for a replacement number. To request a correction:

  • Android phones that use Google's Phone app. Search for the number on Google. If an old business listing shows it, select Suggest an edit on the listing, and say that the number no longer belongs to that business.
  • Samsung Smart Call. Send a correction through Hiya's request form.
  • iPhone. The name usually comes from a saved contact or a caller ID app on that phone, so make the correction there.
  • Truecaller. Ask Truecaller to correct the number's details.

Corrections can take from a few days to a few weeks to reach every phone.

People say your number called them, but it didn't

Someone is showing your number on their own calls

Caller ID on the Australian phone network is largely unauthenticated. A scammer with the right access can display any number, including yours. This is called caller ID spoofing. It doesn't mean that your account or your number has been compromised, and the calls don't pass through Enfonica's network.

Check

Look at what people report. This is the likely cause if they report calls from your number at times you weren't calling, or calls you'd never make.

Fix

  1. Contact support with the number and the date and time of a reported call. We'll check whether your account made the call.
  2. Ask the people who received the calls to report them to their own phone provider. The trace back to a scam call's source starts from the network that received it.
  3. If the reports keep coming, ask us for a replacement number.

Calls fail when your caller ID is a 1300 or 1800 number

1300 and 1800 numbers can't be used as caller ID

1300 and 1800 numbers are for incoming calls only. Under the industry code for reducing scam calls, showing one as the caller ID on an outgoing call is invalid. Cloud SIP refuses these calls with 484 Address Incomplete, and the Console shows Call is invalid.

Fix

Show a local or mobile number as your caller ID. For more information, see How do 1300 and 1800 numbers work?

Can Enfonica get my number whitelisted?

We can ask the network that's screening your calls to whitelist your caller ID, so that its scam protection, such as Telstra Scam Protect, stops screening it. The network considers only a caller ID that its screening has already affected, so we can't ask for a number in advance. It reviews each request first. Before you ask, review your calling pattern, and try the fixes earlier in this article.

To request whitelisting, contact support with:

  • The name of the business making the calls, and confirmation that it's an Australian business.
  • Confirmation that the calls don't come from overseas.
  • What the calls are for, and how they're dialed.
  • What you found when you reviewed your calling pattern (answer rate, average call length, and how many calls go to disconnected numbers), and what you've changed.
  • Why the calls are likely to be screened, and why your callers can't answer the prompt by hand.
  • The numbers you'd like whitelisted.

The network decides whether to whitelist a number, and when.

How can I check whether my numbers are flagged?

Call a phone that runs one of the caller ID apps, such as a Samsung phone with Smart Call turned on, and see what it shows. Or ask some of the people you called what they saw. Labels differ from app to app, so one phone can show a label while another shows nothing.

How do I stop this happening again?

Use enough numbers for the volume you call, so that each one makes a modest number of calls and then rests. No service can stop people from reporting a number, though.

If a number is still being flagged after you've tried these fixes, contact support with the details in What to send us. We'll help you work out what's triggering it.

What to send us

Include these so we can look into the number.

  • The number that shows the label or prompt, in full international format (for example +61255501234).
  • Exactly what people see or hear: the label, or the prompt and the network it happens on.
  • Roughly how many calls a day the number makes.
  • An example call: the number you called and the date and time, with your timezone.
Contact support

Our support team are telco specialists, backed by the engineers who run the network.