Make your phone yours again.

1. Choose the right register

For personal landlines and mobiles, sole traders and certain partnerships, use the Telephone Preference Service. Limited companies, LLPs and other corporate subscribers use CTPS. The type of subscriber matters more than whether the number is a mobile.

Complete the official registration and keep the confirmation. Marketing calls may still be allowed if you have specifically agreed to them; tell that business directly if you want to withdraw that permission.

2. Turn on a sensible level of screening

1. iPhone

   Open Settings, then Apps, then Phone. Look for Screen Unknown Callers. Depending on your iOS version and region, you may see Ask Reason for Calling or Silence. On older versions, look for Silence Unknown Callers.

2. Android with the Google Phone app

   Open Phone, then its menu and Settings. Look for Caller ID and spam and review the available identification and filtering options. Samsung and other diallers have different menus.

3. Landline

   Ask your provider what is included. BT Call Protect filters suspected nuisance calls. Sky Talk Shield offers call screening. Check availability for your package before changing providers.

3. Stop, check, then call back

A displayed number or familiar company name does not prove who is calling. If someone claims to be your bank or mobile network, end the call and use the official app, a number from your card or a website you reach independently. Use a different phone if you are concerned the original landline connection has not cleared.

Never share a one-time code, approve a login or move money to a “safe account” because an incoming caller asks. Blocking a number may reduce repeat calls from it, but scammers can change or spoof numbers.

4. Deal with texts and repeat marketing

Forward suspicious texts to 7726, then follow your network’s reply. Do not follow links or text STOP to a suspicious sender. For a genuine service you knowingly joined, use its verified opt-out instructions. Keep a note of repeated marketing calls after the registration period and use the TPS complaints route.

Related guides

• Fewer texts you never asked for. Know when replying STOP is the right move, when to forward a text to 7726 instead, and how to filter unknown senders on your phone.
• A quieter WhatsApp. Silence calls from numbers you don’t know, block and report a sender, and choose who can add you to groups, while keeping friends and family within reach.
• When they keep contacting you anyway. Who to complain to about marketing that carries on after you have said no, what to have ready and what happens afterwards.