Nuisance or suspicious calls and texts
Nuisance calls and texts are disruptive and frustrating. That’s why we closely monitor our network and try to block this kind of activity at its source.
But sometimes they can still make their way through to you - here are some things you can do to help stop them.
What to do with...
If you’ve received a text message or call from your bank that you think might be a scam, you can check if the number is genuine by calling 159
This secure, national hotline has been set up by Stop Scams UK and lets you speak directly to your bank.
Calls to 159 are charged based on your mobile plan allowance. Check your plan by choosing Plan Details in My Vodafone.
Sales and marketing calls
There are a few things you can do to stop sales and marketing calls:
Register with the TPS (Telephone Preference Service) to opt out of unwanted sales and marketing calls
Report a call to us – some companies won’t check with the TPS before making sales and marketing calls. Text CALL for free to 7726. We’ll then ask you to send the phone number you want to report.
You can find more details on how to report this on Ofcom’s website
Harassing or abusive calls
Our Nuisance Call Bureau gives you advice about harassing or abusive calls and creates a case file to start a criminal investigation. You’ll need to give them details of at least three abusive or harassing calls.
To contact them:
Download our nuisance call log form and log the details of each call
Download our data disclosure form to give us permission to share details about your account with law enforcement agencies
Email your completed forms to customercare@care.vodafone.co.uk or post them to the Customer Care team at Vodafone HQ, The Connection, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 2FN.
Nuisance calls to my home phone
If you’re getting nuisance calls to your Vodafone landline, we can help you set up:
Anonymous caller rejection – this helps stop incoming calls from withheld numbers, but not unknown or masked numbers
Caller display – this shows you the caller’s number, if it’s not a withheld, unknown or masked number. This gives you an idea of who’s calling, and helps you decide whether you want to answer
To set these up, call:
191 free from a Vodafone mobile
03333 040 191 from any other UK mobile or landline (standard charges apply)
Our phone lines are open Monday to Friday, 8am to 10pm and Saturday to Sunday, 8am to 8pm.
Most premium rate services will let you text STOP to prevent any further charges to your account.
Check with the service for the right number to text, or if there’s a different way to stop the charges.
You can also turn on your Premium Rate bar to stop these kinds of texts.
Have you received a suspicious SMS/text message?
Report it to 7726 – the industry’s SMS scam/spam reporting service.
Reporting is free of charge and will help mobile companies suppress scam and spam messages.
What should you do?
Forward the SMS to 7726.
We will acknowledge this and ask you to send details of the number the SMS you received was sent from. We will then acknowledge the number.
Alternatively, if you have a mobile which uses an Android operating system, use the Android OS’ easy 1-touch reporting option from your mobile.
What will we do?
Reported SMS are collected and analysed for scam and spam content.
Analysis allows us to improve the effectiveness of our SMS filters and other mechanisms we use to suppress SMS scams and spam.
This is done nationally so information shared by you to 7726 is made available to all UK mobile operators.
The contents of the reported SMS are shared with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). The ICO investigates and takes action where it believes that SMS involves inappropriate marketing. The NCSC is part of the Government Communications Headquarters and will examine whether there is evidence of fraud. These organisations seek to identify and act against serious cases of inappropriate marketing and fraud affecting UK mobile customers. Contents of the reported SMS may also be shared with law enforcement where this provides evidence of serious cases of scams and fraud affecting customers.
Information will also be shared with Ofcom and with government, commercial and other organisations targeted by SMS frauds, to help them protect mobile customers.
Reporting suspicious SMS will protect you, other Vodafone customers and customers of other UK mobile companies from future scams and fraud.
What to do about specific types of spam text messages
Accident claims – report these to the Ministry of Justice Claims Management Regulator
Debt management – report these to the Financial Conduct Authority