How to block a number on your phone

When the same number keeps bothering you — sales calls, silence on the line or outright scam attempts — the quickest fix is to block it. It's free, it works instantly, and the caller is never told they've been blocked. Before you do, look the number up in our search: you'll learn whether it's scammers or just a persistent telemarketer, and your rating helps the next person too.

iPhone

1. Open the Phone app and go to Recents.
2. Tap the ⓘ next to the number.
3. Scroll down and choose Block this Caller.

A blocked number can no longer call or text you, though it can still leave a voicemail — those land in a separate folder. Changed your mind? Unblock it under Settings → Phone → Blocked Contacts. And for peace from all unknown numbers, turn on Settings → Phone → Silence Unknown Callers: calls from numbers not in your contacts won't ring, but they'll still show up in your call history.

Android

The exact steps vary by manufacturer, but the idea is the same everywhere:

1. Open the call log in the Phone app.
2. Long-press the number or open the call details.
3. Choose Block or Block / report spam.

On Samsung phones you can also manage the list under Settings → Block numbers, on Xiaomi under Security → Blocklist. The Google Phone app has built-in caller ID and spam filtering that flags known spam calls automatically — make sure it's switched on. Spam texts work the same way: in the Messages app, long-press the conversation and choose block.

Blocking through your operator: LMT, Tele2, Bite

Your phone only blocks calls on that one device. For protection at the network level, ask your operator: LMT, Tele2 and Bite all offer call filtering and blocking options, which you can activate in their self-service apps or by calling customer support. A network-level filter keeps working when you change phones, and some of these services recognise known scam numbers automatically, before your phone ever rings. And when it's a company calling with offers, you have the right to tell them to stop — EU data protection rules let you opt out of direct marketing.

One-ring calls from abroad

So-called wangiri calls are a category of their own: your phone rings once, and a missed call from an exotic country code stays on the screen. The maths is simple — the curious call back and get charged a premium rate for the connection. Don't return the call; just block it. If these come one after another from the same region, blocking apps on Android let you ban an entire country prefix at once.

When blocking isn't enough

Scammers rarely call twice from the same number. They rotate numbers or spoof them — your screen can even show a real bank's number, as we explain in our article on fake bank calls. A quick sanity check: a genuine Latvian number has eight digits and starts with 2 or 6. So keep in mind:

• blocking works against a pushy salesman, not against an organised campaign;
• if the unknown numbers change every day, silencing all unknown callers for a while is the safer bet;
• keep an eye on our list of current scam numbers.

Report it, don't just block it

If the call smelled like fraud rather than mere advertising, report it to CERT.lv — Latvia's cybersecurity incident response team — at cert.lv or by email to cert@cert.lv. They track active campaigns, issue public warnings and take reports in English. If scammers actually got to your money or data, call 112. Reporting takes a couple of minutes, and numbers that many people flag get blocked by operators and authorities faster. And leave a comment on the number's page here — the next person to search for it will thank you.