T-Mobile today announced that it is the first U.S. wireless provider that has managed to complete deals with all wireless networks to implement full number spoofing and spam call protection for customers.
With these partnerships in place, T-Mobile has completed its implementation of the STIR/SHAKEN standards that are in place to combat illegal caller ID spoofing. T-Mobile is now able to authenticate calls with wireless and network providers that represent 98 percent of wireless customers in the United States.
T-Mobile offers a "Scam Shield" Un-carrier feature that susses out and blocks scams and robocalls. The company has been working on improving Scam Shield, and its new partnerships with Spectrum Voice and Charter Communications ensure number verification across almost all providers in the U.S. to authenticate incoming calls for T-Mobile customers.
"T-Mobile was first to implement number verification in 2019 because protecting customers against scammers and spammers is one of the most important things we can do as an industry," said Mike Sievert, CEO T-Mobile. "To date, T-Mobile has protected over 80 million customers from more than 33 billion suspect calls - and counting. With the combination of Number Verification, free Caller ID and the scam blocking tools in Scam Shield, and by working with network providers of all sizes, we are providing the industry's most comprehensive scam and spam protection for free to all our customers and working every day to make scammers jobs impossible."
The FCC is requiring all carriers in the United States to implement STIR/SHAKEN by June 2021, so other major wireless providers like AT&T and Verizon will need to add the same protections for their customers.
T-Mobile's Scam Shield is a free Caller ID tool that warns customers when a number calling is likely to be a scammer, and there's an option to block scammers entirely.
AT&T and Verizon have similar spam caller prevention tools, but both charge for premium access. AT&T charges $3.99 for features that include Caller ID (though it is included free in the highest tier unlimited plans), while Verizon charges $2.99 per month for Caller ID. Both AT&T and Verizon are working to implement STIR/SHAKEN for identifying spoofed calls.
Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself.
Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update.
Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September.
Below, we recap the key...
Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed.
Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles."
If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup.
If you skipped the iPhone...
Apple may have updated several iPads and Macs late last year and early this year, but there are still multiple new devices that we're looking forward to seeing in 2025. Most will come in September or October, but there could be a few surprises before then.
We've rounded up a list of everything that we're still waiting to see from Apple in 2025.
iPhone 17, 17 Air, and 17 Pro - We get...
Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:11 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1, minor updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1 come two weeks after the launch of iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update.
There have been complaints about ...
Apple today updated its vintage products list to add the 2018 Mac mini and the iPhone 6s, devices that will get more limited service and repairs now that they are considered vintage.
The iPhone 6s initially launched in 2015, but Apple kept it around as a low-cost device until 2018, which is why it is only now being added to the vintage list. The iPhone 6s had Apple's A9 chip, and it was...
Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:04 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released tvOS 18.4.1, a minor update to the tvOS 18 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 18.4.1 comes two weeks after Apple released tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models.
tvOS 18.4.1 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the Apple TV. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software....
Currently, iOS merely displays a tiny checkbox under each STIR/SHAKEN verified phone number/name in Recents tab. That is not enough.
At the very least, it should display more prominent icon on the incoming call screen. Furthermore, Silence Unknown Callers should be expanded to:
* Silence Unknown Callers: Callers not in Contacts, outgoing calls, and Siri Suggestions * Silence Unverified Callers: Callers not verified by STIR/SHAKEN. * Silence International Callers: Callers not in local region (e.g., US if your carrier is US) or current region (if you are roaming internationally)
And iOS needs Call Screening feature similar to Android.
On this carrier and got a call about my expiring warranty (for my 10 year old car) yesterday (normally about 1 a day), will be interesting to see if this does a thing. If its only labeling, its close to worthless.
It does make me wonder if we really need phone numbers at this point, at the height of this nonsense (and inability or lack of motivation of the carriers to fix it), a full size ipod touch with connection through a wireless provider (but no phone number) was sounding pretty good.
Ahhh for actual blockage, you have to get their app, it appears, and it (according the app store) harvests your contact info, usage data and user content (whatever that is) along with other stuff not directly linked the user (but probably easily linked later on).
How annoying. That full size ipod touch with a wireless connection but no phone number anyone can call sounds better at every turn.
AT&T and Verizon have similar spam caller prevention tools, but both charge for premium access. AT&T charges $3.99 for features that include Caller ID (though it is included free in the highest tier unlimited plans), while Verizon charges $2.99 per month for Caller ID.
