The phone rings. There is a feeling of dread. Friend or foe? Scam or not? NordVPN – best known for encrypting internet traffic and hiding IP addresses – has launched an Android app called HangUp that screens incoming calls for potential scammers and telemarketers. The app is free for everyone. You don’t need a paid NordVPN account.
HangUp uses call protection technology from Hiya, which has its own mobile app to block spam and fraud calls and detect AI deepfakes. HangUp can also scan incoming text messages by integrating NordVPN’s message protection, which the company launched in June. HangUp app customers can choose to use call screening only if they wish.
Call reporting might be a new feature for a VPN that CNET considers the fastest, but scam screening is already available through many cell service providers as well as on the devices themselves. AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, iPhones, Google Pixel and Samsung phones can identify and block unwanted calls, just like major landline services.
HangUp is currently only available for Android and can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. After downloading the app, you will need to log in with your NordVPN account or create a free one on its website. Finally, you will need to allow the app to identify caller ID and spam.
NordVPN premium customers already enjoy in-app call and message protection.
Global problem
Scam calls aren’t just annoying: they scam people out of billions of dollars every year. We are a long way from the picturesque beginnings of telemarketing in 1957.
Nearly 80% of Americans have received at least one scam call in the past year, and 40% say they feel unsafe because of scam calls, according to a NordVPN survey. Hiya’s research found that Americans receive an average of 10 spam calls per week and that 30 million people lost money — an average of $682 each — to a phone scam in the past year.
See also: Scam calls have gotten out of control. This strategy really helps
NordVPN’s survey reveals that the most common scam in the United States is fake telemarketers or sales agents (43%), followed by fake healthcare providers (20%) and fake government or tax agents (18%).
“These numbers reflect a deeper anxiety about not being able to trust a call,” Domininkas Virbickas, NordVPN’s chief product officer, said in a statement.
How HangUp works
When a call comes in, HangUp checks the number and alerts you if it might be a scam, spam, or telemarketing attempt before you answer the call. The app is able to do this using caller reputation data that Hiya uses for its own service.
You can’t block individual phone numbers with the app, but you can block categories, such as if you want to stop all calls classified as telemarketers.
You can also use HangUp to scan incoming text messages. The app claims to be able to detect scams, fraud, malicious messages, and misleading content. The app says it “can analyze message content, including links, sender information, and other relevant signals, to assess potential risks.”
If you’re concerned that this is another way to get your data, NordVPN says it won’t record or listen to calls or store the contents of text messages.
NordVPN has another warning regarding HangUp. It states that the app is only an “informational support tool” and cannot guarantee that it will be able to identify and block all unwanted calls. HangUp users cannot “exclusively rely” on the app and are “solely responsible” for the calls and text messages they receive.
So make sure you know the warning signs of scam calls and what steps you can take. The Federal Communications Commission lists them, including not answering calls from numbers you don’t know and hanging up immediately if someone asks for money or personal information.
Since becoming fascinated by the Cambridge coffee shop webcam in the 1990s, I’ve written about VPNs, the NFL, smartphones, decent salaries, plus/minus and everything in between. See full bio
