Explain caller ID control in phone service

Caller ID (caller identification) is considered by most users as a highly beneficial feature in present-day telephone service. This feature is available in both analog and digital phone system as also in VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) systems.

It is also feasible for caller ID to provide a name associated with the calling telephone number. This information is made available to the called party through a display or by an attached computer with appropriate interface hardware.

One big advantage of caller ID is it can be used to track down or at least minimize the annoyance of telemarketers, mischief callers and other similarly unsolicited incoming calls. But the minus point is it can enable users to be deliberately evasive to avoid inconvenient calls. More than all things else, there is the possibility of caller ID spoofing that makes it unreliable.

Telemarketing organizations are known to spoof caller ID. There are instances when telemarketers have blocked and/ or fraudulently spoofed caller ID to prevent being traced. But in many countries companies or individuals unjustly spoofing or blocking caller ID is an offence punishable by law. Caller ID spoofing has long been the handiwork of prankster, mischief-mongers and scammers and the technology often is used
unethically.

Some Internet service providers (ISPs) providing dial-up access mandate their clients to use CNID to prevent abuse of the account by unauthorized callers. Besides, some systems with dial-up access can also be suitably programmed to accept only calls with specific caller ID strings.

Of course, mobile phone providers generally use the caller ID to
automatically connect to voice mail when a call to the voice mail number is made from the associated mobile phone number eliminating the need to enter a password.

You need to have a phone with a screen that will read and identify a number. The screen will typically show a name or telephone number, or both. So, you will have to upgrade your phones. Caller ID lets you to selectively screen calls, and not answer those that generate unfamiliar numbers. In most cases, these calls are from - charities, political candidates, survey agencies or telemarketers.

You may also receive harassing calls, obscene calls, or blackmailing calls. A positive benefit of identifying callers is that it helps you to call someone back if you just cannot talk at the moment. Caller ID lets you save time and money by giving you a method to avoid unwelcome calls and yet know who
is calling and to decide if it is an important call or not.

If you notice a number that is unfamiliar or suspicious, you can simply not answer the call and have them leave a message on your voicemail if it is something important.

After studying the popularity of caller ID feature in many countries across the globe, it is clear that the benefits of the service far outweigh the few drawbacks.


Many phone service providers offer caller ID as a standard feature in their package. All phone service providers offer caller ID and number of voice mail options. To avail additional benefits from your cell phone, you should set up the voicemail and caller ID features.