Caller Reputation & Spam Prevention

If your calls are showing up as "Spam Likely," going unanswered, or your texts aren't landing, the underlying cause is usually your number's reputation with carriers. Here's how reputation is built, how it breaks, and how to repair it.

Why calls get flagged as spam

Carriers score every number based on behavior, not just content. Common triggers:

• A sudden spike in call volume from a number that was previously quiet
• Low answer rates (lots of unanswered or rejected calls)
• Multiple recipients reporting the number as spam
• No caller ID authentication (see SHAKEN/STIR below)
• Calling the same numbers repeatedly in a short window

Everyday habits that protect your reputation

• Use the same caller ID consistently for a given campaign or contact list, rather than rotating numbers.
• Ramp new calling campaigns up gradually instead of dialing a large list all at once.
• Keep your contact lists clean — remove disconnected or invalid numbers regularly.
• Limit how often you call the same person (a common rule of thumb: no more than 2 attempts a day, 5 a month).
• Leave a real voicemail with a callback number when you don't reach someone.
• Respect opt-outs immediately, and honor Do Not Call requests.
• If a number has been repurposed for a new use, give it some time — at least a few weeks — before starting a new outreach campaign on it, so it doesn't inherit a mismatched history.
• Register with SHAKEN/STIR, CNAM, and Voice Integrity (below) — together these are sometimes called branded calling, and they're the most direct lever you have over how your calls are perceived.

Fixing an existing "Spam Likely" label

1. Register with the Free Caller Registry. This shared registry lets you submit one request that's reviewed by the major US carriers' spam-analytics engines together, rather than appealing to each separately. Go to freecallerregistry.com, submit your number and business details, and expect review within about 4 business days.
2. Enable Voice Integrity (see below) if the Free Caller Registry alone doesn't resolve it — it directly registers your number with the analytics providers carriers rely on.
3. As a last resort, replace the number. If a number is new, was previously misused, or has accumulated real complaints, a fresh number combined with the practices above is often faster than fighting an entrenched bad reputation.

Voice Integrity

Voice Integrity registers your US numbers directly with the major caller-ID analytics providers (First Orion, Hiya, TNS) to clear spam labels and improve answer rates.

To apply:

1. Complete SHAKEN/STIR registration first (required).
2. Optionally register CNAM as well (recommended, not required).
3. Go to Settings > Phone System > Trust Center > Voice Integrity and submit the form — your call use case, company size, and expected volume.
4. Review typically takes about two business days; track status under Submitted Applications in the Trust Center.

Reducing inbound spam calls to your own number

• Turn on Number Intelligence (Settings > Phone System > Additional Settings) to flag likely spam calls before your team engages with them — see Number Intelligence.
• Use a custom disposition like "Spam call" (see Call Dispositions) so agents can flag one when it happens.
• Build a workflow that automatically enables Do Not Disturb for inbound voice on any contact marked with that disposition — scope the DND to inbound voice only, so it doesn't also block their texts or emails.
• Tag important contacts (VIPs, existing customers) so they always bypass spam filtering, and consider auto-clearing DND after a set number of days in case something was flagged incorrectly.
• Optionally add a simple IVR prompt ("press 1 to connect") in front of your line — this alone deters a lot of automated robocalls while letting real callers through in one second.