{"id":4159,"date":"2020-02-27T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-27T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/?p=4159"},"modified":"2026-04-03T00:04:53","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T07:04:53","slug":"dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t answer that call from your own phone number"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Rachel was busy at work, with her cell phone on her desk. Looking out the window, she wished she was able to go for a walk in the sun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A call arrives on her cell phone, oddly, from her own cell phone number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She’s aware of robocallers and avoids picking up calls from unknown numbers, but this was different: it was her own number calling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curiously, she reaches over and answers the call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A voice on the other end says, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Hello Rachel, this is AT&T. We’re encountering a service issue on your number and need to update to keep your number working. To verify this is actually you, please reply with your account number and PIN.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel is conflicted – this all sounds valid, they had her name, after all. She asks, “Is this really AT&T<\/em>?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is noise in the background of the call – it sounds like a large call center. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Yes, Rachel, this is your provider, AT&T<\/em>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel provides her account number and PIN at this point, then asks how she will know if her account will remain active.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Too bad she couldn’t even finish her sentence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The call is disconnected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“That was weird<\/em>,” she thinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She then Googles for AT&T’s customer support contact number. A representative, in a quiet environment, answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel tells the representative her story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The representative says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Oh no, that was definitely not us. In fact, I see a new user was added to your account a few moments ago. The name of the new user is “XLDFDFDNIDKFE”. Does that sound familiar at all?”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel, freaking out now, says, “No, clearly I have no one with a name that is a jumble of letters. I did not authorize this. Can you please remove this user?<\/em>“<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The representative removes the user and puts a freeze on her account. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the FCC, technology makes it easy for scammers to fake or \u201cspoof\u201d caller ID information. They can make it look like they\u2019re calling from a different place or phone number. Even your<\/em> <\/strong>number. Scammers use this trick as a way to get around call-blocking and hide from law enforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scammers pretend to be anything from your bank<\/a> to the IRS<\/a>. These types of calls are surging in volume<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These calls from your own number are illegal. Don\u2019t pick up \u2014 or press buttons to be taken off the call list or to talk to a live person. That just leads to more calls. It\u2019s best to ignore them, and move on with your day. Maybe go see a movie or get ice cream with a friend instead. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
\n

We believe behind every telephone number there\u2019s a beautiful idea, opportunity, or person. We strive to create those meaningful connections every day. To learn more about us, visit NumberBarn.com<\/a> and follow us on <\/strong>Facebook<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>Instagram<\/strong><\/a> and <\/strong>Twitter.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rachel was busy at work, with her cell phone on her desk. Looking out the window, she wished she was able to go for a walk in the sun. A call arrives on her cell phone, oddly, from her own cell phone number. She’s aware of robocallers and avoids picking up calls from unknown numbers,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4164,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-corral"],"yoast_head":"\nDon't answer that call from your own phone number - NumberBarn Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn why you shouldn\u2019t answer calls that show your own phone number and how to protect yourself from spoofing and scams.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Don't answer that call from your own phone number - NumberBarn Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn why you shouldn\u2019t answer calls that show your own phone number and how to protect yourself from spoofing and scams.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NumberBarn Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NumberBarn\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-02-27T14:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-03T07:04:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1582\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2071\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jenny Dempsey\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jenny Dempsey\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jenny Dempsey\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/6a014090db07aa1073a897e8e71da68f\"},\"headline\":\"Don’t answer that call from your own phone number\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-02-27T14:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-03T07:04:53+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\"},\"wordCount\":503,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Community Corral\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\",\"name\":\"Don't answer that call from your own phone number - NumberBarn Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-02-27T14:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-03T07:04:53+00:00\",\"description\":\"Learn why you shouldn\u2019t answer calls that show your own phone number and how to protect yourself from spoofing and scams.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg\",\"width\":1582,\"height\":2071,\"caption\":\"Ice cream with sprinkles symbolizing deceptive spoofed calls\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Don’t answer that call from your own phone number\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"NumberBarn Blog\",\"description\":\"Create meaningful connections\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"NumberBarn\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/logo_NumberBarn.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/logo_NumberBarn.png\",\"width\":265,\"height\":265,\"caption\":\"NumberBarn\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/6a014090db07aa1073a897e8e71da68f\",\"name\":\"Jenny Dempsey\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e36ed12917e22ce24f75aff5f3a15ea7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e36ed12917e22ce24f75aff5f3a15ea7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Jenny Dempsey\"},\"description\":\"Jenny Dempsey is the Customer Experience Manager for NumberBarn\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NumberBarn\/\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/numberbarn\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/@NumberBarn\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UC6SQV3RccVKW8Ryr2O13NeQ?view_as=subscriber\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/author\/jdempsey\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Don't answer that call from your own phone number - NumberBarn Blog","description":"Learn why you shouldn\u2019t answer calls that show your own phone number and how to protect yourself from spoofing and scams.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Don't answer that call from your own phone number - NumberBarn Blog","og_description":"Learn why you shouldn\u2019t answer calls that show your own phone number and how to protect yourself from spoofing and scams.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/","og_site_name":"NumberBarn Blog","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NumberBarn\/","article_published_time":"2020-02-27T14:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-03T07:04:53+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1582,"height":2071,"url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jenny Dempsey","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jenny Dempsey","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/"},"author":{"name":"Jenny Dempsey","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/6a014090db07aa1073a897e8e71da68f"},"headline":"Don’t answer that call from your own phone number","datePublished":"2020-02-27T14:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-03T07:04:53+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/"},"wordCount":503,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg","articleSection":["Community Corral"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/","url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/","name":"Don't answer that call from your own phone number - NumberBarn Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg","datePublished":"2020-02-27T14:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-03T07:04:53+00:00","description":"Learn why you shouldn\u2019t answer calls that show your own phone number and how to protect yourself from spoofing and scams.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/photo-1560008581-09826d1de69e.jpeg","width":1582,"height":2071,"caption":"Ice cream with sprinkles symbolizing deceptive spoofed calls"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/dont-answer-that-call-from-your-own-phone-number\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Don’t answer that call from your own phone number"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/","name":"NumberBarn Blog","description":"Create meaningful connections","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"NumberBarn","url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/logo_NumberBarn.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/logo_NumberBarn.png","width":265,"height":265,"caption":"NumberBarn"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/6a014090db07aa1073a897e8e71da68f","name":"Jenny Dempsey","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e36ed12917e22ce24f75aff5f3a15ea7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e36ed12917e22ce24f75aff5f3a15ea7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Jenny Dempsey"},"description":"Jenny Dempsey is the Customer Experience Manager for NumberBarn","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NumberBarn\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/numberbarn","https:\/\/x.com\/@NumberBarn","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UC6SQV3RccVKW8Ryr2O13NeQ?view_as=subscriber"],"url":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/author\/jdempsey\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4159"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4159\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9480,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4159\/revisions\/9480"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numberbarn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}