It’s your call now to can the spam
Spam calls and texts top many people’s pet hates – it’s an invasion of your home and private time. There’s no perfect way to stop them, but things are improving with the launch of a new text service for mobiles.
So here’s my spam buster briefing: Stop spam calls: Register with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) at
or call It’s then a criminal offence to make unsolicited calls to you.
It takes 28 days to kick in. After that if you get a call, tell them you’re on the TPS and legit companies scarper.
While 85 per cent of people have registered their landlines, only three per cent have registered their mobiles.
You can now do so by free text to with “TPS” and your email address (to verify identity). However the TPS is only a register for reputable EU firms.
Those from outside the EU, and rogue ones here, may still call. And if your number is targeted, the TPS may feel totally ineffective, so you should see registering as a way to reduce but not stop calls. Stop spam texts: Forward the spam message to ( it spells “spam”) – if enough people do it the number is investigated and blocked. You should also always block the number on your mobile.
One mistake people make is to text back STOP. That’s fine for legit firms, but to a spammer it indicates your number is real. Stop door knockers: Put a “no cold callers” sign up. I’ve designed a free one to print at
If they still knock (charities and political parties are especially keen), just open the door, point at the sign, then politely close the door. If they persist, it can be an offence.
Make a formal complaint to the firm they’re from and to Trading Standards via
Stop junk snail mail: Join Mail Preference Service on – after about four months the bulk of letters should have stopped (though, unlike the phones, it’s a voluntary scheme.) For unaddressed letters, flyers, and other junk, has an opt-out. Not all spam is bad though. Junk mail can contain some top promo deals, so balance hassle against opportunity. Yet some spam is dangerously misleading…