Safety & compliance
Scam Shield: stop spoofed and nuisance calls before they ring
Every inbound call is screened before your phone rings. Choose what happens to suspected scams, add your own block and allow rules, and test any number.
Which plans include it
Included on Growth and above. On Free Trial, Entry, Plus you can add it on its own at £3.95 a month from Features & add-ons.
What it means
Rule-based screening for fake and nuisance calls — for example a scammer showing a real HMRC or bank number that only ever receives calls.
What it does
- Always blocks forged and impossible caller IDs.
- Always labels calls from known impersonation numbers (numbers organisations publish as inbound-only).
- Applies your chosen action to calls caught by behaviour checks.
- Lets you add your own rules: Block, Label the caller, Press 1 test, To voicemail, or Always allow.
- Tests what would happen to a call from any number, without placing a call.
- Lists recently screened calls.
Every part of the page
- Screening is on / off
- The master switch.
- What to do with suspected scam calls
- Block (hang up before the phone rings, SIP 603); Label the caller (it rings, but the caller ID shows a warning); Press 1 test (the caller must press 1 — defeats auto-diallers); To voicemail (skip ringing).
- Test a number
- Type any number to see what would happen. Nothing is recorded.
- Your rules
- Number or pattern + action. "Always allow" beats every other check — use it for a supplier who keeps getting caught.
- Built-in protection
- The platform blocklist and inbound-only numbers, active on every account with Scam Shield.
- Recent screened calls
- What was caught and what happened (never rang, caller ID relabelled, sent to voicemail, asked to press 1).
How to use it
Recommended setup
- Switch screening on.
- Suspected scam calls: Press 1 test (or Label the caller if you want to see them).
- Add "Always allow" rules for key suppliers and family numbers.
- Check Recent screened calls after a week.
Block a nuisance caller
- Under Your rules, enter the number.
- Choose Block. Add.
Examples
Fake HMRC call
A call shows an HMRC number that HMRC never calls out from. Scam Shield marks it as spoofed and blocks it before your phone rings.
Your own rules
Block a number that keeps ringing with sales calls; allow your biggest customer's switchboard so it is never blocked by mistake.
Test a number
Type a number into the tester to see whether it would be allowed, labelled or blocked.
Recommended settings
- ★Press 1 test for most businesses — real people press 1, robots do not.
- ★Label rather than block if you cannot risk missing a genuine caller.
- ★Whitelist important numbers with Always allow.
Abbreviations on this page
- Spoofing — Caller ID spoofing
- When a scammer fakes the number shown on your screen — for example making a call look as if it comes from HMRC. Scam Shield catches the most common forms.
- Example: A call that shows your bank's number but asks for your PIN is almost certainly spoofed.
- DNO — Do Not Originate
- A list of numbers that organisations such as banks and HMRC only ever receive calls on and never call out from. A call that shows one as its caller ID is fake by definition.
- Example: Some HMRC and bank numbers are only ever used to receive calls, so a call from one is blocked by Scam Shield.
- SIP 603 — SIP response 603 "Decline"
- The signal Scam Shield sends back when it blocks a call: the call is refused before your phone rings.
- Example: Scam Shield blocks a spoofed call with SIP 603, so the scammer hears the call refused and your phone never rings.
- CLI — Calling Line Identity
- Caller ID — the number shown to the person you call, and the number you see when someone calls you.
- Example: When you call a customer they see your business number, 01632 960123, as the CLI.
Questions
Will Scam Shield block real customers?+
Forged and impossible numbers cannot be real customers. For everything else you choose the action; Label and Press 1 never stop a real person getting through.
Which plans include Scam Shield?+
Growth and above. On lower plans it can be added on its own. A basic blocked-numbers list is included from Entry.
Related help
Already a customer? Open this page in your dashboard: Scam Shield. New to Silux Call? See the plans or start a free trial.