We told you how to opt out of receiving spam, but telemarketing calls and even spam or m-spam text messages can be distracting, disruptive and, in the case of a spam text message, can even cost you money. David Pogue of The New York Times has recently discovered how to block cell phone spam, and decided to share his discovery with readers.
If you use AT & T or Verizon you can block all text messages sent from the Internet, which is where almost all text message spam comes from. If you have AT & T, log in mymessages.wireless.att.com. Under Preferences, you have the ability to block certain texts. If you have Verizon, connect to vtext.com. Go to text messaging, then Preferences to block texts. Sprint does not offer self-locking, but you can block specific phone numbers sprint.com, under My Tools> Communication Tools> Text Messaging> Text Messaging Options> Settings and preferences. T-Mobile does not offer the ability to block messages sent from the Internet, but you can block messages sent by e-mail or block text messages containing certain phrases to t-mobile.com under Tools Communication.
In order to prevent telemarketers from calling your home, be sure to register for the National Do Not Call Registry. It takes less than 30 seconds to punch in your phone number and email address and confirm your online registration. And from February 2008, telephone numbers places on the National Do Not Call Registry will remain on it permanently.
Various VoIP providers can also help prevent unwanted calls, annoying. Voip.com a telemarketer blocking service, and Vonage, Lingo, ViaTalk, AT & T CallVantage, Packet 8 and VoipYourLife all "do not disturb" ?? and features "Anonymous Call Block" which respectively send all incoming calls directly to voicemail during specified times and to block all calls from callers who deliberately blocked their caller ID. Visit our free online comparisons and reviews to learn more about VoIP services.