"I'm sorry, the old Taylor can't come to the phone right now. Why? Oh. Because"
"She changed numbers! Please don't use this one, please use 573-830-0865"

Deter and organize mass calls from humans by providing a new, Cloaked Number

In almost everyone's experience, picking up the phone and saying "Stop Calling Me!" does little to prevent the myriad of phone calls you receive. Obviously, nothing can get through to the bots that are spamming you, but we find that folks often get spam from sources a little more human, such as:

• Charities
• Donation Centers/Former Places of Education
• Politicians or Political Organizations
• Community Groups
• Parenting Organizations
• Many more!

For many of these, you are likely overwhelmed and frustrated with the number of calls you receive. Next time they call you, instead of hanging up or saying your busy, when they say: "Hello, can I speak to Taylor?" you can respond: "Yes, they've actually changed phone numbers! Can you put this down as their number for going forward? Provide a newly generated Cloaked number.

9/10 times, if this is a real human, they will go into their database of calls and overwrite the information with your Cloaked information. It's much easier to get someone to overwrite data than it is to get them to delete it entirely.

Why does this help? A couple of reasons:

1. Sometimes you want to stay in touch! I donated blood and don't want to completely block the organization, but I'd like to take control of our communications and make sure they can't sell my data. If I give them a unique Cloaked number, I can ensure that their communications are filtered and safe while also polluting any data they might be selling about me.

2. If you ignore the calls, they still have your number. You never know when they'll sell it or lose it and you'll get spammed by them continuously, and potentially by other actors as well!

3. If you just tell them you're not interested or ask them to delete your number, they likely will not change their behavior or even denote your request. If you replace your number entirely? They'll definitely update and replace it in their system because they have a vested interest in contacting you.

Why does this matter?

If you don't Cloak your personal info, it provides several vectors of vulnerability:

• If the website you provide your info mistreats it, you could be hit with spam, scams, or any vulnerabilities associated with the entire internet having access to this info.
• If this site suffers a breach or is a malicious entity, they can potentially gain vectors to access/attack your information on other sites.
• If your personal info is breached elsewhere, it can be used to attack this site and your account within it.
• Your personal information is a way to get to you, your family, and your entire online presence. You don't want it falling in the wrong hands.

Learn more about the importance of Keeping it Cloaked here.

What next?

Check out some other of our guides on How to Use Cloaked!