AT&T enables call validation to help combat robocallers

Over the years, we've all been bombarded by the non-stop ringing of our phones due to robocalls. In November alone, 5.6 billion robocalls were made in the U.S. I myself receive nearly four-six robocalls per day, and finally, carriers and the U.S. government are stepping in to do something about it.

Starting December 18, AT&T is rolling out call validation displays that use the SHAKEN/STIR standards to validate the number calling you. This will help combat a common strategy used by scammers who spoof phone numbers masking their real number. Unfortunately, this will not put a stop to all those robocalls, but it will at least give you some peace of mind knowing whether the unknown caller is using a validated number or not.

The call validation display is part of AT&T Call Protect and is rolling out automatically to most Samsung Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10+, and LG V40 users. If you own one of these devices on AT&T and you're not already seeing the validation screen, then you can download the AT&T Call Protect app and enable it from the account settings located in myAT&T.

AT&T Phone digital home phone users are also eligible for call validation display and can enable it under account settings in myAT&T. If you don't have any of the above devices, then you're out of luck for now. However, AT&T has stated that it will begin expanding it to more mobile devices next year.

Just remember, even if the number is validated, it doesn't guarantee that the caller won't try to take advantage of you. That's why AT&T still recommends that you always use your best judgment when answering a call, regardless of the number being validated or not. Also, calls that are not marked as validated can still be legitimate, so again, use your best judgment regardless of the validation status when answering calls.