

Why am I not in full control as a cellular user? - webuiarchitect
http://kumarfeels.wordpress.com/2010/08/09/why-am-i-not-in-full-control-as-a-cellular-user/

======
omrisiri
I agree, I think control is something the user should have rather than the
provider supplying the solution.

Technologically speaking, implementing something like this is pretty
simple.But it will cost the provider money rather than make money - which
makes this investment pointless (No company will invest money to loose even
more....).

I currently own a N900 and i have an app to block calls (currently blacklist
only) i think - though i am not familiar with the N900 incoming call API - it
should be rather simple to implement a whitelist instead.

And i pretty sure the same goes for SMS etc...

But frankly i don't really want that kind of blocking, i would prefer blocking
numbers of known spammers (which i have a list of) while occasionally letting
one pass through the filter, rather than miss even one important call which
could change my life (And it happens every day doesn't it?)

------
pilif
This just outlines another spot where having a sufficiently open operating
system on your mobile does make a lot of sense. In android, I could implement
my own SMS application (maybe even just base it on the existing stock one if
that's open source - I don't know).

This clone would only use the existing notification framework if the sender is
in my address book.

Then I would just disable the built-in SMS application.

Of course this isn't as good as blocking the SMS on the provider level, but on
the other hand it provides more granularity than a wholesale SMS block would
provide.

~~~
njharman
He has a n900, one of the most "open" phones there is. If he had a "normal"
Nokia with DRM, he'd probably be able to download that app mentioned in the
comments.

~~~
webuiarchitect
:) That's funny, but I guess I can find or develop something myself to block
it on phone level.

------
ionfish
Most spam I get comes from my provider anyway, and I imagine that even if they
did add something along these lines they would make their own messages get
through regardless.

------
jsz0
My fear would be something like a friend or family member being in some
emergency situation where they have lost their phone and need to reach me on
someone else's phone but I never see the call/text. There's a danger in micro-
managing your life without fully thinking about all the ramifications. This is
why in my opinion it's better to just deal with the 1-2 seconds of annoyance
to dismiss a spam call/text. It's not the end of the world. A
child/SO/friend/family/co-worker not being able to reach you in an emergency
is much worse.

~~~
warfangle
There's always the middle ground:

If the number is blocked - a truly unknown number - send them to voicemail.
Most marketers won't leave a voicemail - they'll just hang up.

I voicemail-screen every call I get from numbers that aren't in my address
book. 99/100 times, blocked number calls don't even leave a voicemail.

~~~
webuiarchitect
Sounds good

------
lukeschlather
<https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=5900#c0>

I put this issue into Android some time ago. Google's probably in a position
to make some change here, and carriers should be ramping up to deal with
mobile spam.

------
ck2
<http://i.imgur.com/uB7UI.jpg>

------
Hoff
tl;dr: there are no spam filters at (some?) SMS providers, and (apparently) no
incentives and no mechanisms for SMS providers to filter unwanted traffic. For
spamming or harassment or whatever the sender might want, based on the OP.

The poster will want to chat with the regulatory entities that have oversight
of the SMS provider and over consumers. Given the reference to the (US?) DNC,
that discussion would involve the US FCC, as well as the state-level
commissions.

