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Spanish National police have published a video on social networks advising people in Spain what to do, and what not to do when you receive spam, or unsolicited calls from phone numbers you do not recognise. These are “robocalls”, made from unknown numbers by bots that scan lists of thousands of phone numbers, calling randomly to check if they are active. The National Police has issued an alert via social media to warn their followers across Spain about the new scam has already claimed its first victims in Spain. And the worst is yet to come. In a video posted on TikTok, X and Facebook, a National Police officer explains that these calls often come from an unknown number and involve bots that scan lists of thousands of phone numbers, calling randomly to verify if they are active. “They will try to sell you a product, service, or promotion,” the officer in the video explains. “In these calls, there’s an initial silence, and once they get a response, the call is transferred to telemarketers who will try to sell you a product, service, or promotion,” the officer continued. This, as expected, has sparked some debate. Essentially, this is a modern form of telephone spam aimed at verifying that numbers are active to plan more effective call schedules for actual spam attempts. Spanish police advise of how NOT to answer the phone, and why And that’s not all. The officer stresses the importance of not answering unknown calls with “yes” or “sí”, as is common in Spain, as scammers could be recording the conversation, capturing your voice, and potentially using it for fraudulent purchases, contracts, or fraudulent financial transactions by faking your identity. Recommendations from Police of what to do if you suffer from spam calls If you’re receiving these calls, the National Police offers two solutions. First, block all unknown numbers that call with this purpose. Second, sign up for the Lista Robinson to avoid future advertising calls. These steps can help you avoid becoming a victim of robocalls and the advertising harassment that many have reported in recent months. However, some users in the comments noted that even after joining the Lista Robinson, they continue to receive frequent calls. The Lista Robinson is a service in Spain that allows individuals to opt out of receiving unsolicited advertising calls, text messages, emails, or even postal mail. It is a free registry where people can sign up to indicate they do not wish to receive marketing communications from companies, except those they have explicitly consented to or have a contractual relationship with. By registering on the Lista Robinson, users can reduce unwanted telemarketing, spam, and other promotional contacts. The service is managed by the Spanish Association of the Digital Economy (Adigital) and is recognised under Spanish data protection laws. Companies are required to check this list before they launch marketing campaigns to avoid contacting registered individuals. To sign up, you can visit the official website (www.listarobinson.es) and register your phone number, email, or postal address. However, as noted in some user feedback, its effectiveness may vary, as some companies or scammers might ignore the list or use unregistered numbers. The amount of unsolicited calls made randomly to individuals in Spain has increased exponentially in recent years leading to many just ignoring them. But, how do we ensure that others don’t ignore our calls when they do not recognise our numbers? The trend, it seems today is that most people in Spain are opting for messages identifying who we are and asking if it is OK to call in that moment. “Block all unknown numbers, sign up for the Lista Robinson, and follow us to stay informed about new scams,” the officer concluded. The video went viral within hours.
