Verizon Call Filter Reviews

VerizonCallFilter quit working and started blocking all calls. There’s no way to see this is happening because it doesn’t tell you when it’s blocked calls and the calls don’t show up in recent cal history. I only figured it out after someone called my home phone to ask why I didn’t answer my iPhone. At that point, after troubleshooting, I realized I wasn’t receiving any calls at all on my iPhone, but to the person calling, it rings like normal and then goes to voicemail. In troubleshooting that issue, I tried to turn off spam filtering and it wouldn’t turn off. That allowed me to realize it’s probably what was causing the issue so I uninstalled it and bingo. I started receiving calls again.

I reinstalled it a few days later and it worked for about a week before it started blocking all calls again! I’ve uninstalled it for good now.

In addition, you can’t block #’s with VerizonCallFilter . Verizon requires you to pay a monthly fee to block more than a small amount of #’s (I think it’s 10). It’s unethical to charge consumers to stop unwanted calls because it shows you have no incentive to help fix the issue of spam calls since you’re using them to make money. How long before Verizon starts helping spammers so the problem becomes some bad all Verizon customers are forced to sign up for their blocking service?

An update! VerizonCallFilter, after missing most spam/telemarketers/robocalls, for a year of “use” finally started blocking calls! Yes, it blocked calls, in fact, it BLOCKED ALL CALLS, including my friends and even my sister! I started getting texts asking me what was wrong with my phone, did I know it was saying I wasn’t available or some such nonsense... Finally logged onto Verizon acct, checked the Call Filter report, sure enough, it listed several recent calls which it had faithfully blocked: calls from friends and family, and there was no option to unblock them either! So I went back to my phone settings and unchecked the option for blocking calls via call filter, and also deleted VerizonCallFilter . Really, Verizon, is this the best you can do?

Every morning I get at least one unknown call, a number I don’t know, always around 9:00 to 9:30, they never leave a message and good old “reliable” call filter NEVER blocks them! So I launch call filter, the stupid thing says it’s checking my subscription—WTF? Too bad it doesn’t devote more energy to ACTUALLY WORKING! Then I add the annoying number into the CF “personal” block list, what for, I don’t know. VerizonCallFilter is a waste of time! Verizon obviously doesn’t have a clue as to whether a call is reliable or whether it’s spam!

I downloaded the Call Filter app and used the free plan it provides but Verizon can choose to automatically sign you up for the Plus version and charge you $2.99 a month. I didn’t realize this until I noticed my bill was getting a few dollars higher and higher each month and I hadn’t ordered or purchased anything so I done some digging on My Verizon App and I found what the charges were and that Verizon could enroll you in it themselves without even verifying or confirming it with you before hand and was VERY upset!! I then figured out how to take off the Call Filter Plus from my bill and did so but more then likely will not get my 2.99 back for each month they charged without my permission, unfortunately. And it being Easter Sunday, plus with Covid-19 accommodations I can not get in touch with anyone from Verizon about getting a refund if possible until 7am tomorrow morning Monday, April 12th 2020. So my advice would be to not download VerizonCallFilter at all unless you want the “Plus” Version because they will automatically sign you up for it anyways and you won’t know until you realize you bill is increasing monthly without any changes you have made yourself.

I’ve tried the free and paid versions of VerizonCallFilter. The free version is completely useless unless you like being told you need to subscribe whenever you click even the most innocuous looking “features”. Even number blocking, which is already integrated natively into the phone, requires a monthly subscription. Seriously Verizon? So I guess that makes the free version even LESS than useless because it actually doesn’t even perform basic features already on the phone unless you pay extra. As for the paid app, it too is practically worthless. Sure, ponying up the three bucks a month unlocks all the eye candy but that’s literally all it is; eye candy. It doesn’t do squat to stop annoying spoofed calls and robocalls. After upgrading to the paid version, the number of spam calls I received actually skyrocketed. But hey, at least I have a nice pretty new log of all the calls it allowed through. Honestly, if phone companies spent as much time sincerely developing ways to actually HELP their customers rather than thinking up new ways to fleece us for more money for features that should be free, half these problems wouldn’t exist.

The current path on iPhone> 1) Spam Number > 2) click on the “i” circle icon > 3) Share Contact > 4) Search Caller Filter > 5) “...” Click on the 3 dots > 6) Mark as Spam > 7) Select Label > 8) Select Robo Caller > 9) Select “Add” to mark as Spam > 10) Click “OK”to confirm that the Spam Number has added to the spam list 11) Select Report Caller > 12) Select a category > 13) Select “Scammer” from the drop down menu > 14) Select “Report” in the top right hand corner to Report number > 15) Select “OK” to confirm report of number > 16) Select “Block caller” > 17) Select a Label > 18) Select “Robo Caller” from drop down menu > 19) Select “Block” in top right hand corner to Block a number > 20) Select “OK” to confirm that the number has been added to my block list

It takes TWENTY STEPS to confirm ONE NUMBER that is a Robo Caller to report as spam, add to spam and block list! That is only one number of twenty robocalls that I receive daily so is VerizonCallFilter really that efficient at call filtering and reporting these robocalls?

@ $2.99 a month VerizonCallFilter and customers paying a premium for this service deserve an easier way to deal with robocalls and this needs a major upgrade

I was paying for the premium call filter and it was working just fine. I did get a few calls slip through but that is to be expected with spoof callers as well as I found it annoying that they could still leave voicemails but overall I was happy. That was until today. We just recently experienced an earthquake and I tried to call my sister and boyfriend and I got a Verizon error message. I was confused and thought maybe something happened and my bill didn’t get paid so I check, nope, I was fine. I tried calling my mom and dad and that worked which was even more confusing. Finally after troubleshooting I went to VerizonCallFilter and removed the blocking feature and I was able to make a call. The annoying thing about is I let VerizonCallFilter auto block for me so nothing showed up on my block list but when I turned off I could call. So annoying! VerizonCallFilter should have shown me what numbers were being auto blocked so if there was a mistake I could fix it but it didn’t. I don’t know if it’s because I’m an iPhone user or what but that was annoying and alarming considering what just happened.

I started receiving calls from my own phone number (spoofing) so I called Verizon and they suggested call filter turned on on their end which was free then also suggested I get VerizonCallFilter for additional features. So I did both. App installed and I set it up and subscribed for an additional 2.99 a month. Everything worked fine until about an hour ago. All of a sudden I couldn’t make calls or receive calls. I’d get dead air then call failed error or I would get all circuits are busy now message. On incoming calls I couldn’t hear anything and the caller obviously couldn’t hear me. First I reset all settings. Then restarted phone. Nothing. Next I chatted with tec support via the Verizon app. Ran test on my line said it was fine. So next I went into my Verizon app and canceled the call filter app subscription. Then went into settings/phone and turned off call filter. Uninstalled app, then ran magic cleaner. Went in and reset settings. Rebooted phone. Still nothing. Around 15 to 20 minutes later i received a phone call then checked if I could also make calls again. It worked. Sorry Verizon I love you but won’t be installing or using your call filter app again.

Update #2: It would be really nice to have Verizon address directly the question of why so many calls are labeled robocall, potential spam call, etc. but they still ring through? This has been asked in numerous reviews and Verizon still has never given an answer that I’ve seen other than some generic nonsense.

Update: After using this for several months, I’ve probably only seen maybe two calls blocked. Since virtually all spam calls nowadays appear to be spoofed, I don’t think reporting a number really does anything. Sometimes the scammers even seem to be spoofing legitimate numbers. Until Verizon has a way to deal with spoofed numbers, I don’t really see a way to effectively block spam calls.

I’m not sure VerizonCallFilter does anything. I can’t say I’ve seen anything blocked. It has identified some calls as “potential spam.” However, even though I have VerizonCallFilter set to block all spam, including potential spam, these calls still merrily come through and are not sent to VM. Verizon has such a good network. It’s kind of embarrassing they don’t have a more effective call blocker app. I won’t even talk about Verizon charging $3 per month for VerizonCallFilter.

Unfortunately VerizonCallFilter / service doesn’t seem to work at all. About the only thing it does is at least identify calls that may be spam calls (comes up as “potential spam”) but doesn’t block those call even though it’s set to block all spam calls, even the potential spam calls are set to be blocked in VerizonCallFilter settings. There have also been several times when the same number has called multiple times (was clearly a robo caller) I marked it as a spam call in VerizonCallFilter , and calls from the same number still got through. In addition... Calls from numbers that are clearly spoofed numbers also get through. It’s disappointing because when I was with T-Mobile, I had their anti-spam app / service and it was much better and was a lot more effective. It did a lot better at identifying (and blocking) most spam calls and spoofed numbers. I’m going to delete VerizonCallFilter off my phone and unsubscribe from the call filter service. Even with the paid version of VerizonCallFilter , I still get at least 5 calls a day that are identified as spam calls, in addition to other calls from spoofed numbers.

Face it. The thieves and swindlers have outsmarted Verizon. Sometimes I get a 10-20 calls a day, no name, just American based #s, usually local. When you call back you get a non working number or a hang up. When I filter calls that show 'unidentifiable caller', or whatever, I miss calls from new clients that I haven't made a contact out of yet.

Frankly, we're done with Verizon. They're are so many USA companies that provide the same service for MUCH less, and they're more responsive to their CUSTOMERS. I LOATHE AT&T, but after we switched to Verizon the unwanted calls started IMMEDIATELY! They sold us out, period. And my word, the price has gone through the roof too.

So to summarize. Over THREE THOUSAND, unwanted calls annually. And a USELESS app that doesn't deal with them. They're crazy expensive. They sell our information. And now it's been revealed they take some of our hard earned money and give it to the monsters at Planned Barrenhood. Which seems crazy from a business standpoint, leave the brutality aside. You can literally put a number, then a dollar amount, on the killing of future customers!

I see a lot of really bad reviews. A lot. And they are all coming from pretentious individuals who believe everything should be handed to them. So let’s settle this. Your number is public information. It can be found easily. Spam calls, robo-calls, whatever you want to label it, are not very different from spam emails. You’re going to get them. VerizonCallFilter will help keep the amount of those calls from coming through, but it doesn’t stop them all. It can’t, realistically. I’ve been issuing since day one, and as time goes on, I get less and less spam calls. If you’re using VerizonCallFilter, do your part and report those spam numbers as they come it. That’s how the database is built. By the consumer. Is that too much work for you? Then drop your service with Verizon, toss you phone in the trash, and start using smoke signals. Because that is the ONLY way you can stop all the spam calls.

I have a screenshot now of the screen that greets me in VerizonCallFilter saying, “You’re not connected to the Verizon network. You must be a Verizon Wireless customer to use Call Filter” with the word “Verizon” clearly visible as the cellular network I’m connected to on my phone’s statusbar. Clicking “Join us today” takes me to a webpage where I enter my number and encounter the error “You’re already a Verizon customer”. In other words… VerizonCallFilter has no idea what it’s doing, and my subscription to Verizon’s call filter service is absolutely worthless as a result. Nice work.

My guess is that VerizonCallFilter can’t identify a Verizon eSIM, and can tell that I don’t have a physical Verizon SIM in my phone. Every iPhone released in the last two years has had eSIM capabilities, and Verizon supports eSIM… so if this is the problem, they need to fix this. It’s long overdue at this point.

Considering that there’s a paid tier of this service, and both the free and paid tiers require VerizonCallFilter to work… this is inexcusable. Good luck selling an app that doesn’t work, Verizon. You’d think this was AT&T by the way this [doesn’t] work.

I think VerizonCallFilter is a great idea! I see a few reviews complaining that they want to cancel verizon because of spam calls as if any cellular provider has anything to do with robo calls. No matter what carrier it’s the phone number that is getting the spam calls not the service provider. I’m sure it takes some type of technology to provide this service hence why you may have to eventually pay for VerizonCallFilter . At least verizon is trying to help with the problem instead of saying just ignore the calls like you’ve always done. Some people have businesses and can’t afford to just ignore every unknown phone calls. Don’t listen to some of the moronic reviews, if you want a piece of mind give VerizonCallFilter a try or just deal with unwanted calls everyday.

Very disappointed in the poor performance of the free app. Been using the FREE YouMail that is still catching far more than VerizonCallFilter. Basically too many slip through that ultimately end up going to YouMail. Also saw they put out an update which never showed up in my App Store updates listing. Just happened to manually find it by accident. For a company as big as Verizon that generally charges the most for mobile service, it extremely disappointing to find them nickel and diming their customers in order to get premium call blocking which in all likelihood is less effective than free third party solutions. Anyone reading this, YouMail is free - ya, they say their service is providing the voice mail service on legit calls as a bit of advertising and there are small ads at the bottom of VerizonCallFilter , but it works well, allows for custom VM announcements, sends push notifications and/or emails, transcribes VM in VerizonCallFilter , etc. The free features are enough for most people. Paid services focus more on business features. Verizon could learn something from YouMail. Meanwhile I can do without the vzw call filter.

Ok, VerizonCallFilter is getting a lot of bad reviews for the wrong reasons. This is a Verizon app and is for Verizon users. You have to setup in your Verizon account prior to installing VerizonCallFilter or it won’t install properly. The basic app is free, while VerizonCallFilter with extra features has a monthly payment.

Now, having cleared the air on that, why am I giving 1 star. VerizonCallFilter is totally ineffective at stopping the most common type of spam call which is the spoofing of real numbers. I installed when VerizonCallFilter first came out. I get about 10 spam calls per day. During the time I have had VerizonCallFilter installed, I have received only one spam notification while all of the other spam calls have gone through thus stopping about 1%. I have the filter set at the highest setting for stopping spam.

I will keep the free version installed for a few more weeks to see if the blocking abilities improve. If it worked I might be willing to upgrade to the premium version, but not at this point. If blocking does not improve, I will uninstall the free version. With current capabilities VerizonCallFilter is not even worth being free.

downloaded VerizonCallFilter on my iphone 11 and paid for the monthly subscription and it was worst started getting texts all day at least five a day from people I didn’t even no and then started getting through the day like six calls from states I didn’t even no I downloaded it because I was just wanted to keep safe because I only used to get a spam call like once every three weeks but I notice that varizon is in back of all this they start sending you fake text and calls through every single day so you think it is working I unsubscribed and erased VerizonCallFilter and haven’t received not even one fake text or any spam calls they do this so you can think it works and fall into paying for premium features really disappointed they offer you the free version and does nothing it could be months and no blocking but when you pay premium suddenly lots of fake text start coming in and calls they have control of this can’t believe this I’m allready paying so much for my phones and plan that’s incredible

Although the most recent update (which I’m running) claims to fix this issue, VerizonCallFilter still DOES NOT work if you use eSIM as your only line. I reserve my physical SIM slot for my secondary (foreign) line, which is necessary because my foreign carrier does not support eSIM, and also I prefer to keep that line “off” when I'm in the USA, which is generally not supposed to be an issue and is also the safest way to ensure you don’t get hit with roaming charges or unwanted call/texts from my foreign number. As I’ve discovered, the call filter app still won’t even activate if your VZN line isn’t on the physical SIM. As a work around ive been able to activate call filter if I turn on my physical sim line; again this is not my vzn line so I’m not sure why it makes a difference, but at least it provides a workaround until the problem is truly fixed.

IMHO ... I think this is the possible beginning of a change in the SPAM War...
Please know that if you block a Verizon call on an IOS iPhone - those blocked numbers will not ring through - but still will go to voice mail - where they can leave a voicemail AND if they do those Blocked Number Voicemails WILL NOT ALSO SHOW UP ON YOUR IPHONE’s Visual VoiceMail on your phone!!!
To use Verizon’s SPAM Filter EFFECTIVELY esp with iPhone (not sure if it’s the same for Androids) UNBLOCK ALL NUMBER’s on your iPhone! ... and let the call Filter Do It’s Job.
The more of us who use it the smarter it becomes... More and more often - on calls that the Filter knows actually to be SPAM - the Filter is self-blocking those out - they never ring through - but you still get a memo of what number and when that number’s call was blocked.
Hopefully in the future, as the Filter sees more and more quick hang ups from all of us... the system will backtrack the VOIP data to its originator and start monitoring z AZ and slamming shut each of the numbers it’s temporarily using to SPAM us.
If say even 20% of all of Verizon accounts have this in app’s feedback to our responses to calls ... it should put a major dent in yet a larger number of the SPAM we’re all receiving.

I wish I could say this AP does all I expected from the description, but it sadly does not seem to work that way. I don’t see any decrease in calls! Rather since installing the ap I am averaging 6 calls or more a day where prior to using the filter they were sporadic and maybe 2 a day in cycles. Now it’s every day all day long. I still have to manually block the calls and there does not seem to be any more calls identified with who is calling. I’m spending more time manually blocking calls and researching where they are coming from. Plus since we added the AP we are getting text messages without identifying numbers. They are for a weight loss product in the header. There is a web address in the body of the text with a message saying Do you need to loose 52 lbs? And it is spelled loose not lose. Obviously a scam or some fraudulent situation. I have spent so much time filing complaints with the FTC since installing the AP and I paid the 2.99 for Premium. Now I just want it to stop even more! I’d give a zero star if possible!

First of all Verizon Wireless shouldn’t charge us to block these type of calls, it’s something that they have control over and shouldn’t allow these type of calls to come into their customers!….However since they don’t, what else are we left to do but get VerizonCallFilter and pay for the service.

It worked seemly fine for a few weeks, if numbers came through I would go to VerizonCallFilter and “block/report” them! There’s the option to allow certain numbers, and I have several numbers listed on that “allow” list. For some reasons it detects my grandma’s number as spam, so I had to put her on that “allow list”…however she would tell me that she tried calling me but yet I’d have NO missed calls!! Well, I just happen to be looking at my phone when she attempted to call and saw a quick flash up “call block”…and it showed her number!! This seems to be happen more frequently with other numbers, that are within the Verizon network as well!

I pay for monthly service for our cell service (way too high) and now paying for this service for it only to block the people I need to talk with most!! And there’s NO way of knowing that anyone has been “blocked” unless you happen to be looking at phone!

Verizon Wireless, do your part stop taking more money from your customers, fix the entire issue without charging us for this crappy service that doesn’t even work!

Sincerely, a customer for 19yrs!!

I was trying to find a spot to write to you instead of writing it publicly, but since I can’t find a contact for VerizonCallFilter specifically anywhere, here we go. If you are going to give the option of block ALL spam, than anything with spam in the name (Including potential spam) should be blocked. Right now I’m paying extra money every month to still be disturbed with spam call but at least get to know they may be spam. I don’t want to see them at all even if it means missing a call or two; they can leave a message! Please fix it or add another ultra layer that reads, “will absolutely block all calls with spam in the name. Are you really, really sure you want this?!?”, and I will gladly click YES I DO! Right now, this isn’t worth the extra I pay to Verizon to have the subscription, and I won’t keep it much longer if this continues. I don’t want to even see potential spam. Thank you for listening.

I see a lot of really bad reviews. A lot. And they are all coming from pretentious individuals who believe everything should be handed to them. So let’s settle this. Your number is public information. It can be found easily. Spam calls, robo-calls, whatever you want to label it, are not very different from spam emails. You’re going to get them. VerizonCallFilter will help keep the amount of those calls from coming through, but it doesn’t stop them all. It can’t, realistically. I’ve been issuing since day one, and as time goes on, I get less and less spam calls. If you’re using VerizonCallFilter, do your part and report those spam numbers as they come it. That’s how the database is built. By the consumer. Is that too much work for you? Then drop your service with Verizon, toss you phone in the trash, and start using smoke signals. Because that is the ONLY way you can stop all the spam calls.

I’m now using the free version, after the premium free trial expired. Overall, I’m stoked to have this. I was getting inundated with spam calls and VerizonCallFilter/service takes the edge off. That said, I think Verizon is making a big mistake by limiting the free version to not allow reporting of spam callers. Think about this for a second... VerizonCallFilter blocks maybe 30% of spam calls. What if I had the ability to report the ones that got through and others could do the same? That would make it better for everyone, right? Well, that functionality is only available in the paid version... so we have to pay so we can do work to make it better for others. Verizon is missing out on the network effect of its users (come on guys, this is basic strategy stuff). We will work for free if you let us. Take a look at Waze, for example. Verizon has the opportunity to solve this major problem for its customers, and the customers are willing to help... if you’ll let us.

It took me over a week to fully set up VerizonCallFilter so that it integrates with my iPhone. I’m not sure why I didn’t give up. But I’m glad I didn’t; one set up properly, VerizonCallFilter works great. I was already paying for the advanced collar ID service, but all that did was improve the information that was Displayed with each car. VerizonCallFilter actually stops the calls sending them to voicemail instead of annoying me all day long. It’s not perfect; but it is a significant improvement over life without it.

If you do purchase VerizonCallFilter, take the time to read the instructions, the Q&A and the tutorial. Be sure to note the statement that it takes up to a minute for the feature to be added to the Apple Phone app. For me it actually took many tries over several days before the feature actually showed up in the settings for the Phone app and I was able to enable the call suppression feature.

With the number of spam robo-calls increasing every day on my iPhone, I read about Verizon’s Call Filter and hoped it would eliminate most of those annoying calls. (By the way, I had to get rid of our land line due to the deluge of robo-calls and spam calls.). I called Verizon and was assured VerizonCallFilter worked well. I decided NOT to get the Premium version (thankfully) and gave it a shot. Well, a week later maybe 2 spam calls were flagged. The majority were let through as normal calls. Consumers deserve a solution that really works. I blame companies like Verizon, AT&T, Sprint for not being 100% proactively committed to eliminating this growing problem.

Pretty aggravating when you can’t answer the phone because 80% of incoming calls are spam calls. Factor in the possibility that your cell number is also your business number and the problem is magnified.

All that said, folks, trust me that VerizonCallFilter is a complete waste as it doesn’t come near being a “call filter”. Shame on you Verizon!

I agree with other reviewers who are concerned that Verizon has little incentive to stop the spam calls, because they are making money off the problem. I like Verizon, but I’m very concerned about these awful calls - my social security number “has been suspended” or I am in danger of being arrested because of some fraud in my name - these guys are frightening and the company that I have used - for more than a decade I think - ought to be doing something about it that isn’t a conflict of interest. The more spam calls you receive, the more likely you will be to pay them $3 or $8 per month to try & stop the calls. I pay an obscene amount of money as it is. People in other countries do not pay $100 per month for cell service, check it out. But I digress.
Verizon, please address this issue in a way that doesn’t incentivize you to help the spammers. I am still your loyal customer because I feel that the other providers will have the same problematic issues and not as good a network as yours.

First off, almost every time you launch VerizonCallFilter it demands your contact list, which in this day and age is obviously not a good idea to provide! YES, you can click cancel & get VerizonCallFilter to work OK without providing Verizon your personal contact list. Obviously, their network should be perfectly good enough for detecting SPAM & other bad guys, without having to grab your contact list. Anyone who has ever gotten a junk email from LinkedIn knows that! I think also that VerizonCallFilter is way too complicated to use, and requires multiple steps for flagging spam & other badness – but I suppose it’s better than nothing. My free trial for all the highfalutin stuff just expired, so I’ll see how useful it is without paying any additional money on an on going basis... R
eally, Verizon really dropped the ball on this one...