Two-Thirds of US Consumers Want More Accurate Caller ID Information

McLean, VA., September 12, 2024 – Consumer trust in caller ID information is non-existent. That is the finding of recent consumer research from Numeracle™ Inc. (“Numeracle”), the pioneer in Verified Identity and Entity Identity Management™ for communications. According to a study of 2,020 U.S. consumers entitled A New Era for Caller ID: Placing Trust at the Heart of the Conversation, more needs to be done to provide verified and trusted caller ID information when receiving calls from unknown numbers, with two-thirds (66%) admitting that more accurate information would encourage them to answer unrecognized incoming calls.  

Consumers in the U.S. have become all too familiar with the unpleasant experience of picking up their cellphone to yet another nuisance spam, or nefarious scam call—77% of respondents said it was a daily or weekly occurrence. While efforts across the communications industry to remedy this problem continue, the American public still views existing solutions with skepticism. The findings reveal:

• More could be done to protect consumers against spam and scam calls—a third of respondents do not feel they are protected at all.  
• Almost half (43%) of the respondents who have fallen victim to a scam call said the most common reason for initially answering the call was inaccurate caller ID information, leading them to believe the call was from a trusted person or business.  
• In fact, 69% of respondents said they have missed, ignored, or declined an important or wanted call because of a lack of trusted caller information.  

This lack of trust is casting a shadow of doubt over the value and accuracy of existing caller ID information. So pervasive is the issue that the large majority (86%) of U.S. consumers would not answer a call even if caller ID information was displayed. A similar percentage (85%) said they rarely or never trust caller ID for an unrecognized number.  

“The issue of trust and accuracy regarding caller ID information is an important one. Greater accuracy does not always equate to increased trust, but in this context, the two are inextricably linked. Consumers perceive existing caller ID information to be inaccurate, and therefore, untrustworthy,” says Rebekah Johnson, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Numeracle. “Little can be done to reduce the number of spam or scam calls being made each day, but there is an urgent need for a secure zero-trust ecosystem open to those willing to play by the rules. Inaction will only lead to further skepticism from consumers, and risks negatively impacting the perception of brands using voice as a primary communication channel.”  

The research also analyzed the link between spam and scam calls, and brand affinity. Consumers perceive they are most likely to receive a spam or scam call from financial services (62%), followed by telecoms providers (40%), and eCommerce businesses (34%). Such connotations can significantly damage brand identity and affinity:

• Almost three-quarters (69%) said their perception of brands in the sectors they most associate with spam and scam calls has been negatively impacted.  
• Just over a third (31%) admitted that their loyalty to their favorite brands would decrease if they were seen to be spam or scam.
• A further 31% said it would make them reconsider spending money with those brands, and a quarter (26%) said they would lose trust in those brands altogether.  

Calling for more accurate, trusted caller ID information alongside Numeracle is internationally recognized expert in self-sovereign and decentralized digital identity, Kaliya Young, IdentityWoman: “The problem of ‘spam calls' is also a problem of unreceived legitimate calls that are labeled as spam. Despite the variety of communication channels we have today, voice is still the primary channel for important life matters. We can’t afford to not have trusted and secure identities (caller IDs) in such a critical channel.”  

Numeracle’s Entity Identity Management (EIM) platform provides a comprehensive solution that offers greater accuracy in caller ID information displayed on devices. To find out more about Numeracle’s solutions for enterprises and service providers, visit: numeracle.com.

To read the full report ‘A New Era for Caller ID: Placing Trust at the Heart of the Conversation’, visit: numeracle.com/caller-id-consumer-research-report.

Methodology

Numeracle commissioned Coleman Parkes to conduct this research. The survey was conducted among 2,020 U.S. consumers who have received a spam or scam call on their cell phone.