// caller id spoofing, from the victim's side

Your phone showed a number. The network never promised it was real.

Reads the area code and number shape only. It cannot tell you who owns a number, and neither can anyone honest.

What the screen shows is not what the network knows.

[ field notes ]

log 01 / 2026-10-06 Someone is using my number to call people: what to do People say you called them but you did not. Your number was probably spoofed. What to check, what to tell callers, and who to report to. log 02 / 2026-10-06 Why a verified call can still be a scam A signed, verified call can still come from a fraudster who simply owns the number. What the badge proves, what it cannot, and the checks that remain. log 03 / 2026-10-06 What the 'verified' checkmark on an incoming call really means The verified checkmark on an incoming call comes from STIR/SHAKEN. What the network checked, what it did not, and how to read the badge on your phone. log 04 / 2026-10-06 Neighbor spoofing: why scam calls look like they come from your area code Scam calls that borrow your area code and first digits are called neighbor spoofing. How it works, why it works on you, and what actually helps. log 05 / 2026-10-06 Why am I getting calls from my own number? Your phone rings and the screen shows your own number. Here is why that happens, what the caller wants, and what to do and not do next.

[ readme ]

Spoofwatch is a small, independent site about one narrow problem: the phone rings, the screen shows a number, and the number is wrong on purpose. Sometimes it is your own. Sometimes it shares your area code and the next three digits, as if a neighbor were calling. Sometimes it carries a little checkmark that makes it look vetted, and the voice on the other end still wants your gift card codes.

We write from the receiving end. There is plenty of material about how phone networks work, and some of it is useful, but most people reading about this have just hung up on something odd and want to know what it was. So each page here starts with the answer, then the reasoning, then the steps. We do not teach spoofing and we do not review spoofing services. Everything is defensive.

What is on the site

Five articles carry most of the weight. The first one covers calls that show your own number, the most common thing people write to us about. The second explains neighbor spoofing. The third and fourth are a pair: what the verified checkmark proves, and why a verified call can still be a scam. The last is for the less common but more stressful case, someone using your number to call other people.

There is also a lookup that reads the area code and the shape of a number (number check) and a plain area code index, with a page for each code such as 212, 415 or 305. The tool is deliberately modest. It will tell you where a code is assigned. It will not tell you who owns a number, which carrier they use or whether anyone has reported them, because it does not know, and sites that claim to know for free usually want something from you.

How we try to be useful

We test phone menus on real handsets before we describe them, we link to primary sources such as the FTC and the FCC, and we show the date of the last real change on every page. Where something depends on your carrier, we say so instead of pretending there is one answer. If you spot a mistake, tell us. You can read more about the people involved on the about page and the editor's page.