# Spoofwatch

> Spoofwatch is an independent editorial site about caller ID spoofing from the victim's point of view: calls that appear to come from your own number or your own area code, what the verified checkmark on a call really means, and what to do if someone is using your number. It includes a small tool that reads the area code and shape of a US or Canadian number. It does not identify owners, carriers or line types, and it is not affiliated with any carrier or agency.

Editorial site about identifying unknown phone callers and understanding US/NANP area codes. It does not sell personal data and does not claim to identify the owner of a number. Written by Marcus Vell. Contact: hello@monsoon116.com.

## Guides
- [Why am I getting calls from my own number?](https://monsoon116.com/calls-from-my-own-number): Your phone rings and shows your own number. Follow the branches: ringing now, innocent causes, your call log, blocking and reporting.
- [Neighbor spoofing: ten mistakes with local-looking scam calls, and what to do instead](https://monsoon116.com/neighbor-spoofing-area-code): Scam calls that borrow your area code and first digits are neighbor spoofing. Ten common mistakes people make with them, and the fix for each.
- [What the 'verified' checkmark on an incoming call really means](https://monsoon116.com/verified-call-checkmark-meaning): A grid of what the checkmark, no badge, Scam Likely, No Caller ID and Unknown Caller each mean, who decides each, and what none of them prove.
- [Why a verified call can still be a scam](https://monsoon116.com/verified-call-still-scam): A signed, verified call can still come from a fraudster who simply rents the number. What the badge proves, what it cannot, and the checks that remain.
- [Someone is using my number to call people: what to do](https://monsoon116.com/someone-spoofing-my-number): 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.
- [Call log glossary: telling a spoofed call from a real one](https://monsoon116.com/spoofed-call-log-check): Twenty plain-word terms for reading your phone's call log and your carrier's record, so you can judge whether a call was spoofed.
- [Silent voicemails and hang-up calls that look like they come from your own area code](https://monsoon116.com/silent-calls-own-area-code): Why your phone rings and nobody speaks, or a voicemail holds only noise, what the silence is for, and what to do about silent calls that look local.
- [How to stop spoofed calls when blocking numbers doesn't work](https://monsoon116.com/why-blocking-spoofed-numbers-fails): Spoofed callers rotate numbers, so a block list loses. Step-by-step setup of silencing, spam filters, carrier tools and reports that do work better.
- [Spoofed 'government' numbers: twelve myths about why the number looks real](https://monsoon116.com/spoofed-government-numbers): A call can show a number that looks like an agency's. Twelve myths about why caller ID looks real, what imposter calls ask for and how to check the real office.
- [Voicemail greeting cheat sheet for when your number is being spoofed](https://monsoon116.com/voicemail-greeting-spoofed-number): Copy-ready voicemail greetings for when strangers call back about calls you never made, what to leave out, and where to record it on your phone.

## Tools and data
- [Check what a number's area code actually says](https://monsoon116.com/number-check): Type a ten-digit number and read its area code, region and time zone. It shows facts about the code only. It cannot name the owner or carrier of a number.

## About
- [Your phone showed a number. The network never promised it was real.](https://monsoon116.com/): Why a call shows your own number or your own area code, what the verified checkmark means, and what to do if someone uses your number. Plain answers.
- [About Spoofwatch](https://monsoon116.com/about-spoofwatch): Spoofwatch is a small independent site about caller ID spoofing. What we publish, how we check facts, what the tool does and does not do, and how to correct us.
- [Marcus Vell](https://monsoon116.com/marcus-vell): Marcus Vell writes and fact-checks Spoofwatch. What he covers, how he verifies phone settings and sources, and where to send a correction.
- [Contact](https://monsoon116.com/contact): Send a correction, a question about an article, or a privacy request to Spoofwatch. We read every message, but we cannot investigate individual numbers.
- [Privacy notice](https://monsoon116.com/privacy-notice): What Spoofwatch collects, what it does not, how long server logs and contact messages are kept, and how to ask us to delete or correct your data.
- [Terms of use](https://monsoon116.com/terms-of-use): The rules for using Spoofwatch: informational purposes only, no stalking or harassment, no warranties, limited liability and how to reach us with questions.
- [Disclaimer](https://monsoon116.com/disclaimer): Spoofwatch gives general information, not legal or security advice. What the lookup tool cannot know, our independence, and our Do Not Sell or Share statement.