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Free guide

How to check if your number is marked as spam

There is no single public lookup. Each big US carrier labels calls through its own analytics partner (AT&T through Hiya, Verizon through TNS, T-Mobile and Metro through First Orion), so you check each one: place a test call, read the label, and dispute it where it is wrong.

Start the checklistContact Sales
Before you start
  • Call from the exact number your team dials out from. Labels belong to the number, not to your company.
  • Use test phones that have never saved or called that number, one per carrier. Friends and family work.
  • Remove third-party spam blocker apps from the test phone, or the label you see may be the app’s, not the carrier’s.
  • Nothing you tick here leaves your browser. Your progress is saved on this device only.

AT&T

Labels come from Hiya

  1. Call an AT&T phone that does not have your number saved. AT&T labels calls through ActiveArmor and blocks calls it rates as fraud by default, so a call that never rings is a result too. You can also register the number with Hiya for free: the account includes Caller Reputation, which shows whether your registered numbers are flagged as spam.

  2. What showed up on the test phone?

  3. Register the number with Hiya. Free for businesses of any size, and includes Caller Reputation to see if the number is flagged.

What the label means
Spam Risk
AT&T and Hiya rate the number as likely spam.
Fraud Risk
Rated as likely fraud. ActiveArmor blocks these by default, so the phone may not ring.
Telemarketers, Political, Account services, Nonprofits, Surveys
Categories ActiveArmor can show for nuisance calls. Not a fraud flag, but plenty of people decline these.
Never rings
The call may have been blocked as fraud. Treat it as labeled and ask for a review.
Just your number or name
No label on AT&T for this call.

Verizon

Labels come from TNS

  1. Call a Verizon phone that does not have your number saved. Verizon labels calls through Call Filter. On an iPhone, a flagged call can show as “Maybe: Junk” instead of a Verizon label.

  2. What showed up on the test phone?

  3. Tell TNS your calls are legitimate. TNS's feedback site has an option for businesses whose outgoing calls are mislabeled.

What the label means
Potential Spam or SPAM?
Verizon suspects the call is spam.
Robocaller
Verizon thinks the calls are automated.
Potential Fraud
High risk. Call Filter sends these to voicemail by default, so the phone may not ring.
Maybe: Junk
How a flagged call can appear on an iPhone.
Just your number or name
No label on Verizon for this call.

T-Mobile and Metro

Labels come from First Orion

  1. Call a T-Mobile or Metro by T-Mobile phone that does not have your number saved. Scam ID runs in the network and is on by default, so the test phone needs no app. You can also open a free First Orion business account, which shows when your number is tagged on T-Mobile and why.

  2. What showed up on the test phone?

  3. Register the number with First Orion. Free. First Orion verifies the number and passes your business details to carriers.

What the label means
Scam Likely
The network flagged the call as a likely scam.
Telemarketing, Political, Potential Spam
Category labels T-Mobile adds at the network level.
Just your number or name
No label on T-Mobile for this call.

Shortcut: register once with all three

The Free Caller Registry is run by First Orion, Hiya and TNS. One free form sends your business details and your numbers to all three: up to 20 typed in by hand, or more by file upload. You verify a business email, and you need to operate the numbers yourself. Registering helps the engines recognize your calls, but it does not guarantee an existing label comes off, so still ask for reviews where you are labeled.

Your result
No carriers checked yet
AT&T: not checkedVerizon: not checkedT-Mobile and Metro: not checked
Next
  • Still to test: AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Metro.
  • Register the number, either once at the Free Caller Registry or with each engine.

Why numbers get labeled

None of the three engines publishes its scoring model, so be wary of anyone quoting exact thresholds. Here is what the engines and the FCC say in public.

Calling patterns. The FCC says carriers and their partners look for suspicious calling patterns, and that a legitimate caller can be blocked when its pattern resembles robocalling. Hiya names high call volume and many calls in a short time. First Orion says its tags weigh calling patterns, complaint data and behavioral signals.

Ignored and blocked calls. Hiya says even legitimate businesses get flagged when the people they call often ignore or block them, and that a number blocked enough times picks up a spam label.

Complaints and spam reports. Reports from several people feed the label. The FCC tells businesses to check regularly with carriers and analytics companies for complaints about the numbers they call from.

No caller name on file. Hiya advises getting your numbers into the caller ID name (CNAM) database, because it signals to carriers that the number is used for legitimate business.

Weak caller ID authentication. The FCC says STIR/SHAKEN authentication supports carriers’ blocking decisions and call labeling. Calls your carrier signs with full attestation give the receiving carrier more reason to trust them. What the attestation levels mean.

Rotating numbers. Swapping in fresh numbers to get around labels is what robocallers do. Hiya’s advice is plain: do not rotate numbers; register them and build a calling history.

How to keep a number clean

Register every outbound number. Once at the Free Caller Registry, or with Hiya and First Orion directly. All of these are free.

Show who is calling. Put your business name in CNAM and consider branded caller ID, which shows your name and, on some phones and carriers, a logo and the reason for the call.

Get full attestation. Call through a carrier or platform that signs your calls with full (A-level) STIR/SHAKEN attestation, on numbers you own.

Pace the dialing. The FCC recommends limiting calls per minute, especially outside business hours, and limiting how often you call the same number back in a short time. Keep separate numbers for separate jobs, so support callbacks do not share a number with outbound sales.

Honor consent and opt-outs. Call people who agreed to hear from you and stop when they ask. FCC rules require consent before autodialed or prerecorded calls to cell phones.

Monitor. Repeat the test calls above on a schedule and watch the answer rate on each number. A sudden drop is often the first sign of a new label.

Or hand it off. Harmony.ai offers Spam Protection for managed US numbers: labels are checked daily across Hiya, First Orion and TNS, remediation is filed with the engine that flagged a number, and flagged numbers are quarantined.

Talk to sales

Related terms: Spam Likely label, Caller ID reputation, STIR/SHAKEN.

Sources

FCC: call blocking tools and resources; FCC: caller ID authentication (STIR/SHAKEN); T-Mobile: help with scams and spam; T-Mobile: report improperly identified calls; T-Mobile: MetroPCS rolls out Scam ID; Verizon: spam feedback form; Verizon: Call Filter terms; AT&T: Call Protect labels; AT&T: ActiveArmor app; Hiya: AT&T Call Protect; Hiya: number registration; Hiya: spam filters and high-volume callers; Hiya: how carriers label spam calls; First Orion: register your number; First Orion: FAQ; TNS: robocall feedback; Free Caller Registry; USTelecom Industry Traceback Group: carrier labeling contacts.

Frequently asked questions

Call phones on AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile that do not have your number saved, from the exact number you dial out from, and read what shows on screen. There is no single public database that covers all three carriers. Two free business accounts help too: Hiya’s Number Registration includes Caller Reputation, which shows whether your registered numbers are flagged as spam (Hiya runs AT&T’s labeling), and First Orion’s account shows when your number is tagged on T-Mobile and why.

Not one that covers every carrier at once. The free options are a test call to each carrier; Hiya’s free Number Registration, whose Caller Reputation feature shows whether your registered numbers are flagged as spam (Hiya runs AT&T’s labeling); First Orion’s free business account, which shows when your number is tagged on T-Mobile; and the checklist on this page, which keeps track of what you find.

There is no one list. Each carrier relies on its analytics partner’s data: Hiya for AT&T, TNS for Verizon, First Orion for T-Mobile and Metro. A test call to a phone on each carrier is the most direct way to see whether your number is labeled there.

Ask for a review with the carrier that shows the label: AT&T at att.com/reviewmycalllabel, Verizon at voicespamfeedback.com, T-Mobile and Metro at callreporting.t-mobile.com. Register the number at the Free Caller Registry, then fix the calling pattern that caused the label. Neither registering nor a review guarantees the label comes off.

Scam Likely is the label T-Mobile and Metro show, based on First Orion’s analytics in the T-Mobile network. It reflects calling patterns, complaints and other behavior signals, not a judgment of your business. Report it at callreporting.t-mobile.com and register the number with First Orion.

No. The checklist runs in your browser and saves your progress only on your device. We never see the number you test.

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