How to Easily Trace Prank Calls

It can be frustrating to rush to the phone when you’re in the middle of eating dinner, or you’re trying to watch your favorite television show.  It’s even more frustrating when you answer the phone and it’s a prank caller.  Almost everyone at some time or another has been a victim of a prank call.  While many are harmless kids just playing a joke, there are some callers that are rude and vulgar over the phone.  No matter what kind of prank call you get, you usually want to find out the person who called you and put a stop to it.  Of course it may not be as easy as looking on your Caller ID for information.  If the caller was smart enough to use an unlisted number, then you will have to find another way to get the caller’s information. 

One way you can take action is to trace the phone call.  There are many telephone providers that offer a service to trace calls.  You may need to contact your telephone provider to see if they offer this service to their customers.  Your telephone provider will give you instructions on how to use the service.  Most of the time, after immediately hanging up with a prank caller, you will wait a few seconds to make sure the line is disconnected.  Then you will pick up the phone and dial *57.  You should get prompted for what to do next.  Once the trace is finished, you will be given the number to a law enforcement agency so you can file a complaint.  There is usually a fee for using this service. 

One problem with this service is that usually nothing will be done unless several calls are made from the same telephone number.  Obviously if the person continues to harass you, the local police can take action.  However, this doesn’t help if you want to know the caller’s identity right now.  Another problem is that this service will not provide you with the caller’s information.  They have to protect the privacy of the caller, so you won’t find out the name or number of who just called you.  If you get an obscene phone call and plan on reporting it, this may be a service you will want to use.  If you just want to find out who called you, it’s probably not your best option.

Another way you can take action and actually find out the person’s name is to use a reverse cell phone service.  These services allow you to type in a landline or cell phone number.  They will then charge you a fee to provide the owner of the phone number’s personal information.  You will get their name, address, and even other phone numbers they have in their name.  Many times the reports will go into much more detail than this.  If the number isn’t on your Caller ID, you can use the call return feature on your phone to get the number.  Once you have it, all you have to do is use a service like Reverse Phone Detective to do a reverse search on the number.  You’ll have all of the information you want in just minutes.  Then you can decide what action you want to take next.

These are two options you may choose to use the next time you get a prank call.  Of course, you can always choose to ignore the call and not let it bother you.  Sometimes, though, the calls are too annoying, rude, or vulgar to ignore.  If this is the case, you can try the options above to find out who’s making the prank calls.