If you're getting hounded by calls about a car warranty, you're not alone: Robocalls are spiking for the first time since before the pandemic
- Robocalling is back to pre-pandemic levels, data from spam-blocking service YouMail showed.
- Americans received about 4.6 billion robocalls in February, the highest volume since February 2020.
- The two main types of robocalls during February were scams related to car warranties and health.
If it feels like you're getting more robocalls than usual lately, you're not imagining it: Robocalls are back to pre-pandemic levels, new data from YouMail showed.
YouMail, a robocall-blocking app that compiles robocall data in the US, found that Americans received roughly 4.6 billion robocalls in the month of February, a 15% increase from the month prior and the highest monthly volume since February 2020.
The two main types of robocall scams during the month of February were about car warranties and health. There were, respectively, 339 million and 202 million calls regarding those scams last month, YouMail reported.
The spike in robocalls is likely related to economies beginning to reopen worldwide. As YouMail CEO Alex Quilici told CNN Business last spring, call centers were operating with reduced capacity or were closed completely, leading to a decrease in calls. Now, as the world continues to reopen, robocalls are having a resurgence as well.
YouMail's findings align with a February SurveyMonkey survey conducted by Insider, which found that 46% of Americans reported receiving spam phone calls on their cell phone every day, and another 24% reported receiving them multiple times each week.
While there isn't a simple solution to ending robocalls altogether - the Federal Trade Commission has been fighting a battle against robocalls for approximately two decades - there are a few tricks that could help reduce the number of calls you receive. Experts recently told Insider's Walt Hickey that installing a mobile app designed to fight spam can help block these types of calls.
In addition, you can add yourself to the National Do Not Call Registry, which is maintained by the FTC and can blacklist spam callers.
And if a spam call is able to reach you, it's important to be aware of the tricks scammers may use to gain access to your information or to get you to pay up. The FTC keeps a comprehensive list of the types of tactics callers may employ, as well as the most common types of scams, to help you protect yourself.