How do people find your phone number if you never gave it to anyone?

Question

I recently bought a new SIM card and I only use that phone for work purposes. Nobody has that number apart from co-workers from my office and other departments even my friends and family don't have that number. I keep on receiving phone calls and texts messages, just a few minutes ago I received a phone call from a printing company and I never used such services. How do these people find my phone number?

D_Bone_Steak · Accepted Answer

When you get a "new" number you have to realize that number was someone else's at one time and deal with the bullshit calls that was directed at them. I still have some old lady calling me from Texas that thinks I'm her man friend that is ignoring her calls... it's been years. I still get her calls. It's sad really. But yeah that goes for all the spam shit as well. My youngest kid took over the number from my 2nd to youngest... my autistic 12-year-old gets constant messages to order dick-hard pills now. Gee... wonder what my one kid was online doing? I've always had the opposite problem, but okay.

asphaltrhymes · Accepted Answer

I blame it on my CV/resume and all the years I spent job hunting / job applying for wondering why I get so many telemarketer calls. Fun fact and views are my own, my first ever job on this blue and green Earth was being a telemarketer lol. Ah wells. ^⁠_⁠^

jennifer_bloom · Accepted Answer

If you sign up for an online company for purchases or donations and then tell them you changed your number, they might sell that to a spam bot for money. I know a corrupt organization that sold my personal information when I bought a membership. They were suspicious so I discontinued after less then 2 months.

Puppystarfish23 · Accepted Answer

I get this too it's because you've probably been applying for jobs online were you have to put your phone number in or they are finding your number off your cv. These job websites sell your details to agentacys all the time

TheGuyWhoKnowsStuff · Answer

Here are some possibilities:
1. your number is similar to the a client of the printing company and the client either wrote it down wrong or the employee dialed the wrong number
2. scammers spam a large swathe of mobile numbers using software and you just got caught up in their net
3. when you put your mobile number down (e. g. Facebook, a contact form, with an online purchase as the contact, etc) they sell your number to companies based on data they collect on you that identifies you as a potential customer
4. someone who doesn't like you, took your number and entered it into online forms to spam you with mobile phone marketing
5. you could be making it up but I don't think you are

horatiohornblower · Answer

The problem is number reuse as mentioned before. It’s time we added more digits. If day the more digits. Increase the number pool 1000 fold.

It’s not like we have to sit around memorizing a bunch of phone numbers anymore. Just a few important ones to us.

RavVid · Answer

Is that phone number in your email signature? I sometimes wonder about don't call registers - did you list your number?

In any case companies could call nbrs within a band and pretty quick work out what numbers are allocated in the band and what numbers are yet to be allocated. There is probably no charge for calling unallocated numbers so no disincentive to not too if they are wanting fresh meat.

Did they have any details on you name, company etc?

strateguy632 · Answer

sales might be calling all numbers and reached yours, more likely it was a third party cookie that told the company your phone was near their topic.

kellytheman · Answer

It could be just e a wrong number or enter the wrong area code. Also there is a lot of spam calls where a machine just dials random numbers. I do get a lot of spam call or wrong number calls myself. Usually if you change your phone number it might stop.

Adam1978 · Answer

Your number has been used before you got it. So whoever had it before has left a trail to it. Phone companies usually only leave a number dead for like 6 months before selling it again.

Sour-rose · Answer

Your number wasn't yours at the beginning. Now you have someone else's number. Hell, i get calls from people looking for this dude or lady and it ain't me.

sage2021 · Answer

Sounds like a pre-owned sim card. The previous owner had your new number before and so did everyone he gave the number out to. Could be robo calls - Lord help you if they are robo calls🙄

Nikki1989 · Answer

A lot of people found my number via Linked In.

aoihewgf · Answer

Because it was someone else's phone number before you. Companies recycle them

Fuentes · Answer

Spam & skip tracing and websites collect your information and update your name and number onto it without your consent but America says its legal for them to collect such info and for public use for others to use.

najekim · Answer

Two ways. One is robocalls, and the other is most numbers today have been recycled numerous times. Less frequent now but I was getting calls for the last two owners of my current phone number for a year after I got it.

exitseven · Answer

Your phone number ended up on a lost and the list gets sold amd resold and next thing you know you get robocalled.

art84 · Answer

It was someone's number before yours. I remember I used to get phone calls for someone about a loan and I told them that I wasn't that person that they were looking for.

jshm2 · Answer

Your data is sold to advertising by your Sim card company.

ChillaxingLove · Answer

Social media. You give your information online. All you need is name.

Anonymous · Answer

The phone companies sell the numbers the moment they are registered

alearningboy · Answer

What I know is if you sign in by some websites they can take information out of it but I dont know if its true

Britney04 · Answer

Friends, or work, or filling application some ask for your number.

Anonymous · Answer

It’s automatic robo calls, they go through every number in the area code

roy_ricky09 · Answer

This is not new. Data selling is a big thing.

AviatorTom · Answer

Social media and hacking...

Adaeva · Answer

Robocalls dial every number.

Anonymous · Answer

I still wonder how telemarketers do it

zagor · Answer

Random numbers. Or web scraping.

Guardian45 · Answer

Thank advertising & the recycling of phone numbers

MarkGW · Answer

Advertisement sites and mail services

Engin12 · Answer

people where you bought it know you know

Joker_ · Answer

we have our ways

How do people find your phone number if you never gave it to anyone?

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