I got many scam calls that appear as a local TELUS number in the 613 area code. Sometimes I miss the call entirely and there is no voice message, so I will return the call because it is a local exchange. The person always says that they didn't call me. And sometimes I'm the one being called, with the person saying "Hey man, you just called me." and I have to explain to a very skeptical person that I did not. What I have learned is that scammers are using local exchanges when they spoof the call display number for precisely the reason that people are more likely to answer if the number is a local exchange. I know that the origination number and the call display number are signalled separately, and that at some point the real origination number is dropped and only the call display number is retained, for efficiency in the signalling. I also understand that there are legitimate reasons for the origination number and the call display number to be different (e.g. The Ottawa Hospital having a single call display number regardless of where in the hospital system the call originates). Despite all that, it seems to me that TELUS could work with equipment providers to come up with a feature that would allow TELUS to screen calls when they enter the TELUS network if the originating number is in a foreign country, does not match the call display number, and is not registered as a legitimate business with special call display considerations. Even if there are still concerns about blocking the calls automatically, they could still be traced and investigated, and blocked on an individual basis.
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