Microsoft 365 Teams collaboration platform will soon get a new feature that warns about spam calls. The feature will reportedly append ‘Spam Likely’ to the incoming call notification.
Microsoft Teams Desktop and Web client will start warning users about calls that could be spam. Users will be able to accept or reject a call as usual.
Microsoft confirms a new feature that will analyze incoming calls and identify those which are probably spam:
Microsoft has confirmed that it will soon start suggesting through a notification that an incoming call is likely to be spam. The Microsoft Teams application will display ‘Spam Likely’ in the call toast notification of calls that the feature suspects are spam.
Speaking about the feature, Microsoft Teams General Manager Nicole Herskowitz said:
“Teams will identify potential spam calls so you can feel confident answering incoming calls” and “will digitally attest outgoing calls to prevent these calls from being rejected by external recipients.”
“The spam call notification feature automatically evaluates incoming calls and identifies probable spam calls as ‘spam likely’ in the call toast,” mentions the entry for this feature in the Microsoft 365 roadmap.
Calls that might be spam calls will be flagged in Teams so users can decide if they want to answer or not. #MicrosoftTeams pic.twitter.com/bPZcWvejEW
— Linus Cansby (@LCansby) August 13, 2021
As mentioned above, the feature will merely alert users that it suspects the incoming call could be spam. Microsoft has categorically noted that it does not take any decision about the call.
“Users still have the option to answer or reject the call, and all ‘spam likely’ calls (regardless of whether they were answered or rejected) will also be reflected in the call history list,” mentioned the roadmap.
When will Microsoft Teams users start receiving alerts about suspected spam calls:
Microsoft is planning on rolling out the new ‘spam alert’ feature this month itself. The company had announced the feature back in December 2020.
Microsoft Teams desktop client, as well as the web version, will start alerting users about suspected spam calls. Incidentally, Administrators can choose to disable the alert feature.
#MicrosoftTeams Spam Call Notifications pic.twitter.com/rqIG4tUzzm
— Shawn Harry (@shawnharry) August 13, 2021
To disable the Spam Likely incoming call alert feature, there is a simple PowerShell command:
Set-CsTeamsCallingPolicy -Identity Global -SpamFilteringEnabledType “Disabled”.
Needless to mention, Microsoft does not recommend disabling the spam call alert feature. Additionally, the company does offer to block certain numbers inside the Teams interface.
Microsoft Teams will alert users of incoming spam calls https://t.co/IVVqZMprTK #MSFT #Microsoft #Teams #MicrosoftTeams
— The Data Pros (@TheDataPros) August 13, 2021
Individual Microsoft Teams desktop client users can also block PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) calls. Users can manage the blocked numbers by heading to the “Edit blocked contacts” menu under Settings > Privacy > Blocked contacts.
Microsoft Teams users can also block all anonymous incoming calls by toggling on the “Block calls with no caller ID” under “Blocked contacts.”