Caller ID not working
jlyell
Newbie

In my new phones caller ID I just see "California" and the number or "Unknown" this has always worked on my older phones. Is there something

 I can do?

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Re: Caller ID not working
almahix
Enthusiast - Level 2
I get that from incoming cell phone calls, but other calls show the number and name if it is available
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Re: Caller ID not working
HenryFarpolo
Contributor - Level 2

@jlyell wrote:

In my new phones caller ID I just see "California" and the number or "Unknown" this has always worked on my older phones. Is there something

 I can do?


Caller ID should work as it always has. Check the manual gor your new phone to see if there are any settings options. It is not unusual to get, "out of area", "private Caller", "unavailable", or in some out of state calls the State name.

Re: Caller ID not working
Philcoman
Newbie
I just started with Verizon and I have the same problem.   In-state calls give me the correct caller ID -- outside of my home state I just get the name of the state. Never had this problem before! I'm NOT using new phones. Neother Sales nor Tech Support seem able to fix it. They both just kind of shrugged their shoulders.
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Re: Caller ID not working
GSnicker
Enthusiast - Level 3
Caller ID will show the name and number of other Verizon landline customers if not blocked and if it only travels over Verizon wiring. Other providers are responsible to update their databases to have the correct information or it may show old numbers, names, etc. Many times the signal is lost when traveling different routes so one time the name and number may show and another it may not, depending on how the call is routed and the path traveled. And sometimes when going from Verizon through another provider's wiring it may lose the signal in translation. This is usually shown as "Unavailable" "Unknown" or "Out of Area", or this could also mean it is coming from an area that doesn't have Caller ID capability, and there still are some of those areas. "Private" and "Anonymous" mean the caller is blocking their number from showing. There are no directories of cell numbers so it usually only shows the number. Unless your phone has some type of set-up for this, it is not the phone but just the traveling of the signal to your home.
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Re: Caller ID not working
Philcoman
Newbie

Let me reiterate that these aren't blocked calls, cell phone calls or out of area calls -- I actually get the name of the state, e.g., "Michigan," and a telephone number. I simply don't get the name of the caller. These are callers whose names DID appear before I switched to Verizon. Is the implication that out of state caller ID only works if the caller is a Verizon customer? That's less than useful, to say the least. I've talked to tech support a number of times, and while the reps are very professional and try to help, it's clear that they have no idea what to do about this.

For some people, Caller ID is just a handy extra feature. For us it's a deal breaker. We have both relatives and clients from other states and we need to know who is calling.

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Re: Caller ID not working
GSnicker
Enthusiast - Level 3
Your local phone provider is only responsible for giving you the information they get from the caller. The caller's company is responsible for sending that information through and if it is lost in translation or on its journey, only parts of the information may show up due to incompatibilities in the system. When you have hundreds of different providers carrying this information over different lines, different paths, and different signals, you will lose information. It could show up one time and then not the next depending on the path the call is sent through. I could be wrong because I am no expert, but I don't think changing your provider will have anything to do with the Caller ID you receive, although it may be different people or areas that are losing the information depending on the provider and path traveled (or lines they rent to carry their signals). I have never been one to use Caller ID because I don't really care who is calling, I answer the phone and if I want to talk I do and if not I don't. I understand it may be important to you to know this information so just trying to give a little insight on how this service works and hope I have done that.
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Re: Caller ID not working
Philcoman
Newbie

Well, that's good to know. I wonder why, in four calls to tech support and as many to sales, nobody could tell me that?

I understand that changing my service may not change anything. All I can tell you is that I never had this problem with Comcast.  If that hadn't been the case I wouldn't be so upset about it. Maybe in the past, everybody who called me had Comcast service, who knows?

Granted, I had other issues with Comcast, which is why I switched. On the whole, our cable performance is better with Verizon, the phone service is clearer, and I have no complaints with the internet connection.

Anyway, thanks so much for your thorough replies!

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Re: Caller ID not working
FairfaxKid1
Enthusiast - Level 2
Much depends on the class (I think that is the correct term) of switch that handles the call at each end.  I do find it funny that calls from certain cellular providers show a name, but calls from Verizon Wireless phones do not.  I think (not sure though) that a call from Verizon Wireless to a Cox number will show the name.
Message Edited by FairfaxKid on 08-28-2008 10:52 AM
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Re: Caller ID not working
kvelling1
Contributor - Level 1

Major landline carriers, cellular carriers, and interexchange (e.g. long distance carriers) conform to full FCC mandated (Feature Group-D) protocol requirements. That is, they send (or receive/display) Calling Number and Calling Name (aka Caller ID) information. Some COCOT phone companies and long distanceresellers may not fully conform.

Many large businesses that have their own/private systems and some VoIP providers use as 23B+D interface (to the Public Switched Telephone Network) which essentially allows them to decide (or modify) what is sent as Calling Number and Calling Name information. Many of these companies rely on this ability to intentionally mask what is sent as a Caller ID --maybe not ethical, but not illegal. Most marketing 'annoyance' calls are intentionally originated in this manner to mask their identity.

Verizon, and a few other cellular companies use the name of the state the call originated in as the Calling Name (but do transmit the Calling Number). Some cellular companies allow the subscriber to determine if their name is sent as the Calling Name.

That said, the signaling system (SS7) used is separate and distinct from the 'voice' system. While the voice Quality of Service protocols are intended to guarantee that (digital) voice packets do not get lost --though not necessarily so for VoIP--, the SS7 protocols do not guarantee that (digital) signaling packets do not get lost. Hence, a lost SS7 packet may result in an occasional 'missing' Caller ID message.

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