By Kelvin Chan, The Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — iPhone users have a new tool to combat a scourge Annoying phone calls: A virtual gatekeeper that can screen incoming calls from unknown numbers.

It’s among a host of new features that Apple introduced with its release last month iOS 26. The screening feature has gained attention due to the ever-increasing number of robocalls and unwanted calls that make many phone users feel harassed.

Below is a detailed overview of the new functionality:

How to activate call screening

First, you’ll need to update your iPhone’s operating system to iOS 26, which is available for iPhone 11 and later models.

To turn on call screening, go to Settings – Apps – Phone. Scroll down and you’ll find a new option: Screen Unknown Callers.

You will be presented with three choices. The Never option lets any unknown call ring, while the Silence option sends all unidentified numbers directly to voicemail. What you want to click is the middle option: Ask why you are calling.

If the option isn’t there, try restarting your phone.

I still couldn’t find it after updating to iOS 26, but after doing some investigating online, I checked my region and language settings because I saw some online commenters reporting it needed to match. It turned out that my region was still set to Hong Kong, where I had lived for years. I switched it to the UK, which seemed to do the job and gave me the updated list.

How it works

Call screening provides a layer between you and new callers.

When someone who’s not in your contact list calls your number, a Siri-style voice will ask them for their name and the purpose of their call.

At the same time, you will receive a notification that the call is being examined. When the caller responds, the answers will be transcribed and the conversation will appear in speech bubbles.

You can then answer the call.

Don’t want to answer? Send a response by tapping one of the pre-written messages, such as “I’ll call you later” or “Send more information,” which the caller’s AI voice will read.

Or you can write your own message for the computer-generated voice to read.

If you don’t respond right away, the phone will continue to ring while you decide what to do.

Teething problems

In theory, call screening is a useful third method between the nuclear option of silencing all unknown callers — including legitimate ones — or letting them through.

But it doesn’t always work perfectly, according to Associated Press colleagues and anecdotal reports from social media users.

One AP colleague said she was impressed by how smoothly it worked. Another said it was useful for screening cold callers who found his number from marketing databases.

“However, it is not cool when delivery drivers try to call me and then hang up,” he added.

Some netizens have similar complaints, complaining that important calls they were expecting from an auto mechanic or plumber never arrived. Callers may have assumed it was an answering machine, and didn’t seem to realize they had to stay on the line and interact with it.

I had a different problem the first time it showed up, when an anonymous caller dismissed me – whether accidentally or not – by giving my name instead of his. So I answered because I assumed it was someone I knew, and I forgot that I could click on an answer to ask them again what their name was.

The caller turned out to be someone who had my name and number and was trying to convince me to take a survey. I had to excuse myself and hang up.

If you don’t like call screening, you can turn it off at any time.

As for Android

Apple is catching up with Google, which offered a similar automatic call screening feature years ago for Pixel users in the US.

Last month, the company announced this feature Rolling For users in three other countries: Australia, Canada, and Ireland.

If it’s not already on, go to your phone app settings and look for the calling screen.

Google’s version is more automated. When someone you don’t know calls, the phone will ask you who they are and why they are calling. The call will be hung up if it turns out to be a spam call, but let calls that you consider legitimate ring.

Google warns that not all spam and robocalls can be detected, nor will it always fully understand and record what a caller is saying.

Samsung also allows users of its Galaxy Android phones to screen calls using its AI assistant Bixby’s text calling function, which works in a similar way.

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