If You Have A Phone With Caller ID - You Invest In Your Safety

Added: 10/08/2005

I've noticed that in the last 5 years or so, my mother-in-law has become increasingly paranoid about who calls on the phone or who knocks on the door. She's never quite sure who it is or what they want. We resolved the problem at the door with a simple intercom system. Now she doesn't even need to peak through the peephole. We've further increased her wall of protection with a phone with a caller id.

A phone with a caller id is pretty simple. When someone calls, their phone number is displayed on the phone's LCD display. This is a good thing if you can instantly recognize phone numbers. I think it works as a disservice for some seniors because their recall isn't as keen as it was before the Great Depression. Fortunately, technology being what it is, consumers can also purchase a variation of the phone with caller id that identifies who it is that's calling. So my mother-in-law will instantly recognize that it's my wife on the other end and not someone selling vacuum cleaners.

There are dozens of companies that provide this service. Each offers a variation of a phone with caller id. The object obviously is to protect an individual's privacy. And really, isn't that what life's all about? These systems continue to evolve. Newer systems - and they seem to come out every few weeks - even offer a block caller id function. Where an individual can register certain numbers so callers can't even make a connection. Time Share representatives get my vote for the block caller id. And virtually every other get-rich-quick scheme that tends to prey on innocent senior citizens.

A phone with caller id isn't just good for the geriatric crowd. It's a good function to have for every family. Ultimately, until you pick up the receiver, you just don't know who the voice is on the other end. So it makes good sense - not just in terms of privacy, but in terms of safety - to have a phone with caller id.

Not every family is proactive in this. A phone with no caller id is just another telephone. I'm not sure to what extent it's possible, but I believe that phone-hackers - like computer hackers - can trace a phone number and glean information from it. Information such as an address and who knows what else. Which in turn can be used to get other information that could be used in fraud schemes or anything else that turns a person into a victim. So no caller id can create problems.

Video phones are probably the next step for phones with caller id. These are just starting to make waves in Europe. But both the caller and receiver need to have the same phone with video monitor. For someone like my mother-in-law, this will make a great gift in the future. When she can see me there will be no doubt in her mind who is on the other end. But I don't think telephone scam artists are likely to invest in this technology. Maybe the day will come when every one will be required to have a phone-face-ID. With the country's national security at risk, video-phones are probably just a matter of time.

Individuals need to make an educated decision. The price of a phone with caller id probably equates to the price of a DVD rental or a pizza once a week. Probably even less as time goes by. It all comes down to personal safety. Whether it's safety at home, safety on dates, or safety in the office. A phone with caller id is an investment that yields big dividends in the long run. Now if my mother-in-law could just recognize my number and name when I call...

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