From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.
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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

I seem to get lots.

No number displayed, phone rings and when I pick it up there a bit of
noise that usually indicates an automated junk call system trying to
find a human operator.


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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On 2026/3/14 13:10:22, JMB99 wrote:

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

I seem to get lots.

No number displayed, phone rings and when I pick it up there a bit of
noise that usually indicates an automated junk call system trying to
find a human operator.

I don't have anything that displays a number; most such calls I get _do_ "display" a number if I call 1471 afterwards, but 1572-1 reports them as unknown.

I was _going_ to suggest just a glitch in the system, but them
persisting after the DV switchover makes that seem unlikely.

I sometimes get a proper ring signal - ring-ring - if I hang up in the
middle of using things like 1572-1; they continue though, not a single
ring. If I pick up, I hear the continuation of the automated service I
was using. (Still on standard landline.)

(I think I've asked before - when did ring-ring become universal, and
did the cadence vary greatly? The TV series where someone would answer
and say "Nonnatus house, midwife speaking" was set in the late 1960s,
but seemed to have a long and uninterrupted ring, US-style, and this
surprised me, the care having been taken with other aspects, such as
uniforms, smoking, medicine ...)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()ALIS-Ch++(p)Ar++T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

An Englishman thinks a hundred miles is a long way; an American thinks
a hundred years is a long time.
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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

Codger <codger524@gmail.com> writes:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

How many phones do you have? Do they all ring? or do you have only one
phone? Have you tried a different phone? Presumably your phone or phones
are now plugged into a router but with the same wiring as
before. Perhaps there are faulty wires.
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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On 14/03/2026 14:43, J. P. Gilliver wrote:

(I think I've asked before - when did ring-ring become universal, and
did the cadence vary greatly? The TV series where someone would answer
and say "Nonnatus house, midwife speaking" was set in the late 1960s,
but seemed to have a long and uninterrupted ring, US-style, and this surprised me, the care having been taken with other aspects, such as uniforms, smoking, medicine ...)

On my PABX, you can program whatever ring you like.

ring-ring was GPO default for landlines.

Other countries differed
--
The biggest threat to humanity comes from socialism, which has utterly diverted our attention away from what really matters to our existential survival, to indulging in navel gazing and faux moral investigations
into what the world ought to be, whilst we fail utterly to deal with
what it actually is.


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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

Suggestion. They are scanning the entire number space for numbers that
exist, that give a ring tone, rather than a 'number unobtainable' tone, preparatory for putting a Yuman on the other end to scam you
--
The biggest threat to humanity comes from socialism, which has utterly diverted our attention away from what really matters to our existential survival, to indulging in navel gazing and faux moral investigations
into what the world ought to be, whilst we fail utterly to deal with
what it actually is.


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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On Sat, 14 Mar 2026 15:09:09 +0000, Richmond <dnomhcir@gmx.com> wrote:

Codger <codger524@gmail.com> writes:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

How many phones do you have? Do they all ring? or do you have only one
phone? Have you tried a different phone? Presumably your phone or phones
are now plugged into a router but with the same wiring as
before. Perhaps there are faulty wires.

Just the one phone, a DECT with TrueCall built in. Plugged into the router after the switchover to
DV - works perfectly, clearer sound than my mobile. This phenomenon also occurred on my previous
non-Truecall phone. Not possible to test because I have no idea what causes it, I only notice it a
few times a year. My guess is that it might be a power supply issue on VM's network.
--- Synchronet 3.21d-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On Sun, 15 Mar 2026 13:17:08 +0000, The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

Suggestion. They are scanning the entire number space for numbers that >exist, that give a ring tone, rather than a 'number unobtainable' tone, >preparatory for putting a Yuman on the other end to scam you

Good thinking!
--- Synchronet 3.21d-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On 15/03/2026 17:06, Codger wrote:

On Sun, 15 Mar 2026 13:17:08 +0000, The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on my landline. These are single
rings which do not show up on the call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been happening both before and
after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

Suggestion. They are scanning the entire number space for numbers that
exist, that give a ring tone, rather than a 'number unobtainable' tone,
preparatory for putting a Yuman on the other end to scam you

Good thinking!

Or most likely they are automated test calls ,particularly as VM/O2 are transitioning to a totally VoIP telephone network. BT have done them for
years so why not VM/O2.

Sorry to spoil the paranoia fest
--- Synchronet 3.21d-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

grinch <grinch@somewhere.net> writes:

On 15/03/2026 17:06, Codger wrote:

On Sun, 15 Mar 2026 13:17:08 +0000, The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on
my landline. These are single rings which do not show up on the
call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has
been happening both before and after the switchover to digital
voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

Suggestion. They are scanning the entire number space for numbers
that exist, that give a ring tone, rather than a 'number
unobtainable' tone, preparatory for putting a Yuman on the other end
to scam you >> Good thinking!

Or most likely they are automated test calls ,particularly as VM/O2
are transitioning to a totally VoIP telephone network. BT have done
them for years so why not VM/O2.

Sorry to spoil the paranoia fest

At 5:30 AM ? Well, I suppose it is Virgin Media.
--- Synchronet 3.21d-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On Mon 16/03/2026 09:36, Richmond wrote:

grinch <grinch@somewhere.net> writes:

On 15/03/2026 17:06, Codger wrote:

On Sun, 15 Mar 2026 13:17:08 +0000, The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:

On 14/03/2026 06:57, Codger wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on
my landline. These are single rings which do not show up on the
call log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received
one this morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has
been happening both before and after the switchover to digital
voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

Suggestion. They are scanning the entire number space for numbers
that exist, that give a ring tone, rather than a 'number
unobtainable' tone, preparatory for putting a Yuman on the other end
to scam you >> Good thinking!

Or most likely they are automated test calls ,particularly as VM/O2
are transitioning to a totally VoIP telephone network. BT have done
them for years so why not VM/O2.

Sorry to spoil the paranoia fest

At 5:30 AM ? Well, I suppose it is Virgin Media.

As a point of interest a friend who was a senior exchange engineer told
me that if BT are doing any switching/re-routing or whatever, it is
always done at 35mins past the hour, no matter which hour.


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From Newsgroup: uk.telecom

On Sat, 14 Mar 2026 06:57:50 +0000
Codger <codger524@gmail.com> wrote:

For several years now I have been getting occasional ghost calls on
my landline. These are single rings which do not show up on the call
log. They always seem to occur during the night, I received one this
morning at about 5:30. I am a VM customer and this has been
happening both before and after the switchover to digital voice.

Just curious as to the explanation, they are not a nuisance.

I have recently had a couple of those, although mine show up on the
display and log. I haven't had time to investigate if they are known
about.
--
Davey.

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