Zero Spam.

Fifteen minutes of settings. This cuts most of the noise while the removals in Step 2 do the deeper work.

• Join the National Do Not Call Registry Register your cell and home numbers once. Legitimate telemarketers must stop within 31 days, and calls that still come in become reportable. 2 mindonotcall.gov
• Silence unknown callers on your phone iPhone: Settings, Phone, Silence Unknown Callers (or Call Screening on newer iOS). Android: Phone app, Settings, Caller ID and spam. Real people leave a voicemail, robots give up. 2 min
• Turn on your carrier's free spam blocker Install your carrier's app from the app store: AT&T ActiveArmor, Verizon Call Filter, or T-Mobile Scam Shield. The free tier already labels and blocks known spam numbers. 5 min
• Break the robocall habits Never press a number, never say yes, never call back a missed unknown number. Any reaction marks your line as live and brings more calls, not fewer. habit
• Forward spam texts to 7726 7726 spells SPAM. Forwarding a junk text teaches your carrier to block that sender for everyone. habit

Spam callers buy phone lists from people-search sites and data brokers. These are the same free opt-outs the paid removal apps file for you. Do them over a coffee or two and the calls fade over the next few weeks.

• PeopleConnect Suppression Center One request removes you from Intelius, TruthFinder, Instant Checkmate, US Search and ZabaSearch. They only accept requests you file yourself, so even the paid apps cannot do this one for you. 10 minOpt out
• Whitepages Search your name on their site, copy your profile link, paste it in the suppression form. They verify with a quick automated phone call. 5 minOpt out
• Spokeo Find your listing, paste its link, confirm by email. 3 minOpt out
• BeenVerified Search your name, click your record, confirm by email. Also covers their sister sites like PeopleLooker. 5 minOpt out
• TruePeopleSearch Find your record, click Remove This Record, confirm by email. Usually gone within a day. 3 minOpt out
• FastPeopleSearch Same family as the one above, separate opt-out. Confirm by email. 3 minOpt out
• Radaris Paste your profile link and confirm by email. If the form fights you, they also remove by phone at (855) 723-2747. 10 minOpt out
• PeopleFinders Find your listing and submit the opt-out form. 5 minOpt out
• USPhoneBook Small site, big phone list. Quick email confirmation. 3 minOpt out
• Acxiom A big upstream broker that feeds many smaller sites and marketing lists. 5 minOpt out
• LexisNexis A longer form, but this one feeds many of the lists the others resell. Worth the ten minutes. 10 minOpt out
• MyLife No form here. Email privacy@mylife.com from your own address with your profile link and ask for removal under your state's privacy law. 10 minFind profile
• Google: Results about you Tell Google to watch for your phone number and address in search results, then approve removals with one tap when they pop up. 5 minSet up

Brokers refill from public records, so a little maintenance keeps the silence.

• Recheck the big sites every 3 months Profiles can quietly come back. Finish Step 2 and your recheck date appears above it. habit
• Report the calls that still get through Reports teach the carrier filters and feed enforcement. It takes a minute and it genuinely helps everyone. 1 minReport
• Use a second number for forms and stores A free Google Voice number for sign-ups, deliveries and store discounts keeps your real number out of new databases. 10 minGet one
• Tired of the loop? Consider a paid service DeleteMe, Incogni and Optery repeat these same opt-outs monthly for roughly 100 dollars a year. This page is the free version; the paid ones just save you the clicking. optional