Is there a 2nd no app?

[cliffhanger]

Hi

Can anyone out there recommend a 2nd number app that is free and will work in UK? Tall order I know. Most are rank intrusive and carry more trackers than the US calvary!

Many thanks

[Vaughan]

I’m not sure what you mean by second number app. Would you explain please? It sounds interesting.

[irrlicht]

I guess a dialer is meant.

[Vaughan]

Maybe. If that’s the case then I’m not sure what’s wrong with the default one. It works well enough in my experience.

[cliffhanger]

Thanks

An app that gives you a 2nd number that can used when one doesn’t want to give away the real number from ones provider. This 2nd number can be ‘burnt’ when finished.

[Vaughan]

I see. Interesting idea but any app which exists for commercial reasons is likely to be riddled with trackers these days.

[ralxx]

There are 2 better ones that come to my mind (still neither of them is free of trackers):

• localphone and
• satellite.me

Whereas the latter one only gives you access to a German GSM number only.

Most of those services are building upon the SIP protocol. Therefore, it could be an option that you get a phonenumber from a provider (such as localphone) but you use an open source app (such as sipdroid) to access it.

In any way, it won’t be easy to find a service that it for free (no subscription fee) and without tracking. You always need to take into account that a company providing such kind of service, needs to earn its share as well. So, it will be likely that you need to make a trade-off.

[obacht]

@ralxx

• satellite.me

Works well from my experience and trackers can be worked around to quite some extend with Advanced Privacy and blocking tools alike.

But I would not consider it a real “burner number” as I understand @cliffhanger ’ s request because there’s quite some effort needed to get the number in the first place: you have to officially identify which least takes some time to do so … needs to be repeated every time you burn the number.

I don’t know about other countries and other services but in Germany you won’t get a “real” mobile number without ID’ing towards the provider.

Edit: maybe some day firefox relay will be available for masking phone numbers…

[Vaughan]

@obacht

I don’t know about other countries and other services but in Germany you won’t get a “real” mobile number without ID’ing towards the provider.

Same in UK as I understand things.

[obacht]

@Vaughan

Same in UK

Thought so…

For some usecases a second SIM with some other number (in some dumb phone at home, forwarding calls) may mask the private number and thus work as alias, that’d work least for incoming calls…

From the way these services work technically I expect aliases (or “burner identities”) for phone numbers to require way more effort to set up compared to email for instance.

[cliffhanger]

@obacht

For some usecases a second SIM with some other number (in some dumb phone at home, forwarding calls) may mask the private number and thus work as alias, that’d work least for incoming calls…

That’s the way I’m going

Thanks again

[Taurus]

Not free, but usually ultra cheap: get an account with a VOIP provider, then add the account to your calling accounts in the dialer’s settings. You might even be able to limit the account to incoming only, if you want (i.e. not have or pay for outgoing). And thus avoid tracking, probably.

[Vaughan]

That’s basically what I do. Two “landline” and one mobile number all over SIP. Numbers given out on a need to know basis. Outgoing calls to businesses made with inclusive airtime on an actual mobile number which is withheld. Unfortunately lots of people I know won’t answer withheld number calls so the SIP numbers do get used for outbound sometimes. The nice thing about this setup is that I can hop around between cheap mobile deals without ever having to move the number to a new provider.

[Tech-e1]

I think a service youll want to look into is cloaked. They have alias numbers and email addresses galore.