Set Up Police-Recommended Scam-Call Blocking for Your Parents

Hello! I am Shemihaza, the sentinel.
Today: protecting your parents' and grandparents' phones from scam calls.
The short answer: install a scam-call app recommended by Japan's National Police Agency (NPA), which is free. And even if the app shows no warning, hang up as soon as the call turns to money, cash cards or PINs.

Today's example. On 2 October 2026 the NPA published its provisional figures for special fraud through the end of August 2026: 29,687 cases (+14.4% on the same period last year) and about 236.07 billion yen lost (+33.2%). The same document reports that NPA-recommended apps had been downloaded 2,214,500 times in total. The NPA's page on the apps says "cases of special-fraud criminals calling mobile phones are surging." The NPA Cyber Bureau's newsletter of 8 October 2026 also lists "install an NPA-recommended app right away" among its steps for individuals and calls it an effective, free way to defend a smartphone against scam calls.

First, what is known and what is not. Known: the NPA recommends apps that meet its standards, they are free, and what they do. Not known: how many cases of fraud the apps actually prevented. The NPA material gives download counts only (see "What we could not confirm" at the end).

What the NPA-recommended apps are

• ▸The NPA certifies apps that meet certain standards as "NPA-recommended apps" and encourages their use. Download and use are both free
• ▸Two apps are listed on the NPA page: "Sagi Taisaku by NTT Townpage" and "Sagi Buster Lite" (both Japanese-language apps; checked on 19 October 2026). The list may change, so check the NPA page for the latest
• ▸Main functions common to both: (1) bulk blocking and warning for incoming and outgoing international calls (Android only); (2) blocking and warning for incoming and outgoing calls from numbers used in special-fraud crimes, including international numbers (Android and iPhone); (3) crime-prevention notices about special fraud from the NPA (Android and iPhone)
• ▸Where iPhone and Android differ: bulk blocking of international numbers is Android only. For "Sagi Taisaku by NTT Townpage," iOS 17 and earlier get warnings only, and blocking calls from hidden numbers is Android only. Requirements are Android 10.0 or later / iOS 15.0 or later (that app)

From a scam call, to the app, to the person who stops it

• ▸1) A call arrives on a mobile phone. The NPA page says blocking the international numbers and similar numbers criminals use, with an app, is effective
• ▸2) The app watches the number. Numbers used in special-fraud crimes are subject to a warning or a block when calls come in or go out (Android and iPhone)
• ▸3) Some calls slip through. The apps rely on a list of numbers to watch (the description of "Sagi Taisaku by NTT Townpage"). A call from a number that is not on the list may produce no warning (this site's view)
• ▸4) In the end, a person stops it. If money, cash cards or PINs come up, hang up on the spot and ask family or the police consultation line #9110 (our addition)

What you can do today

• ✓★Install an NPA-recommended app on your parents' or grandparents' phone. Ideally, set it up together on a visit or a phone call. Setup instructions are linked as "setup method" for each app on the NPA page
• ✓Install through the link on the NPA page. Do not search the store by name and install a look-alike (our addition; the NPA has also warned about malicious apps that cause fraudulent transfers)
• ✓Know how iPhone and Android differ. The iPhone has no bulk blocking of international numbers. Agree with your parents that they do not answer unknown international numbers (our addition)
• ✓Even with no warning, hang up when money comes up. Words like "refund," "police" or "your account will be frozen": once the call turns to money or cards, hang up (our addition)
• ✓After hanging up, do not call the number back. If you want to check, call an official number you looked up yourself or the police consultation line #9110 (our addition)
• ✓Landlines need different measures. The NPA page presents this measure for mobile phones (our addition). For a landline, agree as a family to use the answering machine and not to pick up unknown numbers
• ✓Send your parents the "three lines to share" below.

If you answered a suspicious call without the app

• ▸1) Hang up right away. Do not argue or keep listening (our addition)
• ▸2) If you gave out an account number, PIN or cash-card details, handed over a card, or sent money, every minute counts. The NPA page does not give specific steps for this stage. As our addition: if money is being taken or is about to be taken right now, call 110; if unsure, call the police consultation line #9110 (both are Japanese numbers)
• ▸3) Contact the bank you sent money to, quickly. (our addition)
• ▸4) Tell your family. Being deceived is nothing to be ashamed of. Do not carry it alone

Spot-the-scam quiz

Imagine this situation.

Three lines to share

• ▸Please install an NPA-recommended scam-call app (free) on your phone. According to the NPA, special fraud through the end of August 2026 was 29,687 cases and about 236.07 billion yen
• ▸★Install it through the link on the NPA page. Even with no warning, hang up if money or your cash card comes up. Do not call back
• ▸When in doubt, do not decide alone: ask your family. Police consultation is #9110, call 110 if money is being taken, and for contract or billing trouble the Consumer Hotline is 188. (#9110, 110 and 188 are Japanese domestic numbers)

Where to get help

If you are unsure whether something is a scam, go to your nearest police station or call the police consultation line #9110 (Japan). If money is being taken, or is about to be taken, right now, call 110 (our addition, based on NPA guidance).
For contract or billing trouble, call the Consumer Hotline "188." It is a nationwide Japanese number that connects to your local consumer center.

What we could not confirm

• ▸How many cases of fraud the apps actually prevented. The NPA material gives cumulative downloads (2,214,500 at the end of August 2026). We could not confirm the number of cases or the amount prevented
• ▸Whether the cumulative download count equals the number of actual users. It is not known whether reinstalls, multiple devices and people who stopped using the app are included
• ▸The number of scam calls to mobile phones that are "surging." The NPA page gives no figures
• ▸How often the watch list is updated, and the standard for listing a number. We could not confirm this from published material. Nor how long a new number not yet on the list goes unwarned
• ▸Each app's own warning and block counts. They are on each app's official page, but the NPA statistics are as of the end of August 2026 and the official-page figures as of the end of September, so the dates differ; this article uses only the NPA's end-of-August figure
• ▸Whether the special-fraud statistics count only calls to mobile phones. The 29,687 cases are the total, including special fraud that began by other means. This article uses them as a sign of why the apps matter, not as the range the apps can prevent

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