TrueCaller App Launches Real-Time Caller ID and Automated Spam Call Blocking for iOS 18

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We’ve written about the popular caller ID and spam call blocker app TrueCaller a few times. However, before today, TrueCaller’s actual spam call-blocking capabilities for iOS weren’t on par with those offered to the app’s Android users.
However, Apple is offering a new feature for developers in iOS 18 that’s empowered TrueCaller to provide Apple users with far more comprehensive real-time caller ID and spam call blocking than it has in the past. Here’s what’s changed — and how much it costs.
Truecaller for iOS previously used a small subset of locally saved phone numbers to block spam. Alongside the release of iOS 18, Apple rolled out a new feature for developers called Live Caller ID Lookup. According to Apple, Live Caller ID Lookup allows developers to “check incoming calls against your server for known spam numbers.” Live Caller ID communicates with the developer’s server in real-time when a device receives a phone call. This information is then displayed to the user on the incoming call screen and in recent calls.

Here’s how it works, according to Fredrik Kjell, Truecaller’s Chief Operating Officer (COO):
…The latest update includes something that Truecaller iOS users have been requesting for a long time: automatic blocking of spam calls. All this has been made possible by Apple’s Live Caller ID Lookup framework, developed especially for apps like Truecaller to provide live caller ID in a privacy-preserving way. This API uses state-of-the-art homomorphic encryption and Truecaller is the first in the world to deploy this at scale for Caller ID.
Truecaller is offering a free trial for iOS users to show off its new bells and whistles. It requires iOS 18.2. Continuing with Truecaller’s premium tier that utilizes Apple’s Live Caller ID Lookup will cost $9.99/month or $74.99/year. A family plan is $14.99/month or $99.99/year. There’s also a Gold tier subscription at $249/year. iPhone owners can still utilize the free version of Truecaller, but its spam call blocking will only use numbers from a locally-stored database.
Once downloaded, here’s how to enable Truecaller for iOS 18.2.
- Check to confirm you are using Truecaller version 14.0 or later for iPhone.
- Open the Settings app.
- Scroll to the bottom and choose Apps.
- Scroll down and select Phone.
- Select Call Blocking & Identification.
- Enable all Truecaller switches and open the Truecaller app.
You can download the Truecaller iOS app here. We’ll do some digging on other third-party apps taking advantage of Apple’s Live Caller ID Lookup and keep you posted. Although the election’s over, Truecaller will undoubtedly help quiet spam calls. They’re distracting at best. At worst, they pose a risk to your overall privacy and security.