True, but the Truecall box will block all but known and allowed numbers.

Incoming calls yes, but outgoing calls on bad internal wiring?

Surely anything making outgoing calls could be shutdown, unless it's something like a smart meter. Even a Sky box ban be stopped from phoning home. Also, I cannot quite get my head around an outgoing call making the phone ring, possibly you could elaborate.

Double filter.

I mentioned those earlier. Well known for interference and phoning home.

In reply to a post by professor973:

Surely anything making outgoing calls could be shutdown, unless it's something like a smart meter. Even a Sky box ban be stopped from phoning home. Also, I cannot quite get my head around an outgoing call making the phone ring, possibly you could elaborate.

In reply to a post by professor973:

I mentioned those earlier. Well known for interference and phoning home.

I'm confused?? (Also, Smart meters use mobile telephony, SIM cards)

Edited by deleted (Tue 02-Sep-14 18:13:40)

Nothing confusing about a Sky box.

The filter just removes broadband frequencies from the phone circuit in either direction.

If the filter has failed it is possible that BT nightly line checks are at fault. So I googled them.

See this 2011 BT thread. I've only read as far as Message 10 of 36.

Edit - Now I've read the whole BT thread. To me most of it looks highly relevant.

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 03-Sep-14 00:33:36)

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

The filter just removes broadband frequencies from the phone circuit in either direction.

If the filter has failed it is possible that BT nightly line checks are at fault. So I googled them.

See this 2011 BT thread. I've only read as far as Message 10 of 36.

Edit - Now I've read the whole BT thread. To me most of it looks highly relevant.

Yes I have read the entire thread which describes an issue very similar to our experiences. Frustratingly it doesn't give details of what "Paddy" did that solved the problem for them.

I do believe it is indeed an entirely internal wiring problem leading up to the master socket. When the phone and FTTC service was provided, Kelly's turned up to do the business and fitted a new master socket next to the computer running fixed internal wiring from the in-situ master socket.

Just recently I plugged a phone into this unused master socket only to find that there was a phone service from that location. So what we have are two master sockets on the exchange line. I've asked Zen to decommission this master socket but the refuse to do so saying we have to contact Openreach directly to have that work done for which there would be a charge. Zen helpfully provided the appropriate forms for me to complete.

With this setup, it does seem highly likely that those nightly test calls are triggering the two rings on the phone that occur every night, usually at 23.50. Dialling 1471 sometimes gives details of a caller who rang earlier in the day but more often than not just silence.

Why Zen are so reluctant to despatch an Openreach engineer to the property is beyond my comprehension, as is the need to pay for the work, instead tying up their support staff and my time to carry out numerous test that are probably taking us down a cul-de-sac. They do any number of line tests which "prove" that the line is healthy and yet interesting enough those tests do not interrupt the voice or broadband service even for a few seconds.

Of course suggestions are made that we have a faulty router and/or phone and that both need to be changed and that only a corded phone should be used. Using the equipment elsewhere does not replicate these ghost calls. As far as I am concerned if the filter in the master socket is duff then it is up Openreach to come and replace it. It was fitted at the start of the service on 7 JAN 14.

Now I do feel better in providing this information and I thank Robert for the link, but of course it gets us nowhere in actually solving the issue. What do readers feel I should do next?

In reply to a post by trolleybus:

When the phone and FTTC service was provided, Kelly's turned up to do the business and fitted a new master socket next to the computer running fixed internal wiring from the in-situ master socket.

I'm confused about this. Does "internal" wiring mean "existing wiring" from the master to an extension.