Surfshark has added the option for users to generate US-based virtual phone numbers and preserve their privacy in situations where they have to give their contact details to people and entities they don’t trust.
The new option, called “Alternative Number,” will be added to the Surfshark VPN mobile app as part of the Alternative ID system, which creates disposable online aliases and email addresses.
Surfshark explains that these virtual phone numbers are accessible from the Surfshark VPN mobile app, allowing users to receive calls and messages, and reply to them as normal. The app notifies the user of incoming communications just like a regular phone call or message. It’s important to note that users cannot initiate calls or start new message threads with others using that number, so it’s a purely passive system.
Essentially, these virtual numbers mask the user’s real phone number, helping to evade stalkers and spammers easily by generating a new number. Also, in the case of security events such as data leaks, the impact on the user is minimized, as cybercriminals get a phone number with no links to the person’s identity and general online presence.
For example, these numbers can be used in small e-shops, food delivery services, classifieds sites, and any other platform the user doesn’t trust.
Alternative Number is meant to be used on websites with vague privacy protection practices or when you’re asked to post your number publicly (e.g., for ad listings or when registering on public WiFi at airports or other establishments).
Sarunas Sereika, Senior Product Manager at Surfshark.
Compared to burner phones, where people may use disposable SIM cards, Surfshark’s Alternative Numbers have several benefits. For example, users can generate a new number every 30 days without extra charges or keep their existing number indefinitely. Also, these numbers can be used globally as long as the user is connected to the internet.
Finally, Alternative Numbers are combined with a complete online persona created by Alternative ID so the user can consistently use it in all situations where privacy preservation is critical.
How to get an Alternative Number
Although Alternative ID is available to all subscribers of a Surfshark plan for no additional cost, Alternative Number costs between $2.99 and $4.99 per month depending on the remaining duration of the active subscription.
Users can activate it from their account management screen on the Surfshark site by clicking “add to plan” in the Alternative Number field in the “Alternative ID” section. On the mobile app, navigate to the “Alternative ID” section, select “Alternative Number,” and press “Buy phone number.”
After purchase, click “Set up” to generate your virtual phone number and then follow the prompts to approve the necessary permission, which necessarily include access to the device’s microphone, notifications, and contact list.
Top image credit: Surfshark
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most of these numbers will not work with MFA/2FA.
which is what would be the main purpose for them, other than giving them to someone you just want to hookup with occasionally..
It still isn’t going to allow Telegram, TikTok, ChatGPT and others to send you OTP codes. It’s a good marketing gimmick though, but not needed. Similar services are already in place via existing VOIP apps that as a baseline offer free voice and texting services.
If you want to unblock the features(they still don’t work for ChatGPT and Telegram) you can pay a monthly fee.
One thought comes to mind.
The cell and landline database has undergone significant changes over the years. Historically, landlines and cell phones were separate entities with distinct characteristics. However, with the advent of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and unified communication systems, the lines between cell phones and landlines have blurred.
Databases and Services
To address this issue, specialized databases and services have been developed to help businesses and individuals discern the type of service associated with a given number. These services use various methods, including analysis of area codes, phone number patterns, and carrier information, to determine whether a number is a landline or cell phone.
The digital landscape of today, it is common for databases to store both cell and landline numbers together, with some services offering unified communication solutions that can handle both types of numbers. While it is still possible to find separate databases for cell and landline numbers, the trend is towards a more unified approach.
@BITR, please refrain from using AI to compose your comment. It’s blatantly obvious it’s not from a human. Lol.
Nope = )
Who cares from where the points come that I make. Its, these points, that make people think of a topic deeper than it’s surface.
My comments are from results found on the internet, to bad.
That today, we have an AI-powered search tool, that generates summaries of web pages, providing users with a concise overview of any content that is entered for a web search.
Sabrina, your not the only one that doesn’t like where things are headed for this internet. The bigger the AI model, the more computation is often required, and these frontier models today are getting absolutely gigantic.
No, it is not a diversion for amateurs, who would settle for a fast dipping of their toes into shallow waters. Compared to a deep black plunge that is attempting to define any fuller understanding, path, history and future all up for rational.
People will read into it…what they want to see.
Same as they hold up a mirror to the world – but it’s their own faces that tend to get in the way.
Comments are always welcome, as they can be like cog teeth of a wheel transmitting successive motive for a broader perspective on the international scene.
Is it likely that Surfshark VPN masked calls work over the eSIM technology?
While my search results do not explicitly state that Surfshark VPN masked calls work over the eSIM technology, the information provided suggests that Surfshark VPN does offer phone number masking, which is a key feature for secure and private communication over eSIM technology.
**(The surfshark app notifies the user of incoming communications just like a regular phone call or message. It’s important to note that users cannot initiate calls or start new message threads with others using that number.)**
Would you Alex, please reach out to Surfshark VPN directly to confirm the masked calls technology that is used?
To it seems that apps are way more prowerful and feature rich, to where your trust is being traded for CONVENIENCE anymore. This is an unfortunate consequence for users having blindly trusted any software or service from a past history in their use of it.
Not knowing the emerging trend of having to “Verify before Trust” must be the users digital golden rule going foreward.