Tricks to know if a number is active
As anticipated at the beginning, to find out if a number is active you can make use of some simple tricks that can be put into practice from any smartphone as well as from a landline phone (although not in all cases). To find out more, keep reading, you will find everything explained in detail right below.
Call the number
If you are interested in knowing if a number is active, the first and simplest thing you can do to try to clear your mind in this regard is to call the numbering in question. By making a call to the telephone number of your interest, if the numbering is active the telephone will ring normally. If the phone is turned off or not reachable, you will instead hear the recorded voice of the reference operator indicating the thing.
If the number you are trying to call is inactive, you will hear a message that will warn you that the number called is not active, or that it is not enabled for incoming traffic. The wording may differ depending on the operator to whom the numbering in question was headed.
So, grab your cell phone, log in to dialer (the numeric keypad), dial the reference number and press the onscreen button for forward the call (usually it is the green one depicting a handset). If you are using a landline phone, pick up the handset and simply dial the number on the physical keypad. In the case of cordless phones, dial the number on the keypad and then press the button for initiate the call (which is usually the one with the green colored handset).
If you do not want your number to appear on the display of the reference user's telephone for the "test" call, if his number is active, you can also call by setting theanonymous.
To do this from your mobile, just prepend the code # 31 # to the number of the person you are interested in and start the call as indicated in the previous lines. From the landline the code you need to use is * 67 #. Only if your landline provider is Vodafone, the right code is instead # 31 #.
If you wish to receive more info about the steps to take to make a call with the private number, please refer to my tutorial on how to call anonymously.
Send an SMS with a read receipt
Another method you have on your side to be able to find out if a number is active or not is to send, to the telephone number in question, a SMS with read confirmation. In this way, if the numbering is active, when and if (the conditional is a must) the person to whom you sent the light message your SMS you will receive a specific notice indicating the thing.
If you are using a smartphone Android, you can activate the read receipt by first grabbing your mobile phone, unlocking it, accessing the screen where there are the icons of all the apps (the drawer) and tapping the application icon Messages (or whatever you use to manage SMS). Then press on the button Menu, its Settings, select Other settings and then stop on SMS. Finally, carry on ON the lever next to the wording Delivery confirmation.
Stai is invented using a iPhone, you can activate the read receipt by first grabbing your "iPhone by" unlocking it, accessing the home screen of the same and tapping on the icon of Settings (the one in the shape of a gear). On the screen that appears, select the wording Messages e carries his ON the switch located next to the item Send read receipts. However, keep in mind that in the specific case of iOS, the read receipt is only valid for iMessage and only if the recipient of the message has also enabled the function.
If what you are using is a smartphone with installed on instead Windows Phone/Windows Mobile, grab the device, unlock it, access the section Settings of the latter, select Applications, then Messages e carries his On the relative levetta all'opzione Read confirmations.
However, keep in mind that, based on the decisions of your telephone company, the receipt of read receipts may be subject to costs. Before enabling the service, I therefore suggest that you make sure of this by contacting the customer service of your operator and asking for information about it.
If you do not know how to do it, follow the instructions that I have provided you with the specific guides that you find indicated below.
- How to call TIM operator
- How to contact Vodafone operator
- How to talk to Wind operator
- How to talk to operator 3
- How to talk to Fastweb operator
Please note: In the specific case of Android, keep in mind that the instructions I gave you to enable the SMS reading receipt may be slightly different on your device. In fact, there are various versions of Android in circulation and in addition each smartphone manufacturer applies customizations that can change the items in the various apps and related menus.
Look up the number on WhatsApp and other messaging services
Another method you have on your side to be able to know if a number is active or not is to exploit WhatsApp and other instant messaging services present on the square, which, in fact, identify each user based on their mobile phone number. The system, as can be guessed, is valid only and exclusively for mobile numbers.
So, all you have to do to succeed in your intent is to add the mobile number you want to know more about to the address book of your smartphone, then access the reference application, access the contact list and see if among those shown to you there is also the one you just saved.
If so, the phone number in question is almost certainly active. In any case, for safety, try to view the date and time of the last access (if available) of the contact and possibly also send him a message, then making sure that the person in question receives it and that maybe he will answer you.
For example, in the case of Whatsapp, after adding the reference telephone number to the list of contracts (as I explained to you in my tutorial focused on how to add a contact on WhatsApp) go to the section Chat of the app and press the button to start composing a new message. On Android it is the one with the comic bottom right, while on iOS it is the one with the paper and the pencil which is high up.
Now, if the contact you previously added to the address book uses WhatsApp and therefore its numbering is presumably active (unless you have created the account in the past without deleting it or migrating it to a new number at the appropriate time), you will find it in the list that you will see appear on screen. Select it to open the chat window.
From the latter, you will be able to know the time and date of the last access (if you have activated the option and if the reference contact did the same, as I explained to you in my article focused on how to see the last Whatsapp access), you will be able to view his profile picture and you can possibly write to him. Instead, tapping on his name at the top of the screen you can see the date on which he last updated his info (eg. Available, Busy, At school etc.).
Look up the number on Facebook
Considering the fact that most users have chosen to associate their phone number with their profile Facebook or to any fanpage created on the famous social network, doing a search on the latter, using the internal engine, is not a bad idea at all. If the number is present on Facebook and is associated with a given profile or a given page, it is very likely that it is active.
To search for a phone number on Facebook, log in with your account to the famous social networking service and type the phone number you are interested in to understand if it is active or not in the search field at the top and then press the button with the magnifying glass. From mobile, press the button instead Search on the on-screen keyboard.
If the number you typed is associated with a profile or page and is therefore presumably active, you will see the relevant person or fanpage appear. If you deem it appropriate, you can also organize the search results by type, using the special filters that you find at the top.
Tools to learn more about a numbering
Using the tricks I explained to you in the previous lines, you should finally be able to know if a number is active or not. If this is not enough for you, to conclude on a high note, as they say, I also want to show you some online services that can be convenient for you to learn more about the numbering of your interest.
They can help you if, after determining whether a telephone number is active or not, you also want to know who it belongs to. Find them below, they are all completely free (or almost) and very easy to use. Seeing is believing!
- TrueCaller - Highly appreciated service which is based on a proprietary database consisting of the numbers of users who have consented to its use. In this way, it becomes possible to identify, in a rather simple way, the numbers not saved in the address book.
- Who's calling? - Collaborative site that uses user feedback to create a database in which the owners of countless landline and mobile phone numbers are present.
- Sync.Me - An additional Web service that allows you to learn more about the numbers of interest provided, however, that the holders have chosen to disclose such information or that they belong to a public service. It is only in English but it is still very easy to use.
- White pages - Web counterpart of the "historical" White Pages through which it is possible to know the name of the holder of a given numbering but also the address of origin and various other information.
- Yellow Pages - As in the case of the aforementioned White Pages, this service is nothing more than the online version of the “classic” paper Yellow Pages through which the numbers of public places, professionals and businesses throughout the city can be found.
If you think you need more details about it, I invite you to read my article dedicated specifically to information on telephone numbers through which, in fact, I have proceeded to talk to you about the services in question in greater detail. In the specific case of mobile phone numbers, I also suggest you take a look at my post on how to search for a mobile number.
How to know if a number is active
