Loan, insurance and investment cold calls, several a day. Block them one by one and tomorrow they come from a different number. Blocking numbers never ends.
The approach has to change. Not blocking numbers, but formally registering your objection to being called. That is Do Not Call, an official government-run scheme that needs no app and costs nothing.
Be clear from the start, though. This scheme only has force against businesses that follow the law. So this article is in two stages: strip out half with Do Not Call registration, then filter the rest by other means.
1. There are two Do Not Call registries
The most common mistake is registering with one and stopping. They are run by different authorities and cover different things.
| Registry | Operator | What it stops |
|---|---|---|
| KFTC Do Not Call (donotcall.go.kr) | Korea Fair Trade Commission | Marketing calls from telemarketing and door-to-door sales businesses |
| Financial Do Not Call (donotcall.or.kr) | Financial industry associations | Sales calls from banks, insurers, card and securities companies |
The addresses are easy to confuse, differing only in .go.kr and .or.kr. You have to register with both to filter out loan and insurance pitches (financial) as well as general product sales pitches (KFTC).
2. How to register
The process is similar for both and does not take long.
KFTC Do Not Call
- Go to donotcall.go.kr
- Verify your identity by mobile phone (or simple authentication)
- Enter the number to opt out — only numbers registered in your own name can be added
- Check the expiry date after registration completes
Financial Do Not Call
- Go to donotcall.or.kr
- Verify your identity
- Select all financial companies to opt out from, or choose individually
- Submit
The financial one takes a little longer because you pick companies. Unless you have a particular reason, select all is easiest. Important notices from financial companies you actually deal with (maturity, arrears) are distinguished from marketing calls and keep coming.
It does not go quiet immediately. Reflecting your registration in each business’s systems takes time — usually reckoned at about two weeks. Calls before that may simply not have been processed yet.
There is an expiry. Registering once is not permanent; it lapses after a period. When you get an expiry notice you have to renew, and if you do not, the calls start again. Setting a calendar reminder is worth it.
3. What Do Not Call cannot stop
This is the most important part of the article. Do Not Call is a scheme for conveying your intent to legitimate businesses. So the following are not stopped.
- Loan advertising placed by callers who obtained your data illegally in the first place
- Voice phishing and impersonation calls
- Spam originating overseas
- Marketing you have already consented to (by accepting terms)
The last item you can clean up yourself: withdraw marketing consent for the services you have signed up to. Check via the government privacy portal or in each service’s account settings.
Filter the remaining illegal spam with handset and carrier features.
- iPhone: Settings → Phone → “Silence Unknown Callers”. Numbers not in your contacts do not ring and appear only in your missed calls. Powerful, but you can miss important calls from unknown numbers (deliveries, clinics), so get into the habit of checking missed calls.
- Android: turn on spam blocking in the default phone app. Based on a reporting database, it flags or automatically blocks suspicious numbers.
- Carrier add-on services: each carrier offers free or cheap spam blocking. Sign up through the carrier’s app or customer centre.
- Spam blocking apps: they filter using a real-time reporting database. Many request access to your contacts, so check what permissions they take before installing.
In short
- Register with KFTC Do Not Call
- Register with Financial Do Not Call (select all)
- Turn on your handset’s spam blocking
- Sign up for your carrier’s add-on service
- Wait two weeks, and renew before expiry
Steps 1–2 strip out the legal advertising; steps 3–4 filter the rest. Do only one side and it only gets half as quiet.
⚠️ Site addresses, procedures and expiry periods are as of August 2026 and may change with how the schemes are run. Check the official guidance on each site when registering. Do not use lookalike sites that do not require identity verification.
Frequently asked questions
When does it start working after I register?
It takes time to be reflected in each business’s systems — usually about two weeks. Calls before that may not have been processed yet, so give it a little time. If the same company keeps calling after two weeks, you can report it to the relevant authority.
Does registering stop all calls?
No. Only marketing and sales calls are covered. Contact necessary for performing a contract — maturity notices or arrears notifications from a financial company you use, delivery notifications — keeps coming. And illegal spam is not subject to the scheme at all.
Is it safe to enter my personal information?
These are official sites run by the government and financial industry associations, with identity verification. Do check the address carefully, though. Typing the address directly is safer than following a similarly named lookalike site or a link from a search advertisement.
Can I register a family member’s number?
Only numbers in your own name can be registered. The account holder has to complete identity verification personally, so a family member has to register their own number. For an older relative, the realistic approach is sitting with them and helping them through it.
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