Truecaller today launched a new service for iPhone users in India called live caller ID. This function, as the name implies, reveals to the user, the identity of the caller on the screen. The Stockholm-based firm has around 38 million users. On Android phones, if users receive an unknown call from someone, Truecaller displays the caller’s identity on the calling screen immediately. Things function differently on the iPhone. When getting a call from an unknown number on an iOS device, users must activate Siri to learn the caller ID. They must say, ‘Hey Siri, Search Truecaller,’ and Siri will display the user’s live caller ID.
The Live Caller ID is a premium feature on the Truecaller app and iPhone users will need to buy a premium subscription to use this feature. In India, TrueCaller offers two subscription tiers — Premium and Gold Premium. An individual member’s premium subscription costs Rs. 529 per year or Rs. 179 for three months, whilst a Gold plan costs Rs. 5,000 per year.
Introducing, for the very first time – Live Caller ID on iPhone! 📲
All you have to do is to say “Hey Siri, Search Truecaller”.#HeySiriSearchTruecaller pic.twitter.com/clomwxwJxc
— Truecaller (@Truecaller) April 12, 2023
The app has become one of the most popular among smartphone users. Nonetheless, the company has previously been criticised for the manner in which it obtains data for its caller ID service.
Truecaller data was allegedly “comprised of details which have been collected without consent,” according to a report by the Indian magazine The Caravan last year. The Swedish firm, on the other hand, refuted the charges, claiming that the research was defective and based on erroneous information.
According to a TechCrunch report, Nakul Kabra, Truecaller’s product director for iOS, the app has had limited experience with iOS devices due to how Apple works with external third-party caller ID apps.
Truecaller’s current call-identification framework is confined to a finite set of numbers kept in directories in Apple’s CallKit framework and chosen by Truecaller’s spam algorithm. Other numbers that aren’t saved locally, he says, will have to be found manually.
To provide the planned live caller ID experience, the system makes use of Apple’s Siri Shortcuts and App Intents. Users must first activate the Search Truecaller shortcut on their iPhone devices by selecting the Add to Siri option under the Premium menu. The individual will be prompted the first time the shortcut is used to consent for Truecaller to search the screenshots captured by the shortcut.