With the growing number of people working remotely from anywhere this presents a major challenge for people who travel frequently. Each country is a new sim card and a new phone number. The only way to get past this is to have one universal phone number. Something like Google Voice. However, some places are now blocking "prepaid" phone numbers. Like, okay. I guess I'm just not allowed to use your app. Stick to emails. People barely ever change their emails.
Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
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Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#2While this is a major problem for people in your situation, there are no other reliable ways to identify a person and ensure one account per user.
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#3While this is a major problem for people in your situation, there are no other reliable ways to identify a person and ensure one account per user.
Why are phone numbers being viewed as the single source of truth? What's to stop someone from having a second phone number?
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#4While this is a major problem for people in your situation, there are no other reliable ways to identify a person and ensure one account per user.
This seems like a missed opportunity after all these years.
Nobody's tried to go into the business of "verifying individual humans" and succeeded? Seems like that could and should be just a single facet of a very big online ID service.
Basically something like Oauth but for real ID, where you can approve/deny requests for variable amounts of identifying information.
It's not like all that information isn't floating around anyway. CreditKarma certainly knows enough about me to offer such a service.
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#5While this is a major problem for people in your situation, there are no other reliable ways to identify a person and ensure one account per user.
This seems like a missed opportunity after all these years. Nobody's tried to go into the business of "verifying individual humans" and succeeded? Seems like that could and should be just a single facet of a very big online ID service. Basically something like Oauth but for real ID, where you can approve/deny requests for variable amounts of identifying information. It's not like all that information isn't floating a…
Lots of companies will verify individual humans, but they're all far too expensive to use free SaaS products.
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#6> With the growing number of people working remotely from anywhere
It's growing, but it's still tiny. Most companies doing this are willing to lose users who don't have permanent phone numbers in order to gain a quick, easy, semi-reliable way to prevent fake account registrations.
> Stick to emails. People barely ever change their emails.
This is factually wrong. People get married, get divorced, change employers, graduate from school, etc. Email addresses change a lot.
Your suggestion also misunderstands (or ignores) the entire point of requiring phone numbers. They're not as easy to register as email addresses, so you're more likely to get a 1:1 relationship between phone numbers and individuals.
I could literally go out right now and activate quadrillions of valid email addresses within 20 min, and all of them would work. I can't do the same with phone numbers.
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#7While this is a major problem for people in your situation, there are no other reliable ways to identify a person and ensure one account per user.
Why are phone numbers being viewed as the single source of truth? What's to stop someone from having a second phone number?
Friction. Getting a second phone number requires you to actually spend time and money on it. And with services blocking "prepaid" phone numbers (as mentioned above) you need either multiple phones or constantly swapping cards. Most people don't want to go through the hassle.
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#8I am not sure why you do not use Google Voice. I have been using it for 9 years now. I have a OBi202 box attached, so I can use a normal hand set. It is our house phone.
Yeah back in the day, people had one phone in the house and everyone shared it.
But google voice I can use the box or my laptop to answer, it takes voice messages, and text messages.
All in all a GREAT service.
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#9I am not sure why you do not use Google Voice. I have been using it for 9 years now. I have a OBi202 box attached, so I can use a normal hand set. It is our house phone. Yeah back in the day, people had one phone in the house and everyone shared it. But google voice I can use the box or my laptop to answer, it takes voice messages, and text messages. All in all a GREAT service.
Apparently you didn't read the post. I do use Google Voice but some platforms are now blocking that
Re: Companies must stop requiring people to link their phone numbers
#10Just make it up like the rest of the registration details