Call Barring Code [work] -

Often buried in the settings of your SIM card or carrier network, these codes—technically known as USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) codes—allow you to restrict incoming and outgoing calls directly from the network level.

If your phone is stolen, you can contact your carrier to activate barring immediately, ensuring the thief cannot make expensive international calls before you have a chance to report the device stolen.

Call barring works on the network level (via your SIM card and mobile carrier), not just on the phone’s software. This makes it more secure than airplane mode or do-not-disturb, because even if someone swaps your SIM into another phone, the restrictions remain.