Voice Geo Permissions

You can maintain custom geo permissions for each of your subaccounts. For example, you can enable calls to specific countries when using a specific subaccount and disable the same countries when using a different subaccount. You can also reset subaccount geo permissions to the default setting. 

Step 1: Navigate to the Voice Geo Permissions page and select the subaccount from the Account menu drop-down.

Step 2: After selecting the subaccount, click on Remove override to set default preferences.

For more information, see our detailed reference documentation.

You can see whether a call was blocked due to voice geo permissions by checking the hangup cause in your voice logs. You can filter logs using the following hangup causes:

• Destination Country Barred (Code 2030)
• Destination Number Barred (Code 2040)

Calls to blocked countries

API calls to blocked countries are rejected with HTTP response code 403 and the error message Calls to this destination country are barred.

Calls initiated with the Dial XML are dropped automatically. The hangup cause listed in the CDR for such calls is set to Destination Country Barred (Code 2030).

Learn more about Plivo hangup causes in our documentation.

Calls to blocked numbers

API calls to blocked numbers are rejected with HTTP response code 403 and the error message Calls to this destination number are barred.

Calls initiated with the Dial XML are dropped automatically. The hangup cause listed in the CDR for such calls is set to Destination Number Barred (Code 2040). 

For more information on outbound voice geo permissions, see our reference documentation.

Plivo voice geo permissions are supported only via the Plivo console.

Voice geo permissions are effective for calls made using both REST APIs and Dial XML. This post explains how you can see whether a call was blocked due to voice geo permissions.

Default preferences are applied to all calls initiated from the main account and all subaccounts unless they're explicitly overridden for a subaccount. To specify preferences for a subaccount, go to Voice > Geo Permissions. Select the subaccount from the Account drop-down menu, specify your preferences, and click Save Changes.

For more information, see our documentation.

Voice geo permissions let you enable or disable outbound calls to specific countries from the Plivo console. Our documentation provides detailed information on how they work.

Geo permissions take effect immediately once the settings are saved and are applied to all calls placed via REST APIs and Dial XML.

Premium rate numbers cost callers more than normal numbers. Part of that charge is paid to the service provider, which puts premium rate numbers at high risk of being exploited via traffic pumping, a type of telecom fraud in which bad actors artificially inflate traffic to their premium rate numbers. When done across countries, this type of toll fraud is known as International Revenue Share Fraud (ISRF).

Most businesses never need to call premium rate numbers, so by default Plivo blocks calls to all phone numbers with high-risk prefixes as a way to prevent unwanted charges. 

Plivo has identified thousands of premium rate and high-risk prefixes. You can export a list of these prefixes from the Voice > Geo Permissions > High-Risk Permissions screen of the Plivo console. Plivo regularly updates this list based on factors such as the rates associated with the premium numbers, call patterns, and third-party trends.

What if my use case requires calls to high-risk numbers?

You can request activation of high-risk permissions for your account or a particular subaccount by contacting our support team and providing them with details of your use case. The validation process for disabling a premium prefix block for a specific account and use case can take 48 hours or longer. We make every effort to expedite this process.

On the Plivo console, go to Voice > Geo Permissions > Country Permissions to block outbound calls to specific countries.

You can override geo permissions for individual subaccounts to restrict access at a granular level.

Yes. As an example, suppose you want to allow calls and SMS messages only to numbers in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP).

The country code for the 20 countries in the NANP (which includes the US, Canada, and countries in the Caribbean) is +1. You can find lists of area codes online. The Plivo prefix consists of the numbers of the country code plus the area code: 1406 for Montana, for example.

Allow the prefixes you want to include in your application, and have your code check to make sure that any attempts to message or call any other prefix will not be completed.

You can achieve the same results for outbound calls or messages for entire countries by going to the Plivo console, to Voice or SMS > Geo Permissions > Country Permissions, and ticking checkboxes to enable or disable calls for specific countries.