Ofcom

UK residents aggravated by nuisance calls can find some solace at last, as regulator Ofcom has introduced a text-based method for blocking marketing calls.

The UK watchdog has introduced the opt-out service with the Telephone Preference Service. By texting "TPS" along with your email address to 78070, your mobile number will be added to the country's official "do not call" database. It's illegal for marketers to call numbers on that database without a person's consent. So in theory getting your mobile added should cut down on irritating nuisance calls.

Only around three percent of UK mobile numbers are currently registered on the TPS' database, Ofcom says, compared with 85 percent of landlines.

"Registrants should notice a gradual reduction in unsolicited sales and marketing voice calls after a few days, although it can take up to 28 days for the service to become fully effective," Ofcom says.