Starting next October 17, commercial calls in Spain must be made from numbers that begin with 400. The measure seeks to allow consumers to easily identify when they receive an advertising call and distinguish it from other communications. However, knowing that someone is calling to sell a product or service doesn’t necessarily solve another question: what company is on the other end of the phone?

To answer this question, the Spanish Association of the Digital Economy (Adigital) has presented “Soy Yo”, a free platform that allows you to check which company a telephone number belongs to. The initiative was born from the collaboration of more than 30 companies from sectors such as energy, insurance, training, banking, call centers and digital marketing, which, according to the association, account for almost 90% of commercial and customer service calls made in Spain.

The launch occurs at a time of transformation of telephone communication between brands and consumers, marked by the tightening of measures against fraud and unwanted commercial calls. Adigital’s objective is to complement regulation with a system that allows companies to identify themselves and citizens to check who is trying to contact them.

The operation of the platform is based on a registry of telephone numbers provided by the participating companies themselves. These incorporate the numbers from which they make calls to their clients, so that they can be associated with a recognizable corporate identity. When a citizen receives a call from an unknown number, they can enter it on the ⁠It’s Me page. If you are registered, the tool displays the name of the company you belong to.

The consultation is free and does not require the user to register. In this way, the platform proposes a solution for a common situation such as receiving a call that could come from a company with which you have a business relationship, but which could also be an unwanted or fraudulent communication.

“Companies committed to responsible communications want the consumer to know that the person calling them is a legitimate entity. For this reason, at Adigital we have united the industry to anticipate the new numbering ranges and complement the regulations with a solution that reinforces trust in the telephone channel”explained Jorge Muriana, President of the Responsible Advertising Commission and Vice President of Adigital.

The tool thus introduces an additional layer of identification, although with a relevant limitation: its scope depends on the companies that join and the numbers they register. Therefore, just because a number does not appear on the platform does not necessarily mean that it is fraudulent. Likewise, the query identifies the registered owner, but does not replace the usual precautions when requesting personal or banking data.

The 400 prefix changes the rules of commercial calls

The launch of “Soy Yo” coincides with the entry into force of one of the main regulatory developments for commercial telephone communication in Spain.

In April, the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Service approved a resolution that reserves the 400 prefix for commercial calls, establishing a period of six months for its implementation. That period ends on October 17, 2026. From then on, commercial calls subject to the new regulation must use nine-digit numbers starting with 400, and operators must block those that do not comply with the established conditions.

The measure develops the Customer Service Law, approved in December 2025, and seeks to establish a recognizable separation between commercial communications and calls related to the provision of services. In this sense, the new system distinguishes between two large categories:

• Commercial calls: you must use numbers that begin with 400
• Customer service calls: they can be made from toll-free numbers 800 and 900, geographic numbering or short numbers specifically enabled for that service

The 400 numbers will also have a peculiarity because they will be exclusively for outgoing. That is, consumers will be able to receive calls from them, but not return them to those same numbers. With this condition, the Government seeks to reduce possible situations of confusion and certain risks of fraud associated with call returns.

The new numbering comes in addition to previously introduced restrictions on the use of mobile numbers for unsolicited commercial communications and customer service.

Regain trust in a questioned commercial channel

The launch of “Soy Yo” also responds to a business problem for companies that use the telephone as a communication channel given the growing distrust of consumers regarding unknown numbers.
Scam calls, intrusive business practices and identity theft have contributed to the fact that receiving a call from a company can generate rejection even when there is a previous relationship with it.

This situation poses a difficulty for organizations that need to legitimately contact their customers, whether to offer them commercial information, resolve incidents or manage contracted services.

The regulatory response has consisted of reinforcing the identification of communications and establishing greater controls over the numbers used. In fact, the Government has reported that its Anti-Scam Plan, launched in March 2025, has made it possible to block more than 400 million calls and 32 million SMS messages.

From a business perspective, however, reducing fraud alone does not guarantee that consumers will regain the confidence necessary to take a call. Therein lies Adigital’s proposal. While the regulation establishes the conditions for using the telephone channel, the industry proposes a shared mechanism to make the companies that operate in it recognizable.

“Several of the companies that support this initiative had already developed solutions to try to provide certainty to their clients. Soy Yo unifies the efforts of all of them by offering trust in a unified way on a single platform for the entire sector”Muriana pointed out.

However, the value of the tool will depend on both business participation and its knowledge and use by citizens, whom the platform requires to actively consult.

More info: It’s me