Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department has added a new feature to its Digi Police crime prevention app that blocks calls from international numbers and those linked to fraud. The update aims to counter rising scam incidents. iPhone users face some limitations with the blocking.
Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) added a new feature to its Digi Police crime prevention app on December 1, 2025. The update automatically blocks incoming calls from international numbers and those known to have been used for special fraud when enabled by users.
For Apple iPhone users, the international call blocking is not available; instead, the app displays a settings screen for an alternative countermeasure. According to the MPD, fixed-line and IP phones were the primary methods for fraud calls in 2022. International calls, marked by a '+' prefix, made up about 70% of such calls in 2024, rising to around 80% in the first half of 2025.
In 2023, roughly 90% of scam calls targeted fixed-line phones, but by the first 10 months of 2025, nearly 50% were aimed at mobile phones. This shift stems from more advanced tactics, including video calls displaying fake arrest warrants and police notebooks.
As of the end of October 2025, total special fraud damage in Tokyo reached ¥23,684 million, exceeding the previous year's figure by more than ¥14 billion. An MPD official remarked, "Not answering the phone is an effective countermeasure. We hope people will use the Digi Police for fraud prevention."
The feature could help mitigate the growing fraud threat, though its success depends on widespread adoption.