How to Trace a Phone Call using *57

In the event that you recieve a particularly threatening or harassing phone call, many phone carriers provide customers with the ability to perform a malicious Call Trace, which is particularly useful for identifying and addressing harassing or threatening calls.

What is *57 and what does dialing *57 do?

Star 57, or *57, is a vertical service code that can be used to trace the origin of a phone call. When a user dials *57 after receiving an unwanted call, their carrier captures details such as the caller's number, how the call was routed through the telephone network, and the time of the call. This information is then recorded by the telephone company and can be used for further investigation by law enforcement.

It is important to note that the results of the phone trace are not provided to customers (or, the person dialing *57). The information that your carrier retrieves from a Call Trace can only released to law enforcement if they provide a subpoena, warrant, or court order.

If you do not intend to take legal action and simply want to obtain more information about a phone number, then an alternative is to dial *69 or search the number on Lookify. If you're recieving spam or scam phone calls, please refer to this guide instead.

How to use *57 to trace a phone call

1. Hang up the phone or end the call immediately after receiving the harassing call.

2. Wait for 2-3 seconds after the phone call ends.

3. Dial *57 and wait for the announcement that will play from your phone carrier. Be sure to listen closely to the message as each announcement is different for every carrier, and the message may come with additional instructions. If you are using a rotary phone, dial 1157 instead as there is no * option.

4. End the phone call and contact law enforcement if you wish to persue legal action.

Once you contact law enforcement, your carrier will provide the results of the phone trace to law enforcement directly so that they can continue their investigation. Some carriers will provide you with a message confirming whether the trace was successful along with details of any charges for the trace.

Will *57 trace or track the live location of a phone number?

Dialing *57 will not provide you the live location of a phone number. Legally, only law enforcement members (who have obtained a warrant) or your carrier can obtain a phone's current, live location. Any service or app claiming to track a phone number's live location is either a scam or misleading. Avoid using third-party apps or services that claim they can track phone numbers. At Lookify, our phone search data shows the address of the phone number's subscriber, which does not indicate the phone owner's current location.

Is *57 free? How much does it cost?

Many carriers and telephone service providers charge a fee when you dial *57 to perform a trace on a phone number. Most carriers will not charge you if the trace is unsuccessful. Carriers will bill you for all successful traces, even if there is no follow-up action from law enforcement. The cost of performing a trace using *57 depends on your carrier, but it usually does not cost more than $7 USD per trace.

Does *57 work for unlisted or unknown phone numbers?

Tracing a call using *57 will work even if the call was made from an unlisted number, a payphone or a number with caller identification disabled. Additionally, this service does not depend on the length or duration of the phone call to be successful.