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by madamelic 1348 days ago
> How, specifically, do other services detect this?

I don't actually know specifically. I assume there are two different ways:

- The service is using Verify / Authy, which is owned by Twilio so likely Twilio themselves discourage it

- Looking up the number either through Twilio or some sort of central subscriber database. All virtual numbers are described as virtual numbers.

> Are you aware of mechanisms to avoid this detection/blocking that don't require using a "real" number.

Definitely gets into ethically gray areas since that would be super useful to nefarious people. I don't actually know for sure. I know from the recent Blizzard mobile 2FA controversy that this issue expands to also prepaid phone numbers.

So I don't know of a definitive way to get around it beyond using a postpaid number.

Somewhat related, near the end of my above mentioned service, I had pivoted into trying to launch a "21st century phone service" complete with SIM cards provided by Twilio.

The issue? They were still considered virtual numbers. At the time, in Twilio's defense, I was somewhat misusing their service because their SIMs were intended for IoT purposes not actual cellphone usage. That's all to say, it's likely provider / subscriber level vs something you can individually spoof.