How to make Xiaomi phone calls only saved contacts

Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphone owners often face intrusive spam, advertising calls and scam calls. The standard Android system allows you to filter calls, but in the shell of MIUI and the new HyperOS, this feature is especially flexible, allowing you to completely isolate the user from outside noise. If your goal is to make the phone ring exclusively for subscribers from your phone book, you do not need to install heavy third-party programs.

There are several effective ways to achieve this, each with its own nuances: You can use the built-in Do Not Disturb Mode, which is the most regular and energy-efficient solution. The alternative is to use the Blacklist feature in the Security app, which allows you to rigidly block any external calls. Understanding the differences between these approaches will help you choose the best scenario for your situation.

In this article, we will take a closer look at the algorithms for setting each method, highlighting hidden parameters that users often miss. We will look at the features of working with contacts, setting exceptions for important services, and ways to quickly activate silence in critical situations.

Use Do Not Disturb Mode to Filter Calls

The most civilized and functional way to cut off unnecessary calls is to use the system mode "Do Not Disturb." Unlike full lock, this mode allows you to flexibly adjust the rules: who can reach you, and who will hear only horns or resets. To activate, go to the Settings menu and find the section Sound and vibration where the desired switch is hidden.

Once the mode is turned on, you need to configure its settings to allow only a select few to make calls. From the mode settings menu, find Allow Calls or Calls and Messages. Here you will be offered several options: All, Favorites, Contacts or Nobody. To solve this problem, select Contact Only or Favorites if you want to limit the circle even more.

⚠️ Note: When Do Not Disturb mode is activated, notifications from apps may also stop coming with sound. Make sure that the exceptions allow important messengers if you are waiting for urgent messages.

It's important to note that Do Not Disturb mode can be automated, and Schedule is available in this section, so you can set a time frame, like 23:00 to 7:00, so that you don't get disturbed at night, or you can activate the mode constantly, controlling it through the notification curtain, which gives you complete control over the availability of your number.

Set up a blacklist through the Security app

The second, more stringent method, is the use of a built-in antivirus and MIUI Security optimizer, which has deep telephony access rights and can block calls at the operator level without even allowing them to pass on the lock screen, ideal for those who want to completely ignore any numbers not stored in the device’s memory.

To get started, open the Green Security app and scroll down to the Antispam block. In the upper right corner, click on the gear icon (Settings). That's where the main controls for incoming traffic lie. Find the Lock section and select Lock incoming.

In the menu that opens, you will be offered several strategies. Select the option to block all but contacts. Once activated, any call from a number that is not in your address book will be automatically rejected by the system. The subscriber will hear the signal "busy" or "subscriber unavailable", depending on your operator's settings.

It is worth mentioning that this method has its own peculiarities of working with emergency services, even with the most severe locking of emergency numbers (112, 102, etc.) usually pass, but the numbers of couriers, banks or taxis from which calls from different numbers will be blocked, which can create inconvenience if you expect an important call from an unfamiliar number.

Working with a select list and a white list

The third approach is the most radical and requires a lot of preparation, and it's to create a strict whitelist, and unlike the previous methods, where we filtered out the bad, here we explicitly tell the system who is the good, a method that is often used in corporate settings or for setting up older people's phones.

You can do this through a combination of contact settings and Do Not Disturb mode. You first need to open the Contacts app or Phone. Go through your entire notebook and add all the people you are allowed to call to the Favorites group.** Usually, you need to open the contact card and click on the asterisk icon.

Then go back to the Do Not Disturb settings that we talked about in the first section. In the permissions settings, select select select only. Now your phone will respond exclusively to those who are marked with an asterisk. Everyone else, even if they are in contacts but not in favorites, will not be able to reach you.

This method requires discipline. If you get a call from a new acquaintance or a doctor from the clinic, you won't hear a call, you'll have to periodically check your missed call log (if it's running) or rely on messages, so it's recommended to use this option temporarily, for example, during vacation or important work.

Using third-party applications to block

If you don't have enough built-in HyperOS or MIUI, specialized applications from the Google Play Market come to the rescue, with the leaders in this niche being GetContact, Truecaller and Calls Blacklist, which have smarter algorithms for detecting spam and allow you to create complex filtering rules.

For example, Calls Blacklist allows you to create a rule that blocks all incoming except the ones in the phone book, and the logic of these programs is to intercept an incoming call before it is displayed on the screen, and the app checks the number by its database and your settings, and if the number is not found in the contacts, it resets the call.

However, using third-party software has its own risks: such applications require extensive permissions to access your contacts and calls, which raises privacy issues.

⚠️ Note: When installing third-party number detectors, your contacts may be uploaded to the application developer's servers.

Solving Missing Important Calls Problems

By setting up hard filtering, you may find yourself in a situation where an important call from an unfamiliar number (such as a courier or bank employee) is missed. Xiaomi's system is smart enough to flag such calls, but you need to know where to look for them. They are usually displayed in a call log with a special icon or color.

To minimize risks, use the Re-Call feature.** Do Not Disturb settings often have an option to skip a call if the same number rings a second time within 3-5 minutes. The logic is simple: if a person calls again, then he has an urgent business, and the system will miss this call even if the number is not in the contacts.

Also, don't forget to temporarily disable filtering, add a Do Not Disturb or Antispam widget to your desktop, which will allow you to tap all calls when you expect an important delivery or call from your employer, and just as quickly return protection.

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Add the Do Not Disturb Quick Access widget to the home screen, allowing you to instantly switch between Silence and Available modes without digging deep into the settings.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions on Xiaomi

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Optimal spam protection on Xiaomi is achieved by a combination of Do Not Disturb mode for night time and Antispam settings for constant filtering of unknown numbers throughout the day.