"How did you get my number?": how to answer it on a cold call

When a prospect asks “How did you get my number?”, tell them the real source in one plain sentence, then ask for 30 seconds. “Your number is listed on your company’s contact page” works. A vague “we have a database” doesn’t. The question is usually a test of whether you are honest, and in the UK the regulator expects you to be able to answer it anyway.

Why prospects ask it

A rep dials 80 numbers before lunch and hears this question four times. It rarely means “go away”. It usually means one of three things:

• “Are you legitimate?” The person has had scam calls this week and wants to know who you are.
• “Who sold my data?” They suspect a list broker and want to know which one.
• “How much do you know about me?” A direct mobile number feels personal, and they want to know why you have it.

All three are answered by the same thing: a specific, true source and your company’s name. A rep who hesitates, or says “I’m not sure”, turns a 5-second question into the end of the call.

Scripts to copy

Match the line to where the number actually came from. Each script ends with a short permission question, so the prospect decides what happens next.

Where the number came from	What the rep says
The prospect’s company website	“It’s listed on your company’s contact page. I’m calling about [reason]. Have you got 30 seconds?”
A named data provider	“It came from [provider], a business contact database we use. Happy to tell you more about that. Can I take 30 seconds to say why I called?”
A form they filled in	“You downloaded our [guide] on [date] and left this number. Is now a bad time?”
An event they attended	“You were on the attendee list for [event], and you ticked the box to hear from sponsors. Did I catch you at a bad time?”
A referral	“[Name] at [company] suggested I call you. They thought [reason] might be relevant. Have you got a minute?”
A colleague’s handover	“My colleague [Name] spoke to you in [month] and left notes for me. I’m picking that up. Is now OK?”

Three rules make these work:

1. Name the source specifically. “A data provider” is weaker than the provider’s name. If your company’s policy lets reps name it, do.
2. Don’t apologize for calling. “Sorry to bother you” invites the prospect to agree. A plain answer sounds like you have nothing to hide.
3. Never invent a source. If the list doesn’t say where a number came from, the rep says so: “I don’t have that in front of me. I’ll find out and email you the source today.” Then do it.

If the prospect then says no, treat it like any other not-interested reply. If they ask you not to call again, that is a different answer, covered below.

What the rules expect you to say

This section is general information, as of November 2026. Check with your counsel how it applies to your calls.

UK. The ICO’s guidance on the right to be informed covers personal data you get from someone other than the person, such as a bought-in list or a public source. It says to tell people where you obtained their information, to say so if it came from a publicly accessible source, and to name the source as specifically as you can (ICO). On timing, the ICO says privacy information is due within one month of getting the data, and if you use the data to contact the person, at the latest when you first communicate with them (ICO). For a cold call from a bought-in list, that first call may be the moment. The ICO notes this guidance is under review after the Data (Use and Access) Act.

The same guidance applies to people at businesses, not only consumers: a named person’s direct number is personal data.

US. For telemarketing calls to residential subscribers, 47 CFR 64.1200(d)(4) requires the caller to give the name of the individual caller, the name of the company the call is made for, and a telephone number or address where the company can be contacted. It does not require the data source, but a rep who can’t give it sounds like the calls the person is trying to avoid. State rules vary; see calling rules for the checks we run.

When the next sentence is “take me off your list”

Sometimes “How did you get my number?” is followed by “Don’t call me again”. In the UK, the ICO says people have an absolute right to stop you using their information for direct marketing, and that they can object verbally or in writing (ICO, guidance updated 2 Nov 2026). In the US, the same FCC rule requires telemarketers calling residential subscribers to record a do-not-call request when it is made and honor it within a reasonable time of no more than 10 business days.

What the rep says:

“Understood. I’ll take your number off our list now, and you won’t hear from us again. Thanks for telling me.”

No second pitch, no “can I just ask”. Then the rep logs a Do not call outcome before the next dial, not in a batch after the call block.

What to log after the call

The question is useful data. Log it so the list gets better:

1. Outcome. The normal call outcome, plus a tag such as “asked for source”.
2. Source given. What the rep told the prospect, word for word if short.
3. Follow-up promised. If the rep promised to email the source, a task due today.
4. Do not call. If asked, the number goes on your do-not-call list immediately.

Once a month, count “asked for source” tags by list. A list where 1 in 10 answered calls ends in this question, or in a removal request, is telling you something about how that list was built. See how to clean a cold calling list for what to remove first.

Make the source visible before the dial

The best answer is the one the rep can read off the screen. Add a “Number source” field to every record, fill it at import, and show it next to the number. Reps who see “From: company website, checked 3 Nov” don’t hesitate.

The DialSavvy dialer shows a brief before every dial: earlier calls, teammates’ notes and the contact’s local time. A rep who reads “got this number from the website, asked for source on 3 Nov” in a teammate’s note starts the call ready, and goes straight to the cold call opener. Your do-not-call list is checked before every call, so a removal logged on one call stops the next one.

Bring a list and its source field to a demo, and we’ll show you the brief your reps would see before each call.