Gone are the days where the busiest professionals lugged around two cell phones. Today, anyone and everyone from students to working adults seek the need to stay connected online to keep in touch with both our personal and professional relations.

For those of us who would prefer a more organised structure in our phones when it comes to our contacts, or even for those who want one simply for the fun of it, having two numbers on one phone could be both an efficient and enjoyable experience. It seems especially useful when it comes to juggling with work and personal lines.

Some may even have already discovered the secret of using a second cell phone number for overseas relations. Appearing on your contacts’ caller ID as a local number may give them an ease of mind when picking up your calls, and could even help cut costs.

So, how can I get two phone numbers on one phone?

Google Voice

The Good

Google recently revived their long-lost but futuristic innovation that allowed anyone with a Google account to essentially hold on to two phone numbers.

After signing up with its service, all you have to do is just put in your phone number(s) on the control panel. When you receive a call on your Google Voice, it can go directly to your phone number for your immediate attention or can even be set up to go directly to voicemail.

Google Voice supports text messaging as well, presenting them much like emails. Google Voice will route any texts you have received to your Google number to your personal phone and you can reply as you would on your phone or via Google Voice’s web interface.

The Bad

You might want to think twice before entrusting all of your information with Google. With Google Voice, you are basically permitting your phone calls and texts to be screened by Google before it reaches you. All of this data they have on you, including the recordings, voicemails and the accidental text messages you have deleted are all stored on Google’s servers—forever.

Observers think Google can essentially give Google the gateway to profile and track its users without safeguards. Google voice hence might not be the best option for you when it comes to dealing with your personal privacy, and if that is an issue for you, do reconsider.

Skype

The Good

Skype has grown to become one of the defining and quintessential tools of online communications in this century. The platform certainly revolutionised the game, where geographical distances did not mean losing the ability to see and talk with your family, friends and business associates anymore. No doubt, it is an option often recommended as a second cell phone number on your phone.

Almost anyone with a personal desktop or laptop today would have Skype downloaded on their computers. Downloading the Skype app on your mobile phone will give you greater freedom and ability when it comes to calling or sending messages to someone else with a Skype account too.

Last year, Microsoft delivered on its end-to-end encryption service with Skype. For each call made, a unique 256-bit AES encryption key is created. Skype transmits the session key to the person you are calling and that session key is then used to encrypt messages in both directions. This is in line with Microsoft’s promise to its users to dedicate more of its services to privacy.

The Bad

However, not everything is encrypted. Skype-to-Skype calls are encrypted but if the receiving end uses an ordinary phone network, also known as a public switched telephone network (PSTN), that part of the call is not encrypted.

As you may have probably noticed, Skype also logs all of your history. Should your user device attached with Skype be hacked, or as much as logged in with a all-access password, your entire account’s details will be in the hands of your hacker, no questions asked.

Additionally, Skype, much like Facebook and Google, have not kept up a promising reputation when it comes to users’ privacy. In 2013, an ARS Technica investigation proved Skype’s claim that it could not conduct wiretaps as false. The infamous Edward Snowden had also exposed Skype for its partnership with NSA themselves for exposing their supposedly encrypted services to the security agency. These issues are not exclusive to American alone: users in China and Russia were exposed to their government’s surveillance watch through Skype too.

Considering their past, you might want to reconsider before downloading that Skype app on your phone.

Using a secure second phone number app

A second phone number app might probably be your best bet when it comes to possessing two phone numbers on one cell phone, especially in a world where it seems near impossible to protect yourself from businesses who are on the hunt for your personal information.

Download the Phoner 2nd Phone Number for Me (Click here for the Android version) for one of the best solutions out there.

Why this is your best bet:

✔️A second phone number app gives you a second phone number LITERALLY. This app has you owning your second number on your phone as much as you would your private number.
✔️ This app does not log any of your activities. The app has no means or incentive to track or log your information.
✔️ Enjoy anonymous texting and calling as your contact will have no idea of your other phone number(s).

When it comes to enjoying both the freedom and privacy of a second phone number, it is important to know that, in the age of ‘big data’, where ‘data kings’ can rake in the most profit, go for apps and their developers that do not have an incentive to do so. Only then can you be assured that your data and identity is kept protected through your online communications and dealings.

Having two numbers on one phone

Though we can readily say goodbye to having two mobile phones or to fumbling with a phone with two SIM cards, we have to be extra careful when it comes to entrusting online platforms with what basically is one of the main ways we rely on for communication. Be sure to not blindly give up your personal identity and privacy for the sake of convenience.

Thankfully, here at Appsverse, we are entirely dedicated to protecting you and your data. Check out this link to see more of our privacy-supporting apps.