The problem: "I forgot to press"
Anyone who has tried to record work calls knows it. The important call is the one that came while driving, in the middle of a meeting, or with the phone in a pocket - and that is the one that was not recorded. A HaRoshemet customer put it well: "even when a call doesn't show up on my phone, it's immediately there in HaRoshemet." To see why that is possible, you have to see where a call can be recorded at all.
Method 1: an app on the phone
The simple idea - an app that listens to the call and records it - does not exist on iPhone. Apple gives apps no access to call audio. On Android it was possible for years, but Google closed that access from Android 9–10, and most recorder apps stopped working or switched to a workaround.
The workaround is a conference call: the app dials its vendor's number and adds it to your call, and the recording happens there. Which means:
- Started on every call; for an incoming call - answer, open the app, add the line.
- Works only if conference calling is available on your plan.
- Your audio passes through a foreign server, sometimes from a different number.
- Several well-known apps have shut down.
Method 2: recording on the device
Two flavours:
- Apple's built-in recording (iOS 18.1 and later). Apple itself records, from the Phone app. Tap "More", then "Call Recording"; both parties hear a spoken notice that repeats during the call; the recording is saved to Notes. Compared with HaRoshemet.
- An external device (PLAUD and similar). Clip it to the back of the phone, and a sensor picks up the speaker's vibrations. Compared with HaRoshemet.
Both work. Both require pressing on every call, and an incoming call you did not manage to press for is gone.
Method 3: recording on the phone line (what we call "network-level recording")
Every phone call passes through the carrier's network before it reaches your phone. Network-level recording means the recording is made there - at the carrier, or at a service connected to it - not on the phone. The phone does not know, and does not need to know, that anything is being recorded.
What it gives you:
- Truly automatic. Every call, incoming and outgoing, is recorded. Nothing to start.
- No app, no device, no button. No app has to be open, no extra battery to charge.
- iPhone and Android - identical. The device is not involved, so Apple's restriction is irrelevant.
- Both sides in full quality, from the line - not through a speaker.
- Works even when the phone is off. A call that came in while you were on a flight is listed.
- Who called, when and how long - the network knows, so every call arrives with the number, time and duration.
What it does not give you:
- Built into the Pelephone and HOT Mobile networks. Other networks need a workaround.
- A monthly subscription.
- Does not record calls that do not travel on the line: WhatsApp, FaceTime, Zoom, and meetings in a room.
- Depends on network coverage.
How it works in Israel, with HaRoshemet. HaRoshemet is built into the Pelephone and HOT Mobile networks, and on other networks, such as Cellcom and Partner, there are workaround solutions. Your number stays yours, and everything your phone does today keeps working: ringback tones, roaming, three-way conference calls. After every call HaRoshemet adds what the network alone does not: a Hebrew transcript with who-said-what, a summary, tasks and a customer card. Other Israeli providers also offer network-level recording (Extra Mobile, for example) - the difference is in what happens after the recording.
The three methods side by side
| App on the phone | Recording on the device (Apple / PLAUD) | Recording on the phone line (HaRoshemet) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Records by itself, nothing to start | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Incoming calls | only if you started it | only if you pressed | ✓ always |
| Works on iPhone | via conference call | yes | ✓ nothing on the device |
| Works on Android | partly | yes | ✓ |
| Other party hears a notice | depends | Apple: yes. Device: no | no |
| Audio quality | through a foreign server | from the phone / speaker | from the line, both sides |
| Call while the phone was off | no | no | ✓ listed |
| Who called and when | yes | yes | ✓ |
| Hebrew transcript | usually not | depends | ✓ with who-said-what |
| Summary, tasks, customer card | no | partial | ✓ |
| CRM integration | no | no | ✓ |
| Records WhatsApp / meetings | no | device: via speaker | no |
| Extra device needed | no | PLAUD: yes | no |
| Cost | free / subscription | free / $159 + plan | monthly subscription |
"Nothing to press" in real life
| Situation | App | Apple / device | Phone line |
|---|---|---|---|
| A customer calls while you're driving | not recorded | not recorded | recorded, summarised, filed |
| A new lead calls mid-meeting, unanswered | no call | no call | listed; on Pro they get a WhatsApp with a form |
| An employee talks to a customer on their own mobile | up to the employee | up to the employee | recorded - in the business's customer card |
| "What did we agree a month ago?" | if you recorded | if you pressed | full-text search across every call |
| Phone off on a flight | - | - | the incoming call is listed |
Legality and privacy
Recording on the line is still recording by a party to the call - the subscriber. In Israel that is allowed, without the other party's consent (Wiretapping Law, 1979). Businesses that sell by phone also have a duty to record and notify from March 2027 - Amendment 74 (also known as Amendment 73). HaRoshemet's recordings are stored on Google Cloud, encrypted, isolated per business, and can be deleted and exported.
Frequently asked questions
Because Apple does not let apps access the audio of a phone call. Recorder apps work around it with a conference call to the vendor's number - which means starting them on every call, and it does not work on every Israeli plan. On Android, Google closed that access from Android 9–10.
Your call passes through the carrier before it reaches your phone. 'Network-level recording' means the recording is made there, at the carrier or at a service connected to it - not on the phone. So there is no app and nothing to press: every call is recorded.
HaRoshemet is built into the Pelephone and HOT Mobile networks. If you are already on one of them we connect your existing account. On other networks, such as Cellcom and Partner, there are workaround solutions, for example opening an account on one of those two networks and moving your number across. The number stays yours and every mobile capability is kept.
Nothing you would notice. Same number, same handset, same capabilities: ringback tones, roaming, three-way conference calls. The only difference is that your calls travel on a network connected to HaRoshemet, so they are recorded and transcribed by themselves.
No. WhatsApp, FaceTime and Zoom calls travel over the internet, not the phone line, so line recording does not see them. Apple's recording does not record them either.
No. Line recording plays no notice. In Israel a party to a call may record it. Businesses that sell by phone have a duty to notify from March 2027 under Amendment 74 (also known as Amendment 73) - see our page on the law. Not legal advice.