In a shared radio frequency (RF) band, regulations or standards can stipulate that a device using an RF channel must vacate the RF channel if another device having priority to the channel is detected. It takes time, however, to move channels and this added time reduces the effective speed of the communication. In some cases, a received signal from the other device may be received on the channel when the other device is not, in fact, operating on the channel. These received signals can lead the device to move channels, thereby slowing communications unnecessarily. Accordingly, disclosed herein are a system and method for checking the characteristics of a received signal's spectrum to determine if the source of the received signal is on-channel or off-channel. This determination may be used to minimize the device from taking unnecessary interference avoidance measures, such as dynamic frequency selection.