Insights

2023 Telecom Fraud Symposium – Robotext Prevention, STIR/SHAKEN and More Take Center Stage

Jun 29, 2023

Earlier this month, at the virtual  2023 Telecom Fraud Symposium, leading industry experts converged to explore the hottest topics in fraud prevention, do not originate (DNO) and more. From regulatory mandates to innovative solutions (such as Somos’ RealNumber® DNO) to strategies like Know Your Customer (KYC), the online event offered a wide range of exciting, educational and future-focused conversations.

The symposium opened with a Regulatory Landscape Presentation by Kevin Rupy, Partner at Wiley Rein LLP. During his session, Kevin provided an update on efforts by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other federal and state agencies to combat illegal robocalls and robotexts. From expanding STIR/SHAKEN obligations to new requirements for wireless providers to implement text message authentication, Kevin’s presentation offered valuable insight into the FCC’s active dockets on pending gateway rules, robotexting, robocalling and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

Next, the symposium delved deeper into the fraud landscape with Nysia George, Director, Data Science at First Orion. During the session, Using Analytics to Protect Against Robocalls, Nysia discussed how advanced call analytic solutions can help shape the “ultimate call experience.” Specifically, she looked at the different technologies and regulatory policies that influence the various steps of the call journey. Like Kevin, Nysia also provided insight into substantial strides by the FCC (cease-and-desist, major fines, STIR/SHAKEN, etc.) to combat robocalls and mitigate the impact of illegally spoofed calls.

Shifting from a telecom industry perspective to a more enterprise-centric perspective, the symposium’s next session delivered a conversation around TCPA Implications. In the one-on-one chat between Beth Sprague, Director, Reassigned Numbers Database at Somos, Gov., and Puja Amin, Partner at Troutman Amin, LLP, the two compliance authorities discussed the different tools that can be leveraged by enterprises to ensure that calls made and texts sent are lawful. One of the solutions that they talked about in depth was the FCC’s Reassigned Numbers Database (RND). In particular, they shared how the RND makes it easier for organizations to comply with the TCPA requirements.

After exploring the ins and outs of the RND, a panel of leading telecom experts discussed another powerful fraud prevention tool – DNO. Both in the US and abroad, DNO lists have proven to be effective in helping restore trust in our valued phone number assets. After an introduction by moderator Kevin Green, Senior Director, Public Policy and External Relations at Somos, the following fraud fighters conducted a thoughtful conversation around Do Not Originate – Globally. The discussion included their thoughts on call authentication, eliminating illegal text messages and advanced robocall prevention strategies.

One of the hottest topics discussed was the regulatory climate in the U.S. and how domestic DNO affects global fraud prevention. The group furthermore explored how the flurry of robocall and robotext activity in the US – and especially the Gateway Provider Report and Order, Order on Reconsideration, Order, and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking – is impacting foreign operators.

One specific tool that the panel cited was Somos’ RealNumber® DNO. During their conversation of the solution, Stacy, Tim and Jaime highlighted RealNumber DNO’s broad range of benefits, including how it can be leveraged to combat the uptick of fraud in the messaging space.

To close out the 2023 Telecom Fraud Symposium, the event’s MC, Joel Bernstein, VP, Regulatory and Public Policy at Somos, was joined by two regulatory powerhouses for an exciting FCC & FTC Fireside Chat. The main event featured two of the most influential government superstars in the fraud fighting space.

While the conversation covered a wide range of hot topics, perhaps the most exciting part of the discussion was a recap of some of the biggest achievements in the recent past for both the FTC and FCC, including:

• The first-ever enforcement action against a Toll-Free traffic pumper and arbitrage schemer
  
  
  
  After Thomas Dorsher, who fronted the entities Charitel and ScammerBlaster, was found to have made nearly 10 MILLION calls in a two-month period in 2021, the FCC proposed a forfeiture, under the TCPA, of approximately $116 million.
  
   
• A monumental FTC case against VoIP provider, XCast
  
  
  
  In January 2020, the FTC sent letters to several Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers, including XCast Labs, Inc., warning them that assisting and facilitating illegal telemarketing or robocalling was against the law. Even after receiving multiple warnings, XCast continued to funnel hundreds of millions of illegal robocalls through its network.
  
   
• The first case filed by a cooperative of U.S. Attorney Generals
  
  
  
  Earlier in 2023, nearly 50 state Attorney Generals sued Avid Telecom, alleging that the provider facilitated more than 24.5 BILLION calls between December 2018 and January 2023. Worth noting: Nearly 7.5 billion of these calls were to numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry.

Following closing remarks from Joel Bernstein, the 2023 Telecom Fraud Symposium wrapped up with an important call to action for our industry….