A Collaborative Initiative Led by Numeracle and Infobip within the Working Group framework of the CPaaS Acceleration Alliance
In response to the persistent need to protect communication channels and consumers from identity fraud, security threats, and trust issues, a new working group has been established to lead the way toward a more secure and trustworthy future.
The Security and Trust Working Group, co-chaired by Rebekah Johnson, Numeracle’s Founder & CEO, and Elvino Krizmanic, the Director of Global Business Development at Infobip, has brought together industry leaders with a shared mission: to enhance security and trust in communication channels to protect businesses and consumers alike.
The Vision & Mission
The Working Group has pledged to identify and address the existing challenges in re-establishing trust and creating a more secure communications ecosystem through their combined networks and expertise. Between their regulatory involvement and their mutual pioneering of technological advancements like Numeracle’s Entity Identity Management Platform and Infobip’s cloud communications platform, these visionaries are highly committed to and capable of propelling the industry forward towards a better solution.
The Group will be producing a comprehensive State of the Industry Report on Security and Trust, which will serve as a valuable resource for CPaaSAA (Communications Platform as a Service Acceleration Alliance) members, providing insights into global activities, industry trends, and regulatory efforts.
The Inaugural Meeting
With an impressive turnout of representatives across the numerous comms channels, various esteemed organizations and major stakeholders in the industry were present, including PieterTelecom, the Campaign Registry, The Good Data Factory, CM.com, Sinch, NUSO, Deutsche Telecom, Comviva along with Infobip and Numeracle.
The first meeting held a discussion that centered around a few key areas that are of main concern to the Working Group:
- Fraud and Technology: The Group addressed artificially inflated SMS traffic, scams that occur over chat applications, malware, zero trust architecture frameworks, and flubots.
- Regulatory Compliance: The Group discussed how CPaaSAA can assist members in navigating the current regulatory landscape and how they can implement tighter security measures.
- Global Collaboration: The Group is working towards creating an open environment for sharing successes, challenges, and strategies to enhance security and trust across the industry.
Both co-chairs, Johnson and Krizmanic, emphasized the need for a unified approach to tackle the growing security concerns still apparent in multiple communications channels. Rebekah Johnson also highlighted the importance of collaboration and knowledge sharing among key industry players. “The Group is truly focused on equipping members with the right information and actionable insights to take back to their organizations,” she said.
A major carrier adopting the Know Your Customer (KYC) vetting principles recommended by Numeracle is a prime example cited as the type of collaboration and change the Group is looking to promote and enable access to via the State of the Industry Report to be created. All members are expected to contribute, with initiatives being closely tracked and accurately reported on to sculpt a solution that will be used to enforce or reduce risks. All left in agreement that the significance of the work product accomplished through this Working Group and the takeaway of the Report would not only aid in informing organizations and the public, but, in a more critical sense, positively influence regulatory decisions globally.
The Path Forward: Identity
The Security and Trust Working Group will be expanding its focus beyond SMS to include the challenges within voice, messaging, and AI, listing and describing each field by its risks and the groups that are currently focusing on each channel. By identifying the top three to five security issues across these channels, the Group will continue to explore practical solutions that can be realistically implemented.
The Working Group will also continue to engage with industry consortia who utilize standardized industry best practices like i3Forum and Mobile Ecosystem Forum (MEF) to ensure a cohesive approach among all industry stakeholders and groups.
Enforcement initiatives like Operation Stop Scam Calls and the Restore Trust Initiative in the U.S. alongside the Global Informal Regulatory Antifraud Forum (GIRAF), an assembly of national communications regulators from 19 countries dedicated to tackling fraud over phone networks, will be thoroughly examined in the Report to align on security efforts and maximize their impact.
Beyond the security measures, the Group aims to pioneer discussions and solutions that focus on the accurate and secure delivery of identity. To catch up on global initiatives around identity delivery, the Working Group will be collecting information on the current standards to support it, how to adopt it and recommendations on how to leverage it in their Report. Especially where government agencies are involved, identity in communications is a must.
The collected Report will examine existing overlaps and expose the gaps in the deliverability of identity where their focus is most needed. Regulators globally will have a new comprehensive reference point to support policy decisions and technological advancements that will further protect the whole ecosystem from fraud.
A Collaborative Effort for a Safer Future
The formation and initiatives of the Security and Trust Working Group represent a significant step towards enhancing trust and security in communications on a global scale. With Numeracle and Infobip at the forefront, this collaborative effort promises to deliver impactful solutions and valuable insights that will benefit the entire industry.
As Johnson aptly put it, “We need to expand our thinking beyond networks and security. What we’re doing here can absolutely have an impact on human life.”
The Group’s work is not just about securing communications between networks, but about making a notable positive change in the ecosystem that benefits all – the solution providers, business callers, and the carriers, down to the consumer. Together, they are paving the way for safer and trustworthy communications.
To learn more about the Security and Trust and other CPaaSAA Working Groups, visit CPaaSAA
Numeracle is proud to be a contributing writer for this blog post, offering expert insights and valuable information. To learn more about their work and the solutions they provide, visit www.numeracle.com