Symbio Networks challenges industry to actively stamp out toll fraud
Symbio Networks, a recognised industry leader in IP Voice communications and part of the MNF Group (ASX:MNF), has taken the industry to task, questioning why customers are being forced to bear the financial brunt of toll fraud. The challenge follows reports last week that Sparke is charging its customers an extra monthly fee to offset toll fraud losses.
“Telco providers not deploying effective and real time toll fraud prevention measures and then pushing the costs of fraud risk as extra charges are not doing the right thing by their customers,” said Rene Sugo, CEO of Symbio Networks. “There is no reason why toll fraud should be regarded as the cost of doing business anymore.”
Toll fraud is a costly, fast-growing menace to telco providers all across the world which amounted to $US38.1 billion in global losses due to fraud, according to The Communications Fraud Control Association’s 2015 report. Typically, fraudsters attack a phone network, route traffic to international destinations for their own profit, and leave the end-user with a very large unexpected bill. Most telco providers rely on after-the-fact or manual call analysis and complicated blocking mechanisms – when the damage has already been done.
Last year Symbio Networks released TollShield™, the first-to-market prevention tool that marks a new era in fraud mitigation. TollShield™ detects and block toll fraud in real time, and self-learns to detect new types of fraud as they emerge. The solution blocked over 600,000 toll fraud calls across 121 countries last year on the Symbio network, delivering around NZ$145,000 in savings to end users from prevented toll fraud. This is an example of how providers should save their customers money instead of levying them for toll fraud.
All traffic on Symbio’s IP voice network is automatically monitored for toll fraud by TollShield™, allowing all wholesalers using the Symbio network to differentiate their services by offering the benefit of toll fraud protection to their end-users.
TollShield™ is also available as standalone Software as a Service (SaaS) to any New Zealand voice network operator or carrier that wants to proactively protect their customers. The platform can be rapidly deployed and scaled via a series of network probes, centrally managed by SaaS. Each probe is capable of parsing fraud in one billion calls per month, without impacting call setup. This new, proactive approach is a game-changer for telecom providers who have previously only been able to deploy after-the-fact fraud mitigation tools.
About Symbio Networks™
Symbio Networks™ specialises in the deployment and operation of national IP Voice networks. In March 2016 Symbio announced the roll out in New Zealand of a nationwide fully-interconnected voice network. Symbio continuously invests in R&D to create world-class IP Voice technologies that enhance global carriage.
Symbio is part of the fast-growing MNF Group which is publicly listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. MNF Group was founded in 2004 and listed on the ASX in mid 2006. It has a reputation for quality, value and innovation, having won numerous awards including the Forbes Asia’s 200 Best Under a Billion (2014, 2015), Deloitte Technology Fast 50 (2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015), PC User Product of the Year (2005), Money Magazine Product of the Year (2007) and many others.
For further information about Symbio Networks please visit: www.symbionetworks.com