In the news

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An Easy-to-Deploy Fraud-Control Handshake for Voice Operators is Here: When Will it Takeoff?

In this interview, Vasily Birulin discusses how the Trusted Communications Superheroes at AB Handshake are protecting the world, one call at a time. The upstart company introduced a new, low cost and easy to implement solution that can have a major industry impact when influential operators and/or regulators adopt it. AB Handshake is a perfect example of iconectiv’s Traffic Fraud Fighters.
Dec 5, 2022
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Interview with ABC: Here's how thieves may use your phone to steal from you

ABC Austin’s Erica Proffer cautions viewers of fraudsters that are taking advantage of the holiday shopping season using text scams. In an interview, iconectiv’s Senior Vice President, George Cray, provides expert information on why scammers are heading towards texts. Cray explains that text messages are more likely to be opened and engaged with than an email scam. Some common text scams this season include information on gift cards or shipping delays. iconectiv advises viewers to be wary of texts with a sense of urgency, requests for personal information or sent from a standard 10-digit phone number. Cray explains that large companies will often use short codes. These are more trustworthy due to the vetting and monitoring process to ensure they are not being exploited or used for scams.
Nov 23, 2022
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Interview with NBC: Tips to avoid scams this holiday season

NBC Austin’s Sam Stark warns viewers of scams to be aware of going into the holiday shopping season. In an interview, Senior Vice President at iconectiv, George Cray, recommends that viewers look to short codes, as opposed to 10-digit phone numbers, as a sign of legitimacy. Companies must undergo a vetting process to obtain a short code, and in the event the company violates the terms, they must surrender the code. Cray also advises viewers that texts with a sense of urgency or a link are likely scams.
Nov 22, 2022
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Interview with CBS: Avoiding Holiday Text Scams

CBS Chattanooga’s Nick Hill reports on how fraudsters are taking advantage of the holiday shopping season through texting scams. iconectiv’s Senior Vice President, George Cray, shares expert information on how to protect against these scammers. CBS explains the concept of smishing: text messages that are designed to install spyware or steal other personal data. Cray advises viewers to beware of text messages with links and a sense of urgency. Hill describes the common situations these hackers will try to present, including verifying gift cards, falsely claiming delivery delays, or claiming they need more information to complete a delivery.
Nov 14, 2022
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Interview with CBS: TECH BYTE: Don’t Fall for Political Texting Scams

CBS Chattanooga’s TECH BYTE reports on how fraudsters are taking advantage of the election season through texting scams. iconectiv’s Senior Vice President, George Cray, shares expert information on how to protect against these scammers. Cray explains how Americans lost $86 million last election cycle from texting scams, and this year could be even worse. Money isn’t the only thing scammers are after, viewers are also warned to watch out for scammers spreading misinformation.
Nov 4, 2022
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Interview with CBS: Scammers cracking down, jumping into your phone with political texts as elections inch closer

Steve Sbraccia of CBS Raleigh reports on how scammers are taking advantage of the election season to steal personal information. iconectiv’s Senior Vice President, George Cray, shares expert information on how to protect against these scammers. Cray advises viewers to be wary of texts with a sense of urgency and sent from 10-digit numbers. Real candidates and campaigns can undergo a vetting process to obtain a 5/6-digit number (a short code), making these numbers more trustworthy for voters.
Oct 28, 2022
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Tips for protecting yourself against political texting fraud

Terrence Lee of FOX Chicago reports on the increasing amount of text scams sent out as election season gets underway. In a live interview, iconectiv’s Senior Vice President, George Cray, provides expert tips on identifying scam text messages sent from fraudsters posing as candidates or campaigns. Cray warns viewers to watch out for requests for personal data, embedded links and messages with a sense of urgency. Cray also explains that text messages from 5/6-digit numbers (short codes) are more reputable due to the vetting process candidates/campaigns undergo to obtain the code.
Oct 24, 2022

Press Releases

Media Contact:
Sharon Oddy
Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications
+1 732 699-5130
soddy@iconectiv.com

press release

Industry Experts Convene to Examine Call Authentication for a Safer Voice Channel

iconectiv's Executive Vice President of Business Development, Michael O'Brien, will be participating in a panel of industry specialists at Hiya’s State of the Call Summit. Together, they will delve into call authentication, highlighting its role in revitalizing confidence within the realm of voice calls.
Oct 5, 2023
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How Network Element Providers, Equipment Manufacturers Are Taking Advantage of the Common Language of Telecom

iconectiv's latest use case highlights how Common Language benefits Network Equipment Providers (NEPs) and equipment manufacturers by improving operations, boosting revenue and aligning with technology trends.
Sep 13, 2023
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Telecom Leaders Band Together to Fight Phone Fraud

iconectiv’s Bob Grant and Chris Drake will be discussing the available technology and services designed to ensure legitimate calls from businesses are verified and the future of branded calling authentication at the SIPNOC 2023 Conference in Herdon, VA on September 12-13, 2023.
Sep 12, 2023
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MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions Marks Major Milestone in India by Surpassing 400 Million Port In Requests

MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions India (MITS), an iconectiv subsidiary, has accomplished 400 million mobile number port-in requests out of 580 million Zone 2 subscribers in India, underscoring the importance of number portability in driving competition and choice among telecom providers.
Sep 7, 2023
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With Global Telecom Fraud on the Rise, Industry Experts Explore How to Mitigate It

iconectiv’s VP of Information Solutions, Don Holloway, will discuss the evolution of fraud and how regulatory agencies respond at the MEF CONNECTS: The Future of Fraud Prevention Conference in London, U.K. on Tuesday, September 5.
Sep 5, 2023
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With Callback Fraud a Major Issue, Telecom Leader iconectiv Addresses How to Stop It

iconectiv’s Director, Alberto Apablaza, will discuss communications fraud and provide insights on the types of tools available to fight it at the Telco Transformation LATAM conference in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil on Wednesday, August 30. iconectiv will also be exhibiting from Tuesday, August 29 to Wednesday, August 30.
Aug 29, 2023
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iconectiv Recognized for Mitigating Illegal Robocalls and Restoring Trust in Caller ID

iconectiv's TruReach™ Certify has earned TMC's 2023 Communications Solutions Product of the Year Award for ensuring secure voice calls. Serving as the Secure Telephone Identity Policy Administrator for STIR/SHAKEN, TruReach Certify validates caller IDs with encrypted signatures, combating illegal robocalls.
Aug 21, 2023

Speaking Engagements

john hayes

John Hayes

Senior Director, iconectiv

As Senior Director at iconectiv, John Hayes is responsible for leading the company’s global product cost analysis efforts, fixed asset management and regulatory compliance and reporting initiatives. With over more than 30 years of experience in telecommunications, Hayes has led strategic campaigns to improve network operations for global carriers centered around new investments, utilization and fixed operations. He has also advocated for effective regulatory compliance and reporting and spearheaded financial strategies to reduce carrier expenditures and increase cost savings.

eyad

Eyad Alqadi

Regional Sales Director, EMEA, iconectiv

Eyad Alqadi is the Regional Sales Director, EMEA, at iconectiv. He is responsible for spearheading the company’s expansion in Europe, the Middle East and Africa with a focus on sales strategy, customer relations and consultation and establishing channel partner relationships.

With more than 20 years of experience in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry, Alqadi has worked successfully with organizations to leverage various technology solutions to generate value and improve operations, efficiencies, productivity and ultimately their bottom lines.

Alqadi holds a Bachelor of Engineering from New Mexico State University and a Master of Business Administration from Alliance Manchester Business School.

michael carroll

Michael Carroll

Editor, GSMA

Michael doesn’t want to admit that he has been a journalist and editor for close to 20 years covering a diverse set of subjects including shipping and shipbuilding, fixed and mobile telecoms, and motorcycling. He joins Mobile World Live as editor following several years as a freelancer, during which time he worked as the managing editor for Fierce Markets’ European wireless newsletter and editor on TelecomsEMEA.net (published by Questex Asia), and produced a range of feature articles and reports covering sectors including connected cars, IP Exchange (IPX), premium rate services and mobile ticketing for companies including Telecom Asia, mobileSquared and Netsize. Michael previously held various roles as reporter and editor with Informa Telecoms & Media, and as a reporter on Motorcycle News (MCN) – the UK’s largest and oldest weekly motorcycling newspaper.

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Driving Financial Decisions and Compliance with Fixed Asset Management

This session will explore the role of a universal Fixed Asset Management (FAM) structure in the deployment, interconnection and management of service providers’ physical and virtual assets. 
David Estes

David Estes

Principal Solutions Engineer

Dave Estes is a Principal Solutions Engineer on the iconectiv global sales team. He is responsible for providing technical subject matter expertise for iconectiv’s TruNumber platform, which provides accurate phone number data that operators need to offer seamless portability, detect and diagnose issues quickly, and help combat telephone fraud.

Dave is a wireless industry veteran and before joining iconectiv worked at T-Mobile USA and managed the Roaming Business Operations team, responsible for testing & launching roaming services, fraud, steering and inter-operator issues. Dave also worked at Syniverse Technologies where he held various management roles in Product Management, Account Management and Sales Engineering. Dave has extensive knowledge, experience and expertise in data clearing, financial clearing, fraud and roaming for telecom operators and has participated in many industry and user groups.   
Dave holds a BA in business administration/marketing from the University of Puget Sound.

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Protect Your Customers from One-Ring Scams: Trusted Tools to Fight Fraud

During the panel session, “Protect Your Customers from One-Ring Scams: Trusted Tools to Fight Fraud,” iconectiv telecom fraud expert David Estes discussed how CSPs are upgrading their existing call-blocking analytics to identify calls from high-risk and unallocated number ranges and suspicious premium-rate numbers.
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SHAKEN Goes Global: Opportunities and Challenges for Service Providers and Regulators Worldwide

Keeping the voice ecosystem safe and attractive for consumers and business is an objective we all share. Fortunately, progress with STIR/SHAKEN, centralized caller verification via Registered Caller™ and the emergence of Rich Call Data is having a significant impact on the way we connect and communicate.
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Rich Call Data (RCD) Best Practices: Building Trust for Future Success

With illegal robocalls now representing nearly half of all unwanted calls in the U.S., according to the FCC, it’s no wonder that the lion’s share of calls from unidentified or unfamiliar calls (76%) are left unanswered. While verified information and initiatives like STIR/SHAKEN have helped mitigate illegal and unwanted robocalls, the telco industry must continue to develop additional frameworks to protect consumers and businesses.