i3Forum has announced the launch of One Consortium, a not-for-profit organisation that will work with regulators globally to tackle illegal and unwanted voice calls and messages originating from abroad.
According to the Hiya global call threat report, 7.3 billion suspected spam calls took place in Q4 2023 (up from 6.55 billion spam calls in Q3 2023). That’s 81.1 million unwanted calls every day.
This constitutes a major challenge for both the NRAs, who step in to protect the public, and the industry which must play its part to help restore trust. The challenge is even greater when it comes to combating nuisance communications originating from abroad, as efficient cooperation becomes key.
One Consortium will build the international communication industry’s contribution to restoring trust and will work closely with telecom regulators, policymakers and law enforcement agencies globally.
One Consortium is supported by major industry organisations such as the GSMA, the Global Leaders Forum (GLF), and the Global Solutions Council (GSC). It will work to agree and drive adoption in the international communications ecosystem of a range of vendor-neutral solutions to fight nuisance communications.
Philippe Millet, founder and chairman of the i3Forum said: "This is the first tangible milestone for The Restore Trust initiative. One Consortium was brought to life in under six months by an incredible team of over 50 dedicated people representing 30 organisations of the ecosystem.
"We are extremely proud of the work accomplished in such a short time frame, and very confident that One Consortium will start to make a difference very soon, working with regulatory authorities globally.”
“Trust arrives on foot, and leaves on horseback,” added Eli Katz, CEO and founder of XConnect.
“Both the voice and messaging industries are suffering from significant fraud, scams and spoofing. Collaboration across both industry trade associations and national regulators is essential to address these challenges, especially on a global basis, as fraudsters have no regard for national boundaries.
"XConnect is actively engaged in the i3Forum’s One Consortium initiative as we believe it's an important step on the journey to restore trust in communications.”
Emmanuel Rochas, CEO of Orange Wholesale International said: “As we are reinventing ourselves in the new digital landscape we need to continue ensuring trust and security for our customers.
"Collaboration and experience concerning fraud are fundamental and will be critical in delivering ways to reduce, and ultimately eradicate, fraud from our telecom business. That’s why Orange Wholesale supports the One Consortium industry initiative."
Meanwhile, Katia Gonzalez, head of fraud and security at BICS said: “Nuisance voice calls and messages threaten trust in communications. The i3Forum One Consortium initiative is a promise: to foster collaboration and earnest communication among industry, associations, and regulators to combat fraud and restore that trust.
"BICS has been actively contributing to i3Forum since its inception and is proud to join this initiative.”
