News

12 August, 2021

How smart should smart citizens be?

Do we need ‘quick wins’ to build public support for smart cities? Or is it the IoT sector’s job (quietly and invisibly) to provide better, safer, greener lives for today’s smart citizens? Should we be winning hearts and minds with dazzling services, or silently enhancing the quality of life? Jeremy Cowan gets some surprising answers from Francesca Serravalle, Colt’s emerging technologies director, and Magnus Melander, founder of Sweden-based IoT Alliance, SMSE and tech hub THINGS. Plus sport takes over from space programmes as a top tech-driver. And <<SHOCK NEWS>> Bill Gates may have backed a winner in electric-powered aviation! 

29 January, 2019

AI will be used by CSPs as a superhuman shield against fraud

There’s been a lot of hype around machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years, and in 2019, we believe ML and AI will be used as tools to help fight telecoms fraud, writes Daniel Kurgan, the chief executive of BICS. It’s a damaging and persistent issue, which costs the international wholesale carrier industry US$17 billion annually. The automation and problem-solving which ML and AI can bring will help communications service providers (CSPs) stay ahead of fraudsters, delivering above and beyond what’s been humanly possible in the past.

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21 December, 2018

What to expect in 2019: Clue – If it’s not about 5G it’s barely being mentioned

Spoiler Alert: If you’re hoping to get through the Festive Period without any mention of 5G, look away now. And, says Jeremy Cowan, if you thought 2018 was full of 5G hype you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. We haven’t even got to #MWC19 in Barcelona yet!
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13 December, 2018

IoT is the game-changing next step for telcos – but is it a security risk?

As revenues continue to decline in telcos’ traditional core business – calls, data and roaming fees – it is understandable that the IoT is being hailed as a natural progression and sizeable growth opportunity for the industry. But it also brings with it a significant weakness through which fraudsters can attack, writes Chris Curd, the head of telco at ACI Worldwide.

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20 September, 2018

Telecoms is the easy target for fraudsters

Industries such as retail, payments and financial services have been the obvious targets for cybercriminals for many years, writes Jason Lane-Sellers, the president of the Communications and Fraud Control Association (CFCA) and the director of solution consulting at ThreatMetrix.

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14 September, 2018

AI is already delivering savings in the fight against fraud

Every business today is facing a host of new threats in the communications world. Telecoms service providers are no different, and the growing challenge that is VoIP and toll fraud is now estimated to cost £25.5bn globally; more than double that of credit card fraud, writes Carl Boraman, the director of strategic alliances and Tollring.

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24 August, 2018

A Week in Telco IT: T-Mobile 2mn user security breach shows comms sector has learned little

T-Mobile was hacked this week and the resulting data breach is depressingly familiar. One security expert believes it points to a “systemic malaise” in the communications industry. Jeremy Cowan reports on a return of old failures. (more…)

15 June, 2018

Are mobile transactions the backbone of a seamless customer experience?

The modern consumer is an ever-changing force that is taking control of the payments industry, writes Robert Murphy, the head of Customer Service & Logistics at Chip & PIN Solutions, a Valitor company.

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14 May, 2018

Build, buy or hire a UC platform: what’s best for who, when and how

Traditionally, service providers built their own telecoms platforms, whether developing in-house or via an external vendor, writes Bertrand Pourcelot, the director general of Centile Telecom Applications.

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12 April, 2018

How AI can help in the fight against fraud

Telecoms fraud is an expensive business, writes Katia Gonzalez, the head of fraud operations at BICS. According to the most recent Global Fraud Loss Survey by the Communications Fraud Control Association, fraud cost the industry a huge US$29.2 billion last year alone. This figure was down by more than 23% on 2015’s total, which is certainly encouraging, but the potential remains for the various types and methods of telecoms fraud to do some substantial financial and reputational damage.

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