Despite digital connections bringing convenience into our lives, they also expose us to serious risks at the same time. One of the top concerns in this regard is identity theft and fraud. Identity fraud has been a growing concern in multiple industries, and the telecommunication business hasn’t been spared. This has been happening at the same time that the telecom industry has been facing additional issues like call transfer fraud, vishing calls, and account takeovers.
Luckily, identity verification can solve this problem quite effectively. Here’s what you need to know about that.
What Are the Main Fraud Types in Telecom?
Telecommunication fraud typically happens when fraudsters manage to acquire personal information like bank account information and ID card numbers from customers or service providers through telecom services. This happens alongside identity theft. Luckily, it’s easy for businesses that hold such user information to prevent this kind of theft by using a phone number validator api from a reputable provider like Trestle.
Some of the common fraud types in the telecom industry are:
- Vishing Calls: This works like phishing in emails. Fraudsters use tricks to obtain personal and financial information from individuals, then they use such information to transfer money. Criminals typically rely on social engineering to trick unsuspecting persons.
- Account Takeover: This happens mostly in Europe, where several telecom companies have a purchase model that allows their customers to get high-value devices immediately and pay for them in instalments. Attackers access a user’s account, order these devices, and then sell them immediately, leaving the victim with a huge bill.
- Romance Fraud: This happens when criminals fake an online identity to earn a victim’s affection and trust. After the individual falls into their trap, they use that chance to manipulate and steal from them.
- Call Transfer Fraud: This is one of the most advanced telecom-based attacks. Fraudsters simply hack into PBX (Private Branch Exchange) components of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone systems and then trick their victims into forwarding their calls to a number that the fraudsters control. That way, the fraudsters can intercept important calls and messages and extort or blackmail persons without being tracked.
Why You’d Need Identity Verification in Telecom
The role of identity verification in the telecom industry is rather unmistakable. It makes it easier to keep fraud at bay by verifying the data and documents that customers provide. A robust identity verification system can also come in pretty handy in helping a telecom company evaluate the risk associated with customers through a series of pre-defined checks.
Other than helping you to protect sensitive customer data, here are additional reasons to consider identity verification in telecom:
1. Regulatory Compliance
If you own or run a telecom business, you know that the environment you operate in can be quite unforgiving when it comes to the regulations you must follow. In Europe, for instance, such companies must observe the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). Telecoms in the United States, in contrast, are bound to the Communications Act of 1934 and similar laws.
In addition to regional laws, it’s common for telecom companies to be required to stick to KYC regulations worldwide. These regulations are used to prevent issues like money laundering and other similar issues that occur when telecom services are misused.
2. Better Customer Experience
Telecom businesses also need a strong identity verification system to improve the overall customer experience they offer. By identifying their customers and segmenting them, businesses can offer services more precisely, thus meeting the unique needs of their clients.
What’s more, businesses can adopt digital ID verification to simplify and accelerate registration processes, which further enhances the customer experience.
3. Protected Reputation
For businesses in the telecom industry, reputation is everything. If your customers don’t trust you, they won’t bother engaging with you anymore, given the myriad of options they can choose instead. So, if you want to avoid reputation issues along with financial penalties, consider implementing an ID verification solution.
Protect Your Business and Customers With Trestle
Identity verification is a no-brainer for businesses that prioritize security and a great customer experience. Your business will not only be better protected when you implement an identity verification solution, but you will also enjoy better performance for your marketing campaigns when you have valid and verified numbers in your database.
Trestle offers industry-leading phone number verification, validation, and enrichment APIs for your business. Visit trestleiq.com today to get started.