Our work
Member Projects
Along with our members, we are taking forward several projects intended to bring additional insight and intelligence to our understanding of the scam problem and help build solutions. This includes using voice biometrics to match criminal voices across multiple members and a system that allows banks to know if an online banking customer has a live remote access session on their device. More information on these projects can be found in our annual report here.
159
In September 2021, we launched our flagship 159 phone service. 159 connects consumers safely and securely with their bank should they receive an unexpected or suspicious call about a financial matter. There have already been over 400,000 calls to 159.
Scam Intelligence
We have completed a pilot project to engage with scam text messages that have been captured by our telco members. We start conversations with scammers to understand the scam journey and gather actionable intelligence. From this we have identified and closed down phone numbers and mule accounts being used for scams, and exceeded expectations with the value of savings to our members.
URL Blocking
Through a collaboration led by the Cyber Defence Alliance (CDA), we are helping to protect customers from accessing phishing websites. The CDA started domain blocking with UK mobile network operators in 2020. Later in 2021, we began to submit data to BT and TalkTalk to help them to do the same. We are collaborating with the CDA to expand the initiative further.
Data Sharing
We are undertaking an ambitious programme of work on data sharing building on research published together with the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). In addition to important recommendations for changes in policy, this work is helping establish how information can be better and more effectively shared between organisations. It will enable the development of scalable, replicable data sharing across our three sectors.