Twenty-Twenty was certainly filled with the unexpected, but what did it hold for robocalling? You might be surprised to learn that amid all of the chaos resulting from COVID-19, the volume of unwanted robocalls actually dropped significantly for the first time in years. The primary reason? The pandemic not only kept consumers at home, but the shutdown of global call centers sidelined call center agents responsible for so many major calling campaigns.
This year looks poised to bring relief in the form of vaccines, but it will still bring its share of uncertainty, misinformation and chaos - all of which scammers seize to launch robocalls and robotexts designed to gain access to unsuspecting citizens’ money, personal information and more. While telecom carriers are increasingly rolling out STIR/SHAKEN and other robocall mitigation programs, consumers must also stay vigilant and be aware of the latest types of scams and tactics being used to surreptitiously gain access to sensitive information.
Here are a few robocall and robotext developments we expect to see play out in 2021 from the scammers and bad actors launching these campaigns to the government and industry forces seeking to stop them:
Bill Versen,
Chief Product
Officer,
TNS
#1: Increased Traction from the TRACED Act
The Pallone-Thune TRACED Act - signed on December 30, 2019 - requires large and medium voice service providers to either upgrade their non-IP networks and implement STIR/SHAKEN by June 30, 2021, or to work to develop a non-IP authentication solution. Due to the economic strain of COVID-19, requirements were loosened for smaller voice service providers that were granted a two-year extension. While the expected relief from the TRACED Act has not yet fully materialized, the positive effects of the law should become more tangible in 2021, especially given the STIR/SHAKEN implementation deadline in June.
The TRACED Act will also ensure that the FCC, FTC and law enforcement officials can quickly combat scammers and reduce fraudulent schemes which may be carried out by robocallers in 2021. We began to see this in 2020 as state attorneys general around the country grew more aggressive in the fight against robocalls. For example, the Michigan Attorney General’s work to combat voter suppression robocalls brought felony charges against two political operatives in an investigation. As old robocalling tactics like the use of call centers begin to arise again, we can also expect support from the TRACED Act in the form of fines for robocalling campaigns, and call authentication measures.
#2: Adoption of Branded Calling and Call Legitimacy Solutions
In 2020, contact tracers found mixed success getting in contact with individuals who may have been exposed to the virus - which may have led to unquantifiable numbers of additional cases and unnecessary exposures. Consumers simply do not want to answer calls coming from an unknown number anymore, which is no longer just a robocalling problem - it’s a public health concern as COVID-19 contact tracers are unable to get through to call recipients.
This issue exposes the need for branded calling solutions, which are beginning to be utilized by a number of public health agencies, where the incoming call screens display a valid name, logo, or message indicating that the call is from a legitimate public health agency with the hopes of increasing pickup rates. Additionally, call authentication solutions will benefit from more call data that will help their algorithms better differentiate legitimate callers from scammers trying to take advantage of unsuspecting consumers.
#3: More Sophisticated (and Potentially Convincing) Phone Scams
As we saw with COVID-19 in 2020, scammers took into account what may convince call recipients to play along by picking topical and current news items in order to extract sensitive information. These scams included fake COVID test kits and false stimulus check information. Scammers also adapted their tactics by spreading calls across thousands of numbers and keeping call volume below thresholds that would trigger alarms from newly implemented call authentication systems - known as snowshoe spamming. Targeting individuals for high-reward scams may also increase the use of convincing AI-based deep-fake technology that attempts to imitate a call recipient’s family, friends, coworkers and others in an effort to con victims out of money and/or personal information.
#4: Your Phone will Buzz More than it Rings
The chaos of these tactics will not be limited to incoming calls. Robotexts have already become a favorite method for scammers to grab consumers’ attention and wreak havoc on the general public. The use of text opens up new channels for scammers to trick consumers, like using hyperlinks to send them to fake websites where they can potentially extort money or sensitive information.
However, 2020 has also shown that bad actors are not solely extorting information from consumers, but also sowing confusion among the masses. This year, TNS identified a number of false information campaigns that were deployed surrounding election dates, free offers, government stimulus plans and more. In 2021, these disinformation campaigns might play out in the form of scammers telling consumers not to take the COVID vaccine or other false information that could sow additional confusion to the public.
#5: Tier-2 and Tier-3 Carriers will Remain Scammers’ Favorite Route
STIR/SHAKEN - the industry adopted call-blocking framework - has now been implemented across wireless Tier-1 carriers, with the implementation deadline approaching in June. Unfortunately, due to the implementation extension granted to smaller carriers, scammers still have viable routes to place negative calls without detection. In fact, more than 90 percent of scam and fraudulent calls originate from numbers not owned by Tier-1 carriers. There is no reason to believe this will cease until small carriers adopt these authentication frameworks and deploy robocall mitigation solutions.
COVID-19 rocked the foundation of how we lived, worked and learned in 2020, but a new year brings new possibilities. While there was a slowdown in illegitimate robocall campaigns mid-year due to COVID, the bad actors are back on their feet and call volumes are beginning to increase. Scammers will continue to seize on confusion caused by COVID and its repercussions to separate unsuspecting consumers from their money or personal information and use it for personal gain. By educating themselves on who to trust over the phone and the tactics scammers use, consumers can fortify their defenses against nefarious robocallers and avoid falling victim to their schemes in the new year.
