On April 28, the FCC announced the adoption of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 25-25) aimed at closing a loophole that allows robocalls to bypass caller ID authentication tools. According to the FCC, these authentication tools are designed to reduce fraud and protect consumers by tracking, blocking, and warning them about inauthentic robocalls. One such tool includes the STIR/SHAKEN caller ID authentication framework that provides a digital fingerprint for phone calls. However, this fingerprint is lost if any part of a call path passes through non-IP-based network technology. The FCC’s action seeks to ensure that advances in technology do not cause calls to lose their digital fingerprints when traversing older, non-IP-based networks.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr also released a statement discussing the FCC’s ongoing efforts to combat illegal robocalls, highlighting the limitations of the current STIR/SHAKEN call authentication framework, which is effective only for calls over Internet Protocol networks. As described by Carr, the TRACED Act, passed in 2018, set a deadline for carriers to implement authentication solutions for non-IP calls, but the FCC has been granting waivers due to the lack of readily available solutions. Carr emphasized the need to address this gap by potentially requiring non-IP technology to meet TRACED Act standards and accelerating the transition to all IP networks.
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