Phone providers must now all block calls from abroad which imitate UK landline numbers, under strengthened industry guidance which comes into force today.
A common tactic used by scammers is to defraud victims is to imitate - or ‘spoof’ - UK phone numbers from a trusted person, organisation, or Government department. Fraudsters do this knowing that people are far more likely to pick up calls displaying a UK caller ID, than if an unknown international number is displayed.
From today, under Ofcom’s strengthened guidance, it will be even harder for scammers to use spoofed numbers. Phone companies must now identify and block all calls from abroad which falsely display a UK landline telephone number as a ‘Presentation Number’ – which identifies who is making a call - except in a limited number of legitimate cases.
This builds on an earlier requirement for phone companies to block calls from abroad which use a UK number as a ‘Network Number’, which identifies where a call is being made from.
BT reported it was able to prevent up to one million calls per day from entering its network within the first month of voluntarily implementing these measures. Ofcom’s new guidance will ensure this becomes standard practice across the industry.
Further proposals on tackling spoofed mobile numbers
Last year, we sought views and evidence on the effectiveness, costs, risks, and timescales of different technical solutions to tackle scam calls from abroad which spoof UK mobile numbers.
We are continuing this work to tackle spoofed mobile numbers and expect to publish our proposed next steps later this year.
Today’s strengthened industry guidance will help to further disrupt a common tactic used by fraudsters operating from abroad, as any calls which falsely display a UK landline telephone number should be blocked from getting through.
With further measures to tackle spoofing of UK mobile numbers being announced later this year, Ofcom will continue to play our part alongside the police, other regulators and the telecoms industry in the collaborative effort to protect consumers against scams.
- Marina Gibbs, Policy Director for Networks and Communications