CPaaS firms combat AIT phishing attacks
1 min read 27 Jun 2023, 10:57 PM ISTEnterprises face a growing threat from SMS traffic pumping, or artificial inflated traffic (AIT), leading to telcos seeking payments from firms for traffic generated by fraudsters, according to industry experts. AIT accounted for over 20% of global traffic in 2022, and estimates suggest a 40% rise in AIT-related incidents in 2023. Some apps may use AIT to present an inflated number of users, but the veracity of the numbers becomes evident when conversion rates are monitored. CPaaS providers Sinch and Comviva are developing solutions to counter AIT.
PremiumNew Delhi: Enterprises are seeing a rise in cyber threats from SMS traffic pumping, or artificial inflated traffic (AIT), compelling them to pay up for unauthorized messages, or traffic generated by fraudsters via applications or bots, to infiltrate telecom networks via CPaaS or communication-platform-as-a-service providers.
Consequently, telcos seek payments from enterprises as the messages landing on their networks incur costs, despite failing to reach end consumers due to the fraudulent system designed by scammers.
Industry experts estimate that AIT accounted for over 20% global traffic in 2022, and projections indicate a 40% rise in AIT-related incidents in 2023.
“It’s challenging for the industry because there is loss of reputation at the enterprise level as they are generating so much of traffic, and they get a fat bill for which they have not received service or for which they have not got the number of users that were supposed to sign up for subscription," said Nitin Singhal, chief executive, Sinch, a CPaaS provider.
In some instances, AIT may be used by certain apps to present inflated number of users, to inflate valuations of the business, but the veracity of the number of users becomes evident when conversion rates are monitored. “Enterprises can move to APIs or Whatsapp instead of traditional messages, so we are guiding the enterprise on safeguarding against AIT," he said.
Comviva, a CPaas provider, is also building solutions to counter AIT. “We are building a solution to counter AIT and plan to take it to enterprises," said Manoranjan Mohapatra, chief executive, Comviva.
With 60-62 billion messages landing on mobile phones every month, the market is attractive for fraudsters.
It is a financial problem, said Singhal, highlighting Twitter’s lose of $60 million last year to AIT. Enterprises end up paying millions for fabricated traffic, but do not get actual users on their websites or apps, he added.
