WIREDGOV

Telecoms regulators and government agencies from the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, convened by Ofcom, have published a joint statement on working together more closely to strengthen the security and resilience of telecoms networks and tackle consumer-facing risks from scams and fraud.

The statement, agreed at a meeting of international partners hosted by Ofcom in London on 4-6 November, reflects the fact that telecoms security threats are global and markets are increasingly interconnected.

It commits the authorities to strengthen cooperation to address challenges in the telecoms sector, to help deter malicious actors and safeguard the integrity of communications infrastructure.

The commitments relate to:

• Enhanced cooperation on network reliability, integrity and security. This will include efforts to prevent the misuse of telecoms resources, such as Global Titles – special numbers used by mobile networks to send and receive signalling messages – while recognising different international contexts.
• Information sharing on emerging threats and fraud techniques, such as SMS blasters, and the risks and opportunities arising from the growing use of artificial intelligence in telecoms.
• Promotion of best practices in network defence. This can be through cooperation and signposting to international standards, such as those related to Privileged Access Workstations (PAWs), which are dedicated computing arrangements set up for work that requires high levels of security, where appropriate. It will also include more collaboration on supply chain security, including subsea cable infrastructure and radio frequency devices where appropriate.

The signatories are Ofcom (UK); the Federal Communications Commission (US); Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (Canada); the Department of Home Affairs (Australia); and the National Cyber Security Centre (New Zealand).

Work to give effect to these commitments will now begin, and the parties have also agreed to convene annually to maintain their strong focus on telecoms security cooperation.