• What’s the News: iconectiv’s Senior Account Manager for the Local Number Portability Administrator (LNPA) team, Carolyn Knight, joins CFCA committee focused on arming consumers with information to help protect themselves from becoming victims of communications fraud.
• Why it Matters: New data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) indicates that consumers lost more than $5.8 billion to fraud in 2021—a 70% increase from 2020—with imposter scams the most prevalent.

New data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) indicates that consumers lost more than $5.8 billion to fraud in 2021, a 70% increase from 2020. According to the report, more than 2.8 million consumers reported fraud, with imposter scams the most prevalent.

The Communications Fraud Control Association (CFCA), which is committed to risk management, loss prevention, fraud control through education, information sharing and collaboration, is comprised of security and risk management professionals from communications service providers, vendor partners and law enforcement entities working together to stop communication fraud. Whether it is from scams perpetuated by Caller ID spoofing, common social engineering scams, phishing or network traffic pumping, CFCA’s goal is to help arm consumers with enough information to help them become savvier and protect themselves from becoming victims of communications fraud.

The CFCA has formed several committees, including the Education and Resource Committee and under it the Consumer Education Committee, which was created to develop and share educational material with all telecommunications carriers to help educate consumers on how to safeguard themselves from fraud. To help guide these efforts, the CFCA Consumer Education Committee recently welcomed telecom industry expert Carolyn Knight, Senior Account Manager for the Local Number Portability Administrator (LNPA) team at iconectiv, to join the educational group. As a committee member, Carolyn will work closely with other industry professionals to create the educational resources consumers and businesses need to safeguard against fraudsters.

“The CFCA has a long and rich history as the industry’s premier association dedicated to mitigating fraud that impacts businesses and their customers,” says Knight. “As an industry insider, it’s important to remember that most consumers are not familiar with the current scams nor the language we use in identifying them. That’s why the Consumer Education Committee is so important, and why I am honored to be a member. We bring it down to a level where everyone can understand the dangers and how to protect against these criminals who prey on the vulnerable.”

As Senior Account Manager for the LNPA team at iconectiv, Knight is responsible for managing customer relations and communications for the LNPA’s PortData Validate service, the only service in the U.S. that is authorized to provide phone number porting data for use in fraud mitigation and risk assessment. Her 30-year career, which began at Bellcore, spans key positions at Verizon Wireless and Telcordia Technologies, where she managed software development and quality assurance teams. Knight earned master’s degrees in both computer science and computer systems, networking and telecommunications from Stevens Institute of Technology.

“There’s no one better suited for the Consumer Education Committee than Carolyn,” said Kathy Timko, Executive Vice President, LNPA Services iconectiv. “She not only has perspective from inside the industry but also from the consumer side, which is critical to CFCA’s efforts in preventing fraud through education. As a vital member of iconectiv’s LNPA, she has been instrumental in initiatives aimed at preventing and mitigating fraud, from account takeover to SIM card fraud and beyond. We know she will be an invaluable asset to the committee and the CFCA.”

To learn more about iconectiv and its efforts to fight communications fraud, visit: www.iconectiv.com

About iconectiv

Your business and your customers need to access and exchange information simply, seamlessly and securely. iconectiv’s extensive experience in information services and its unmatched numbering intelligence helps you do just that. In fact, more than 2 billion people count on our platforms each day to keep their networks, devices and applications connected. Our cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions span network and operations management, numbering, trusted communications and fraud prevention. For more information, visit www.iconectiv.com. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

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