Combating Robocall Threats in Contact Centers

For years, robocall bad actors have targeted businesses with sophisticated schemes to steal customers’ financial and personal information. Even the most prominent brands are not immune. Amazon has been a frequent target of imposter scams where bad actors pose as sales representatives and trick victims into granting remote access to their accounts under the guise of processing refunds. A Chase Bank customer reportedly lost over $120,000 last year after a bad actor spoofed the bank’s customer service number.

These spoofed telephone numbers significantly threaten the enterprise contact center. A recent TNS survey confirmed as much—94 percent of outbound contact center decision makers were either “very” or “somewhat” concerned about spam and fraud against commercial outbound calling. In comparison, 69 percent believe spam and fraud have a “very significant” or “somewhat significant” impact on their company’s bottom line. With increasingly sophisticated telephone number spoofing tactics from bad actors, contact center decision makers must now identify ways to secure their outbound communications, to eliminate the possibility of these bad actors launching spoofed attacks through the voice channel.

AI Deepfakes Enter the Fray

The financial repercussions are severe if a bad actor successfully spoofs a contact center’s number. Businesses are often unaware they have become the victim of call number spoofing until it is too late. By then, their reputation is damaged, customers are defrauded, and money is lost. Data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) shows that Americans reported losing over $2.7 billion in imposter scams in 2023.

The threats to businesses and their contact centers have been exacerbated in recent months due to the influx of artificial intelligence (AI) deepfake voice clones. Voice cloning occurs when robocall bad actors record a person’s voice and use AI to manipulate the message. When leveraging AI, scammers can replicate the critical qualities of a voice—volume, pace, tone, pitch and enunciation—and even mimic background noises, such as traffic or office chatter, adding a greater layer of authenticity to their scams.

Eighty-eight percent of contact center operators surveyed said they are “very” or “somewhat” concerned about the impact of deepfake and AI spam and fraud on commercial outbound calling. With AI technologies raising the stakes, there is an urgent need for contact centers to be equipped with robust call authentication measures.

Why Contact Centers Struggle to Adopt Fraud Prevention Tools

While concern about spam and fraud is high, there is a lack of preventative measures currently installed in outbound contact center operations. The survey revealed:

• Only 12 percent of respondents say their company is currently using call identification and caller ID tools to prevent spoofing
• Almost a third (31 percent) don’t have tools to prevent spoofing.
• Nearly 7 in 10 contact center professionals state their company is spending less than 20 percent of its total monetary loss from fraud on prevention solutions.

Several factors have prevented the broader adoption of call authentication measures in contact centers, including high implementation costs and operational expenses, legacy voice channel infrastructure, and integration challenges.

The hesitancy of contact center executives to adopt these solutions leaves businesses and their customers vulnerable. Given that 92 percent of contact center operators surveyed indicated it is a business’s responsibility to protect customers from spam and fraud, the time to invest in a robust security strategy for outbound calls is critical.

How to Restore Trust in Outbound Voice Communications

With a secure outbound communications platform, contact centers create a symbiotic relationship between businesses and their customers. Companies are reassured that robocalls will be proactively identified and blocked before reaching a customer. That, in turn, restores customer trust in voice calls, enabling contact centers to increase call answer rates, optimize call durations, and generate more sales.

Ninety-five percent of survey respondents said they are at least “somewhat interested” in adopting enterprise authentication and spoof protection technology at their business, and 76 percent believe enterprise authentication and spoof protection technology could generate at least a “somewhat large return on investment” for their business.

There are four essential components to fortifying phone numbers from fraudsters, securing brand reputation, and mitigating the possibility of customers falling victim to fraud. 

• Call authentication. With proper verification technologies in place, businesses can confirm the origin of each call, ensuring that it was not falsely generated from a spoofed number.
• Present critical call information. Branded calls that include a business name and logo give customers a better understanding of who’s trying to reach them, making them more likely to engage with the phone call.
• Call analytics. Contact centers that use call analytics to drive enhanced protection against robocalls and fraud can create detailed call reputation profiles, making it easy to identify fraudulent call patterns.
• Spoof protection. Calls not meeting verification protocols must be immediately blocked so they never reach customers, ensuring scammers cannot establish contact.

As call number spoofing and AI-driven threats linger, businesses must prioritize solutions that guard their operations and customers, allowing contact centers to rebuild trust in the voice channel. By deploying enterprise-wide call authentication and spoof protection, contact centers experience greater success connecting with prospects and customers, driving new business opportunities and greater profitability.

Read the findings of the survey in more detail: https://tnsi.com/resource/com/fraud-prevention-insights-for-outbound-contact-centre-operations-ebook/

Jim Tyrrell is vice president of global product strategy at TNS. Tyrell has more than 15 years of experience in product management, development, and marketing, most recently as vice president of product management at Conduit Global. A telecommunications industry veteran, he has also had senior roles at Comcast Business, Siemens Enterprise Communications (now Unify), Verizon, and XO Communications.