Avalanche Mobile, a leading global developer of network-based SMS management technologies, announces the launch of their IMF Protect solution to help mobile network operators protect subscribers from mobile spam and fraud. A part of Avalanche Mobile’s Intelligent Messaging Filter™ suite, IMF Protect can screen and analyze all text messages before they are delivered to subscribers, which has significant implications for text spam and fraud which are becoming increasingly common problems for network operators and subscribers. These solutions will be demonstrated at Hall 4, HS6.08 at 3GSM in Barcelona from February 13 – 16.

IMF Protect screens and filters out unwanted messages which can come from spammers, nuisance subscribers, false VASP requests, spamming content providers, senders of spoofed messages and misbehaving foreign network elements among others – all of which can be stopped with IMF Protect before they are delivered to subscribers.

One way to deal with nuisance subscribers can be to block them based on their phone number, and with IMF Protect this can be done on SMS originating not only from the operator’s own SMSC but also from foreign SMSCs. Repeated content detection can be employed in cases where illegal messages are forwarded from one subscriber to the next, as occurred during the race riots in Sydney, Australia last December where people have since appeared in court facing charges of inciting violence by sending hate text messages. IMF Protect can even handle SMS sent by content providers who add random characters to messages to make each one appear unique. In each case of illegal use and fraud IMF Protect offers an effective way to deal with the problem without degrading service quality.

While simple text spam has long been the bane of text messaging services, the problem is increasingly compounded by SMS spoofing and other tricks for fraud purposes. There have been many reports of subscribers being incorrectly billed for value added services ordered by premium rate SMS when it was actually a third party who sent the request in their name, doing so by spoofing their number. Even spoofing software which enables anyone with just a home PC and internet connection to send their own fake text messages can be downloaded for free from popular web sites like Download.com. This type of fraud is complicated and can be difficult to detect or prove, however IMF Protect is able to step in to protect subscribers before they become victims.

The IMF Protect solution from Avalanche Mobile is deployed directly in the mobile operator’s network and uses a set of sophisticated criteria and blocking rules to screen and analyze all text messages in order to prevent unauthorized messages from getting through. These could be messages from other subscribers, from service and content providers or other mobile operators. Because IMF Protect handles incoming messages from all of these sources on an item-by-item basis, the operator does not need to block ALL the traffic from particular sources, which unfortunately is a solution commonly employed today. The Avalanche Mobile solution allows legitimate traffic from any source to continue to get through, thereby avoiding penalizing the majority of subscribers for the actions of a few individuals or third parties.

IMF Protect is an elegant and effective solution as it is deployed in the operator’s existing core SS7 network, which enables it to screen all traffic regardless of the source. As it is installed transparently on layer 2 of the existing SS7 links, it performs its important task quietly without interfering with voice and data traffic.

Mr Mark Shiels, Avalanche Mobile’s Director Global Business, said, “IMF Protect provides an important solution for subscribers who want to be protected from SMS spam and fraud without suffering from reduced features and performance due to the illegal actions of other subscribers or third parties, and it also solves a difficult problem for operators while enabling them to continue to maximize revenue and provide full-featured messaging services.”

More information is available at www.avmob.com or by emailing [email protected] . Journalists attending 3GSM in Barcelona can pick up an information pack and view demonstrations at Avalanche Mobile’s room at Hall 4, HS6.08. Seminars about “Combating Text Spam and Fraud” are scheduled for Tuesday 11.00am and Wednesday 4.00pm.

Please contact Troy Richardson ([email protected]) to arrange a time to view demonstrations and talk to Mr Mark Shiels and other Avalanche Mobile directors.

About Avalanche Mobile

Avalanche Mobile is focused on enabling GSM and 3G network operators to protect, control and grow text messaging usage, applications and revenues by providing the capability for them to create new and manage existing text messaging services and revenue opportunities. With tens of millions of text messages sent worldwide every day, Avalanche Mobile has developed a patent-pending flexible platform that enables network operators to expand offerings and maximize revenue from advanced messaging services.

Avalanche Mobile’s Intelligent Messaging Filterâ„¢ (IMF) platform enables carriers to manage, personalize, prioritize and deliver any messaging service to corporate accounts, service/application providers, and private customers – customized to meet individual user needs. The IMF platform offers a wide range of services for specific purposes including IMF Control, IMF Protect, IMF Divert and IMF Priority which provide capabilities such as priority SMS services for the corporate and consumer market, parental control services, custom SMS and surge SMS management for mass-market consumer events involving public text voting.

Avalanche Mobile’s management team has decades of experience working with Mobile Operators, as well as with the operation of large data networks world-wide. Avalanche Mobile has offices in London, Singapore and Dubai.