Thursday 2 July, 2026
How the mobile industry is accelerating collaboration to combat scams and restore trust in communications
The fight against scams requires more than technology – it demands a united front across industries, borders, and sectors. That was the defining message to emerge from the Telecoms Sector Panel at the GASS Summit in Lisbon hosted by Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA), where regulators, operators, and industry bodies came together to share insights, showcase innovations, and accelerate collective action.
Setting the Scene: A Trillion-Dollar Threat
Richard Cockle, the Head of Innovation Foundry and Connected Industries at GSMA, opened the session by framing the scale of the challenge. The global scam economy now exceeds US$1 trillion annually, and it is growing. Scammers are organised, adaptive, and borderless. The industry’s response must match that ambition.
Richard highlighted the GSMA’s United Against Scams initiative as the mobile ecosystem’s collective commitment to identifying threats, developing cross-sector solutions, and shaping policy that protects consumers at scale.
Innovation at the Forefront
A key focus of the panel was the role of innovation in outpacing fraudsters. Richard showcased Open Verifiable Calling (OVC), a GSMA Foundry proof-of-concept designed to restore trust in voice communications by enabling verified, identity-driven calling built on open technologies.
OVC addresses one of the most persistent challenges in anti-scam efforts: consumers have no reliable way to know who is really calling them. By introducing a framework for verifiable caller identity, OVC aims to change that, and at scale.
The panel also highlighted how innovation sits at the heart of the United Nations Global Public-Private Partnership Framework Against Fraud, which the GSMA has formally endorsed. Through the GSMA Foundry, the organisation is actively supporting the development and testing of new solutions to combat fraud across the global communications ecosystem.
A Panel of Diverse Voices
What made the Lisbon session particularly powerful was the breadth of perspectives represented. Panellists included:
Moderator: Brian Gorman, Fintech Lead, GSMA
Panelists:
- Richard Cockle, Head of Innovation Foundry and Connected Industries, GSMA
- Philippe Millet, Founder and Chairman, One Consortium
- Will Pinkney, Principal – Networks and Communications, Ofcom
- Nicholas Rossman, Director of Product Management, Mobile Ecosystem Forum
- Clara Serrano Solsona, Senior Product Manager, Telefónica
Together, they explored how operators, regulators, and industry bodies are each playing a distinct but complementary role in dismantling the infrastructure scammers rely on, from network-level detection to regulatory frameworks and consumer awareness.
Collaboration is the Only Path Forward
The GASA Lisbon Summit brought together consumer groups, regulators, security services, and industry leaders under one roof, and that breadth of participation was itself a signal. No single actor can solve this alone. But by bringing the right stakeholders together, the industry can accelerate innovation, strengthen consumer trust, and make meaningful, measurable progress.
The GSMA remains committed to convening that coalition and to turning dialogue into action.
