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Sep 25, 2023
4 minutes read

Combat SMS Pumping (AIT) Fraud Effectively With CM.com

In this digital era, providing the optimal customer experience means connecting and engaging with your customers online on their favorite platforms and channels. Online (automated) customer engagement and A2P (application-to-person) messaging is bigger than ever, which unfortunately also means that messaging fraud is on the rise. Artificially Inflated Traffic (AIT) fraud has become an alarming issue in the telecommunications industry, but worry not! CM.com has built the perfect safeguard feature to protect your business endeavors from AIT fraud.

What is Artificially Inflated Traffic (AIT)?

Artificially Inflated Traffic (AIT), SMS pumping, or traffic pumping is a type of fraud in which criminals (try to) exploit automated (SMS) log-in systems to trigger sharp spikes in traffic toward numbers they own or to a range of numbers controlled by a specific mobile network operator (MNO) with whom they conspire. Criminals reap a share of the revenue generated in this way, but the CM.com account holder gets to foot the bill.

content-fraud-monitoring-sms-pumpingSMS Pumping (AIT) can often be recognized by a spike of messages sent to a block of consecutive numbers (i.e. +1234567890, +1234567891, +1234567892, +1234567893 and so on). These numbers are most probably controlled by the same MNO. A telltale sign for fraudulent use of a one-time SMS passcode is an incomplete verification cycle. Unfortunately, advanced fraudsters even have the tools to fake a completed verification cycle.

It's safe to say that the surge in SMS Pumping fraud is worrisome for the telecommunications industry, and it can result in increased costs and reputational damage for your business. Recognizing the problem our customers face, CM.com has launched a new safeguard feature to help keep your business safe.

Read the press release: Safeguard Destination Management>

Safeguard: Destination Management

The new safeguard feature Destination Management of our communications platform will empower you to protect yourself against AIT fraud by managing messaging trafficto specific destinations (countries).

combat-sms-pumping-fraud-effectively-1Destination Blocking

You can now selectively block messaging traffic to specific destinations. For example destinations that you do no business with, or where you have no activities or interests.

Allow List

You can also implement an "allow list" approach, where all messaging destinations are blocked by default, except for those countries explicitly added to the allow list.

Available from 10-10-2023

The tool will be available for all customers in a self-service format. It will be available for customers as of 10-10-2023 via

Channels | API Access & Settings | Business Messaging Settings

We introduce a new tab named Safeguard

Combat SMS PumpingCM.com as Your Messaging Provider

CM.com is a leading provider of Communication Platform as a Service (CPaaS) solutions, and the Destination Management safeguard feature is just the first step in our battle against fraudulent traffic. Visit our trust center to see what other measures we take to ensure your safety.

Do you want to help us protect your business from online fraud? It's important to know the most common types of messaging fraud your business can face, and how you, in turn, can protect your customers from messaging fraud.

Want to know more about our Communications Platform and the services we offer? Or perhaps you want to have a chat about how to safeguard your business from (online) threats? Contact one of our experts! They're always happy to help.

Get Started With Our Secured Communications Platform Today!

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Christel Brouwers
Copywriter at CM.com. Passionate about language and getting CM.com’s message out there. Shares content about CPaaS, Payments and more.

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