As cybercrime continues to cost the world economy billions annually, a robust new coalition launched by Google, the DNS Research Federation, and the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA) is working to disrupt online scammers at a global level. By all accounts, this partnership constitutes a "game changer." The United Coalition focuses on revealing and thwarting fraudulent activity online.
Online Scam Fighting via the Global Signal Exchange
The coalition will be launching a data platform called Global Signal Exchange, which will 24/7 scan open cyberspaces for signs of fraudulent activity and issue alerts. For a platform, it will leverage the DNS Research Federation's DAP.live: an aggregation platform that consolidates feeds from over 100 sources to spot potential scams. Google enhances these efforts while providing relevant feeds from DAP.live that should provide an even more comprehensive view of online fraud as it begins to take shape.
A Growing Threat in the Digital Age
Some scams are becoming almost too clever nowadays, to the extent that an estimated $8.6 billion is lost worldwide due to such scams each year, with few cases going to convictions. In the UK alone, each person is targeted nearly 240 times a year by a scammer via emails or texts from fake legitimate businesses or offices asking them for personal information, such as bank or credit card details.
Britain estimates the average loss per person due to scams is £1,169. Overall, 11% of adults admit that they have fallen for online fraud. More alarming is the economic loss in the proportion of older adults, which indicates people aged 55 and above lose an average amount of £2,151. Those between 36 and 54 lose about £1,270, while those less than 35 years old lose about £851.
The Call for International Cooperation
Another challenge while combating online scams is that many of the criminal organisations behind these scams are operating from abroad, often from such countries as Russia and North Korea. This international nature makes it even more difficult for local authorities to keep an eye on and legally prosecute them. The coalition aims to balance this gap by sharing scam information in real time, thereby creating a chance to respond quickly to new emerging threats. This collaborative approach will serve crucially because cybercriminals often operate in groups and have done all of this work so fast, which has made it really hard to fight scams alone by any single organisation.
Scammers collaborate, they pool and they act fast. The days when individual brands could combat cybercrime on their own are gone. Global Signal Exchange usher in a new chapter in the battle against cybercrime, and Google's partnership promises to be the game-changer," said Emily Taylor, Chief Executive of DNS Research Federation.
Scammers Use All Too Familiar Brand Names Trapping Victims
The research carried out by the coalition indicates that fraudsters make use of the identity of conspicuous brands to acquire victims. Some of the very popular brands currently being used in scams are: home delivery and courier services; financial services, including banks, insurance, and loan companies; companies in the Technology, Media, and Telecoms sector; many public sector organisations, including HMRC and local councils; and, in a few instances, prominent charities.
According to DNS Research Federation, the volume of scams seems to peak each year in November during the Black Friday promotions and associated online shopping. Much of such activity is occurring because of heightened online activity. Thus, proper defences are quite essential when activity reaches such peak levels.
An alliance towards consumers' protection around the world
The Global Anti-Scam Alliance was established in 2021 to create a network of businesses that stand together to protect consumers online from fraud. GASA, in partnership with Google and the DNS Research Federation, will decrease the profitability of scams in order to make them less appealing to cybercriminals.
As threats in cyber continue to grow and seemingly intensify, this alliance will very largely form a critical element in the protection of users internationally. The Global Signal Exchange represents a major leap forward in efforts on anti-scam activities as it promises that consumers will be better protected from online fraud, and are able to navigate an increasingly complex digital environment more securely.
