aql Hosts Two-Day Forum Combating Telecoms Fraud
11 March 2025 – LEEDS, ENGLAND – The Telecommunications UK Fraud Forum’s (TUFF) Forum of Trust event was held at aql’s historic headquarters in the heart of Leeds’ South Bank.
The two-day event, organised by TUFF, brought together industry leaders with a distinguished group of experts in security, fraud, policing and telecoms. It provided a collaborative space to share valuable insights into the issue of fraud in the telecommunications sector, and discuss how technology can combat it.
The event was opened by aql’s Chairman and Founder, Professor Adam Beaumont, at aql’s flagship datacentre, and the first independent internet exchange outside of London.
Adam spoke about the 26 year history of aql in the fixed and mobile arena, and the strong relationship the company has forged with regulators and law enforcement. This has underpinned aql’s many initiatives such as designing and building the systems to administer the RIPA process for the entire UK Blue Light community.
He also highlighted that aql was the first IP telephony provider to make telephony numbering available in every area code of the UK, to the developer and reseller community, via a suite of APIs. He discussed the challenges of managing regulatory compliance and how aql uses technology to prevent misuse of its telephony and mobile messaging platforms.
“It was a pleasure to host the Forum of Trust at the headquarters of our valued long-term partner, aql. Over the course of the two-day event, we gained valuable insights from industry leaders and offered attendees an excellent opportunity to network and collaborate. I’m confident that uniting telecoms operators like aql will play a key role in strengthening the strategies used to fight fraud and ultimately help safeguard the public from increasingly sophisticated criminal activity.”
– Andy Beet, CEO, TUFF
Top: Professor Adam Beaumont opening the event | Bottom: Phil Jastrzebski, Senior Manager in Investigations and Intelligence at Three, talking about private and public sector collaborations
Fraud in Telecoms
With the accelerating sophistication of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, fraud is an increasingly significant issue in telecoms for both service providers and consumers. It costs billions of pounds annually, undermines trust and puts people at risk. The continued digitisation of our communications systems has allowed fraudsters to have an ever-expanding toolkit used to create scams, from phishing and smishing, to number spoofing and deep fake platforms.
With speakers from key stakeholders in the fixed and mobile telecoms industry such as Three, Virgin Media O2 and Sky, alongside aql, the event’s keynotes discussed a broad range of topics including:
Security in information sharing
Techniques to tackle telecoms fraud by organised crime
Reducing threats while ensuring a good customer experience
The Home Office, Ofcom, and members of the law enforcement community also spoke on government fraud policy, and reducing mobile messaging spam and number spoofing.
The speakers gave insights into the sophistication of telecoms fraud, and shared best practices on safeguards and measures to protect consumers from these threats.
Will Pinkney, Principal, Networks and Communications at Ofcom, delivering a talk on reducing mobile messaging scams and mobile spoofing.
The Value of Expert Input
By convening such high-level telecoms industry experts, the event shone a light on the complex issue of telecoms fraud and other telecoms-enabled criminality, and the need for increasingly complex solutions to combat it.
Across the two-day forum, specialists in the field were able to gain a deeper understanding of the latest practices and strategies being used to combat fraud. It provided a platform for them to engage with one another, share ideas, and collaborate on advanced future solutions.
Attendees networking
The highlight of the event was a panel discussion on the use of AI in both committing and combating fraud. Panellists included:
- Adrian Harris, Senior Fraud and Risk Consultant at Xintec (Moderator)
- aql Chairman and Founder, Professor Adam Beaumont
- Symmetry Solutions COO, Dean Smith
- Senior Manager of Corporate Investigations and Intelligence at Three UK, Phil Jastrzebski
Adam stood firm in his belief that collaboration and information sharing among industry experts was key in better developing AI to combat fraud. He also proposed the introduction of a national digital ID to improve legal compliance in a way that doesn’t compromise sensitive information, such as address or date of birth.
Phil noted that while there is an increase in AI-related fraud, human-to-human interactions with automated assistance remain the most prevalent approach. He also pointed out the need for businesses to be more proactive in security investment, instead of waiting until after an incident to do so.
Dean agreed with Adam’s suggestion to introduce a digital identity card and advocated for increased automation in fraud detection. He suggested that increased use of AI could significantly reduce man hours spent on manual tasks such as data mining, providing detailed insights into fraud patterns. He warned, however, that it is crucial to train AI with accurate data to prevent biased or inaccurate outcomes.
The speakers united in understanding the challenges and potential benefits of using AI. They agreed that in order to combat telecoms fraud, proactive information sharing, enhanced collaboration, and the use of accurate data are crucial to utilising AI to its full potential in the fight against fraud.
Professor Adam Beaumont, Chairman and Founder, aql said “It was great to see so many familiar faces from the industry. One of the great privileges of being a technology enabler is that our communications toolkits have been embedded in many market leading platforms across every vertical. That gives us the privilege of having a ringside seat to witness the growth and success of some of the most impactful companies on the planet and to play our part in that. We’re also lucky enough to be able to learn from many of these companies and apply this experience to new markets and challenges, such as the challenge of protecting the public from fraud.Our teams at aql have worked tirelessly to build AI platforms that monitor our estate of tens of millions of numbers for global misuse or abuse, giving us the chance to make early interventions and spot patterns that we can share with our fraud community colleagues.”
Panelists (left to right): Adam Beaumont, Phil Jastrzebski, Dean Smith, and Adrian Harris discussing the use of AI both by those carrying out and preventing fraud
aql's Commitment to Fighting Telecoms Fraud
At aql we take telecoms fraud very seriously. We have designed automated checking and diligence processes to stop suspicious number registrations and efficiently investigate flagged accounts. We also work proactively with our regulator, Ofcom, with industry organisations like TUFF, and with law enforcement to stay up-to-date with the latest anti-fraud technologies and tactics, doing our best to stop fraud before it happens. Hosting events like the Forum of Trust is proof of our commitment to stopping, reducing, and resolving fraud in telecoms.
