September 27, 2022 – The Federal Communications Commission is seeking comments on a proposed new rule to apply caller ID authentication standards to text messages, according to a Monday announcement.
The FCC is proposing to require mobile wireless providers to block texts, at the network level, that appear to be from invalid, unallocated or unused numbers, and numbers on a Do Not Originate (DNO) list. It also seeks input on other actions the commission can take to address illegal texts, including improved consumer education, the release said.
“Recently, text scams have become a growing threat to consumers’ wallets and privacy,” the FCC chair said. Jessica Rosenworcel. “More can be done to address this growing problem, and today we’re officially launching an effort to take a serious, comprehensive and fresh look at our policies to combat robo-text spam.”
In August, the FCC’s Robocall Response Team reported an increase in consumer complaints about spam text messages, which have risen steadily in recent years from roughly 5,700 in 2019 to 8,500 this year.
The FCC’s STIR/SHAKEN robocalling regime — which requires providers to authenticate phone calls — went into effect at the end of July.
Broadband data collectors report early problems with FCC mapping data
Telecompetitor is reporting Monday that organizations are already reporting problems with the FCC’s broadband map structure, including missing locations.
The database is designed to provide address and location information for every broadband service location in the country.
The telecontestant is reporting that Mike Romanoexecutive vice president of the rural broadband trade association National Telephone Cooperative, said 90 percent of its members saw locations missing from the FCC database maps.
According to the story, one complained that the coordinates for a broadband service location actually showed a swamp; another spoke of a place that pointed to a stone.
“The NTIA understood that the maps won’t be done until the challenge process is complete,” Romano said, referring to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which is handling $42.5 billion in broadband infrastructure contingent on those FCC maps. .
The next broadband maps released by the FCC will be published in November, and the challenge process is ongoing for state agencies, community organizations and consulting firms to correct potential inaccuracies.
TikTok reaches tentative deal with White House over security concerns
The Biden administration and video-sharing app TikTok have drawn up a tentative agreement to make changes to its data security and governance without requiring its China-based owner to sell the company, the New York Times reported Monday.
The drafted terms, according to the Times, state that TikTok would store its American data only on servers in the United States — and not on its own servers. Cloud computing company Oracle is then expected to monitor TikTok’s algorithms that determine the content the app recommends. TikTok is also expected to create an oversight board made up of security experts who will report to the government, according to anonymous sources cited by the Times.
Senator blond frame, R-Florida, is unconvinced about the measures. “Anything Less Than a Full Breakup” [of TikTok from ByteDance] “It is likely to leave unresolved important national security issues related to operations, data and algorithms,” he said, according to the story.
The former president Donald Trumpwho wanted to stop TikTok, tried to strike a deal with ByteDance to sell a portion of TikTok to Oracle, which failed.
Concerns have swirled around ByteDance, the Chinese owner of the popular app, and alleged surveillance and privacy policies that require data from any Chinese app to be shared with Chinese authorities. TikTok US has repeatedly denied violating US data privacy regulations.
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carrwho has been an outspoken critic of the app, said on Twitter that the preliminary agreement “is very disturbing” in that the terms “fail to ensure [national security].”
