• Spam solutions should be network based, allowing mobile operators to control the provision of security and maintain quality of service
• Mobile Spam Report author agrees operators unaware of messaging security issues

3GSM World Congress, Barcelona, 13th February 2006 – “The threat from mobile messaging spam and viruses has begun in a similar, steadily increasing way to email attacks in the PC domain and must be addressed now, by mobile operators.  If the mobile industry is slow to take proactive steps, mobile spam and viruses will fast become more than just an annoyance for mobile subscribers.  They will adversely impact an operator’s reputation amongst its user base.”

These views from CEO Max Wilkie of messaging specialist, Jinny Software, highlight the high importance the company places on this area of growing concern.  “What we need are message and virus filtering solutions, which will help protect operators’ networks from spamming and virus attack, and subscribers, whether young, old, corporate or private, from the impact of such threats.  Governments will also be able to boost their protection from the threat of global terrorism, which all underlines the vital need for effective control measures of mobile messaging at network and user levels,” adds Wilkie.

Jinny believes there are two approaches for spam and virus protection: network based and device based.  AV software can protect mobile devices from new threats in real-time, by blocking malicious codes from gaining access to software installed on mobile devices. Unlike the AV situation, no device-based anti-spam solutions are in use, nor are they likely to be appropriate to counter this different threat.

Deploying network-edge controls for messaging and mobile content is a first step to establishing network protection measures against spam and virus attack. The second step is a layer of content filtering applications, protecting for viruses, adult content, spam and other threats that may slip by the edge filters. Finally, providing end-users with the ability to set personal preferences and utilise tools for the management of spam- or virus-infected content, should be an essential part of any network’s anti-spam/AV strategy.

Wilkie adds, “To date, it would seem that there has been no general recognition that there is a need for a content protection device that is as important as that provided in other network nodes such as the SMSC and the MMSC. Currently, most operators appear to be acting reactively, using whatever tools they have to intercept spam: stopping all traffic from a certain network, or shutting down service providers that breach terms of contracts, to name just a few reactions. Some enlightened operators, however, already have anti-spam devices or mechanisms in their messaging boxes (SMSC/MMSC) and are adopting a proactive approach to spam and virus control.”

Janós Heé, Business Development Manager at Intrado and co-author of the 2005 report: Insights into Mobile Spam - World's First Collaborative Empirical Study, concurs with Wilkie, “Currently, mobile network operators are not greatly concerned about SMS marketing messages sent to their customers as only a few customers complain. However, more irritating is the fact that operators underestimate the revenue loss due to SMS fraud such as SMS spoofing, flooding, faking and phishing, which can also adversely affect their network. Most operators simply do not know what is going on on their network with regards to SMS security. Operators are slowly facing this issue and companies such as Jinny and Intrado are assisting them to make it happen. The study about the effects of mobile spam, published in 2005 with the ITU, the University of St.Gallen and Intrado confirmed the reality of the issue.”

Wilkie concludes, “As mobile phones become smarter and the use of data, multimedia and file sharing with PCs becomes widespread, all forms of PC malware will be ‘ported’ to the mobile world: trojans, viruses, spam and phishing. The proliferation of standard operating systems (e.g. Symbian and Windows Mobile) as well as always-on IP connections will, technically, make the spread of malware easier. The need for operators to develop effective anti-spam and AV strategies will, therefore, be paramount to the continued successful operation of any mobile network.”

Please visit the Jinny Software team at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Hall 2 Stand F20 to hear more about our latest, exciting developments.

About Jinny Software

Jinny Software (www.jinny.ie) is a leading provider of SMS and MMS platforms that deliver more messages per second and offer a higher return on investment for global mobile network operators. Jinny also offers platform solutions specifically for VAS messaging, Message Routing & Filtering, Message Rating & Charging and Premium Voice Platforms, including the Ringback Tone Server. Jinny Software offers a complete turnkey solution including project management, software and hardware installation.
The Jinny product range is built to open standards and current specifications. As Next Generation Networks are deployed it is vitally important that your messaging platform partner understands how to build messaging systems that are optimised for both today’s 2.5G/3G/3.5G networks and tomorrow’s IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) architectures.

‘Insights into Mobile Spam’ – World's First Collaborative Empirical Study

The ITU, the University of St.Gallen and Intrado published the world’s first collaborative empirical study about the effects of mobile spam on consumer behaviour and mobile network operator’s actions in 2005.
The objective of the study was to analyse differences in the perception of the mobile spam phenomenon between consumers and mobile network operators and assess how well the problem is being managed.  The results are relevant to all players involved in developing and managing mobile messaging products and services.
Visit: www.mobilespam.org  

For further information please contact:

Eithne Devine, Marketing Communications Manager,
Jinny Software Ltd.,
Dublin, Ireland.
Tel: +353 1 887 2626
Fax: +353 1 887 2692
Email: info@jinny.ie

For media & analyst enquiries at 3GSM Barcelona, contact:

Tim Guest, Global Media & Analyst Relations
Mob: +44 7956 257 069
Email: timjguest@btconnect.com

At Intrado:

Janos Heé
Business Development Manager
Intrado EMEA (former bmd wireless)
Switzerland
Tel:  +41 (0) 41 728 80 50
Email: janos.hee@intradoemea.com
Website: www.IntradoEMEA.com