Australia and Ireland are furthering their strategic alliance to crack down on phone scams and unsolicited communications following the signing of a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the ACMA and Ireland’s Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg).
The MoU will facilitate greater intelligence-sharing between the agencies and assist to combat scam and spam communications where cross-border issues are involved.
Scammers often use obfuscation and technologically dynamic approaches to abuse the integrity of telecommunications networks and target consumers globally. Disruption requires an ongoing, adaptive and collaborative approach at both a domestic and international scale.
Cooperation with international regulators like ComReg is critical to promoting and protecting the interests of Australian consumers who are targeted by scams.
Both the ACMA and ComReg are actively involved in several scam disruption initiatives, including delivering SMS Sender ID Registries.
The MOU complements multilateral cross-border collaboration between the ACMA and ComReg, both of whom are members of the Unsolicited Communications Enforcement Network alongside communications regulators from Europe, the United Kingdom, North America, Asia and New Zealand.
The ACMA supports the government’s Fighting Scams initiative to address scams and online fraud and protect Australians from financial harm. It supports the work of the National Anti-Scam Centre, which coordinates government, law enforcement and the private sector to combat scams.
