June 2020

Wangiri Warriors: A Webinar on Solutions & Strategies for Fighting Call Back Fraud

interview with Arnd Baranowski & John Haraburda & Igor Skutsenya & Colin Yates

Webinar: Wangiri Warriors: Solutions & Strategies for Fighting Call Back Fraud

Dear Colleague:

Welcome Telecom Fraud Warriors! I’m Dan Baker, editor of Black Swan Telecom Journal. And I invite to listen and watch a virtual webinar where four fraud control experts (bios at right) provide a virtual "advanced course" on tactics and some of the latest thinking and solutions for taming Wangiri fraud.

What is Wangiri?

Wangiri is quite simply one of the most dangerous traffic pumping frauds out there, along with International Revenue Share Fraud.

The most common Wangiri scheme is for the fraudster to call a consumer victim and have the phone ring once and get cut off. The unsuspecting phone user innocently calls the number back as a courtesy. And that return call is sent to a high-rate international destination where there’s nobody on the other end except a IVR machine.

Now in the webinar, a new variation of Wangiri is discussed — one where the fraudster’s invitation to call is done through the web. Ultimately, then, the common thread for Wangiri is a call-back fraud.

Contents of the On-Demand Webinar

The webinar is 55 minutes long and is presented in three formats for you to download — you can watch the video or hear the podcast on-line:

Webinar Video (MP4) — The 55 MP4 video features 47 presentation slides and bullet point text from the discussions. Click the screen below to play on-line or right-click your browser to download.
PowerPoint Presentation — a 77MB file you download to your computer. Click on the audio icon on each slide to hear the commentary. A table of contents allows you to interactively jump to new subjects.
Podcast Audio (MP3).

Here then is the full index of the contents by expert and subject matter:

Dan Baker, Black Swan — Introduction (4:00 minutes)
• Webinar Instructions • Wangiri Warriors • NHK's Annual Taiga Drama	• The Big Expense of Samurai Dramas • Why Spend Big on Fraud Control? • What is Wangiri Fraud?
Colin Yates, Yates Fraud Consulting (13:45)
• Introducing Yates Fraud Consulting • The Worldwide Wangiri Threat • How Fraudsters Coordinate Wangiri • Another Meaning of Wangiri • IPRN Number Trends	• Pacific Islands & Fraud • Huge IPRN Volume Spike • PRISM, the IPRN Database • Solution Guide on PRISM • Fraudsters as Predators
Igor Skutsenya, Lanck Telecom (8:40)
• Lanck Telecom Introduction • The Wangiri Threat • How Lanck Detects Wangiri • Discovery of Wangiri 2.0 • Enterprises at Risk in Wangiri 2.0	• How Lanck Blocks Wangiri 2.0 • Best Practice Advice? • FMS Features to Look For • Solution Guide on Lanck FMS
John Haraburda, iconectiv (16:12)
• iconectiv & TruNumber Protect • Global Numbers Database vs. Blacklist • Using Cloud Database to Stop Wangiri • Use Case for Proactive Blocking • Reactive vs. Proactive Fraud Control • Making the Leap to Proactive	• Leveraging Other Use Cases • Managing Fraud Blocking Rules • Fraud Analyst Productivity • Feeding Intellligence to the FMS • The Pillars of Fraud Control Success • Solution Guide on TruNumber Protect
Arnd Baranowski, Oculeus (10:01)
• Oculeus Introduction • Value Signaling in Fraud Control • Fusing Old & New Software • Stopping Wangiri at the PBX	• PBX Serves as Double Layer Protection • Oculeus Operational Background • White Paper on Oculeus Protect
Dan Baker — Final Perspective (2:01)
• Japan's Himeji Castle • Himeji Castle's Defenses-in-Depth	• Why did Tokugawa Rebuild Himeji? • Your Company's Fraud Defenses?

Dan Baker, Black Swan — Introduction (4:00 minutes)

• Webinar Instructions

• Wangiri Warriors

• NHK's Annual Taiga Drama

• The Big Expense of Samurai Dramas

• Why Spend Big on Fraud Control?

• What is Wangiri Fraud?

Colin Yates, Yates Fraud Consulting (13:45)

• Introducing Yates Fraud Consulting

• The Worldwide Wangiri Threat

• How Fraudsters Coordinate Wangiri

• Another Meaning of Wangiri

• IPRN Number Trends

• Pacific Islands & Fraud

• Huge IPRN Volume Spike

• PRISM, the IPRN Database

• Solution Guide on PRISM

• Fraudsters as Predators

Igor Skutsenya, Lanck Telecom (8:40)

• Lanck Telecom Introduction

• The Wangiri Threat

• How Lanck Detects Wangiri

• Discovery of Wangiri 2.0

• Enterprises at Risk in Wangiri 2.0

• How Lanck Blocks Wangiri 2.0

• Best Practice Advice?

• FMS Features to Look For

• Solution Guide on Lanck FMS

John Haraburda, iconectiv (16:12)

• iconectiv & TruNumber Protect

• Global Numbers Database vs. Blacklist

• Using Cloud Database to Stop Wangiri

• Use Case for Proactive Blocking

• Reactive vs. Proactive Fraud Control

• Making the Leap to Proactive

• Leveraging Other Use Cases

• Managing Fraud Blocking Rules

• Fraud Analyst Productivity

• Feeding Intellligence to the FMS

• The Pillars of Fraud Control Success

• Solution Guide on TruNumber Protect

Arnd Baranowski, Oculeus (10:01)

• Oculeus Introduction

• Value Signaling in Fraud Control

• Fusing Old & New Software

• Stopping Wangiri at the PBX

• PBX Serves as Double Layer Protection

• Oculeus Operational Background

• White Paper on Oculeus Protect

Dan Baker — Final Perspective (2:01)

• Japan's Himeji Castle

• Himeji Castle's Defenses-in-Depth

• Why did Tokugawa Rebuild Himeji?

• Your Company's Fraud Defenses?

No matter how much fraud control expertise your organization has, the forward-looking lessons and timely advice of these four experts should be valuable intelligence to any service provider.

Dan Baker, Research Director of TRI
Editor, Black Swan Telecom Journal

Colin Yates

Colin started his working life in Law Enforcement in New Zealand, then after 18 years moved to a Risk and Fraud Management role in Telecom New Zealand.

After 12 years there, he moved to Vodafone New Zealand and for the next 12 years had roles with Vodafone in New Zealand, Australia, Germany and the UK, leaving Vodafone in 2012 as Group Head of Fraud Management and Investigations, having had responsibilities for managing fraud and investigations right across the Vodafone footprint.

Colin has held Management positions in the GSMA Fraud Forum, CFCA, FIINA and Pacific Partners.

He is currently managing his own firm, Yates Fraud Consulting Limited which consults back to industry operators to review their Fraud and Revenue risk maturity. He also manages an IPR Test Number database currently in use by some of the world’s largest operator groups.

Colin is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and is also a Fraud Adviser to PITA (Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association). Contact Colin via

Igor Skutsenya

Igor Skutsenya, Fraud Management System project manager and RCS team leader at Lanck Telecom, combines 6 years‘ experience in the telecom industry, being a member of LANCK team since 2017.

He is involved in revenue assurance & anti-fraud projects, management and business development sectors, and presents LANCK Telecom global anti-fraud initiatives in GSMA, CFCA, GCCM and other mobile associations & events. Contact Igor via

John Haraburda

John Haraburda, Principal Solutions Engineer Director

at iconectiv, is responsible for managing critical business operations and spearheading business development to help customers solve real world problems.

John supports the iconectiv TruNumber Protect and Routing solutions which bring network and margin optimization to carriers around the world. By proactively addressing traffic in the carrier network, iconectiv enables our customers to mitigate risk for fraud; maximize their margins and efficiencies; and optimize the performance of existing staff and systems.

John has extensive experience in bringing revenue assurance and fraud solutions to the global market. Prior to iconectiv, John served in roles as Product Line Management and Solutions Engineering; Head of Revenue Assurance and Fraud; and management positions in billing, program management and finance.

Arnd Baranowski

Arnd Baranowski founded Oculeus in 2004 and has been the sole managing director ever since. With his background in aerospace technology, Arnd brings over 20 years of experience in software engineering and development of innovative solutions.

Under the premise that every problem has a solution, Arnd and his team continue to develop effective system solutions for managing telecommunications and quickly responding to the ever-changing needs of the global market. Contact Arnd via

Black Swan Solution Guides & Papers

Expanding the Scope of Revenue Assurance Beyond Switch-to-Bill’s Vision — Araxxe — How Araxxe’s end-to-end revenue assurance complements switch-to-bill RA through telescope RA (external and partner data) and microscope RA (high-definition analysis of complex services like bundling and digital services).
Lanck Telecom FMS: Voice Fraud Management as a Network Service on Demand — Lanck Telecom — A Guide to a new and unique on-demand network service enabling fraud-risky international voice traffic to be monitored (and either alerted or blocked) as that traffic is routed through a wholesaler on its way to its final destinations.
SHAKEN / STIR Calling Number Verification & Fraud Alerting — iconectiv — SHAKEN/STIR is the telecom industry’s first step toward reviving trust in business telephony — and has recently launched in the U.S. market. This Solution Guide features commentary from technology leaders at iconetiv, a firm heavily involved in the development of SHAKEN.
Getting Accurate, Up-to-the-Minute Phone Number Porting History & Carrier-of-Record Data to Verify Identity & Mitigate Account Takeovers — iconectiv — Learn about a recently approved risk intelligence service to receive authoritative and real-time notices of numbers being ported and changes to the carrier-of-record for specific telephone numbers.
The Value of an Authoritative Database of Global Telephone Numbers — iconectiv — Learn about an authoritative database of allocated numbers and special number ranges in every country of the world. The expert explains how this database adds value to any FMS or fraud analyst team.
The IPRN Database and its Use in IRSF & Wangiri Fraud Control — Yates Fraud Consulting — The IPRN Database is a powerful new tool for helping control IRSF and Wangiri frauds. The pioneer of the category explains the value and use of the IPRN Database in this 14-page Black Swan Solution Guide.
A Real-Time Cloud Service to Protect the Enterprise PBX from IRSF Fraud — Oculeus — Learn how a new cloud-based solution developed by Oculeus, any enterprise can protect its PBX from IRSF fraud for as little as $5 a month.
How Regulators can Lead the Fight Against International Bypass Fraud — LATRO Services — As a regulator in a country infected by SIM box fraud, what can you do to improve the situation? A white paper explains the steps you can and should you take — at the national government level — to better protect your country’s tax revenue, quality of communications, and national infrastructure.
Telecom Identity Fraud 2020: A 36-Expert Analysis Report from TRI — TRI — TRI releases a new research report on telecom identity fraud and security. Black Swan readers can download a free Executive Summary of the Report.
The 2021 State of Communications-Related Fraud, Identity Theft & Consumer Protection in the USA — iconectiv — This 49-page free Report on communications-related fraud analyzes the FTC’s annual Sentinel consumer fraud statistics and provides a sweeping view of trends and problem areas. It also gives a cross-industry view of the practices and systems that enable fraud control, identity verification, and security in our “zero trust” digital world.