Virgin Media O2, one of the UK’s largest telecommunications companies, has announced a partnership with Hiya, the leader in voice security, to provide its customers with AI-powered spam-fighting and branded calling services.
The partnership will benefit Virgin Media O2 and its mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) such as giffgaff, who will receive an additional layer of fraud protection from Hiya’s technology. Hiya’s services will run alongside Virgin Media O2’s existing firewall technology, which has blocked more than 89 million spam texts in 2023 alone.
Hiya’s services include Hiya Protect, which uses Adaptive AI to analyze call number behaviour and flag or block suspected spam or fraud calls, and Hiya Connect, which allows companies to add identity to their calls with their name, logo, call purpose and location, so recipients can trust who is calling and why.
Murray Mackenzie, Director of Fraud at Virgin Media O2, said: “In the fight against fraud, we’re committed to rolling out the latest technology to help keep our customers safe. From AI tools to help us block fraudulent calls, to services that help identify callers before a customer has even picked up the phone, our extensive partnership with Hiya will see us continue to improve on our existing measures and give customers’ additional protection from spam and fraudsters.”
Kush Parikh, President of Hiya, said: “We are proud to provide our spam and fraud protection and branded calling services to Virgin Media O2, a company known for its exceptional service throughout the UK. Carriers around the world are wrestling with how to prevent phone spam and scams, and protect the reputation of business customers. Hiya is doing its part to restore confidence in voice calling by aligning with leaders like Virgin Media O2.”
According to Hiya’s latest report, the most common phone scams in the UK include scams impersonating the country’s tax agency, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, immigration scams, and Amazon scams. There are also service scams in the UK targeting elder subscribers specifically including energy and pension scams.
Virgin Media O2 also shared the most common spam text trends in 2023, which included ‘Hi Mum/Hi Dad’, fake delivery and bank payment text messages.