Anti-SMS spam app puts power in the hands of smartphone users

23 Aug 2011

Dublin firm AdaptiveMobile has launched the world’s first smartphone app that lets users take direct action to protect themselves against SMS spam. The app lets them manage their own SMS inbox and remove, block and report unwanted messages.

Until now the user had to inform the telecoms operator and request that spam gets blocked.

The app, which can now be made available via an operator’s portal, which will help a subscriber manage their own SMS inbox and remove, block and report unwanted SMS messages.

“At AdaptiveMobile we are seeing a growing trend for the criminal community to target mobile devices,” says Brian Collins, CEO, AdaptiveMobile.

“While we believe that the most comprehensive form of protection lies in the core of a mobile operator’s network, our unique network-to-handset security solutions mean that we are able to help turn a mobile device into an added layer of protection for subscribers.

With this new service, subscribers will be able to take more control of their own protection, whilst at the same time providing invaluable and, until now, unavailable insight to their network operator.”

Current SMS spam reporting services fail to protect consumers

The simple one-click reporting mechanism will make spam much easier to report and provide operators with more actionable information as to how best to protect their subscribers.

While the incidences of SMS spam continues to rise, with one in three respondents to a recent AdaptiveMobile survey having received mobile spam in the past year, it is still difficult for network operators to see the levels of spam hitting networks at a global level.

Current reporting services show SMS spam on only those networks where reporting technology has been installed and these fail to the protect the customer from future spam. With the launch of the SMS spam reporting service, operators will be provided with a much broader view of SMS spam attacks.

These unique insights will help to ensure that their network protection solutions are tailored to defend their enterprise and consumer customers against current and future threats , whilst allowing end users to block unwanted SMS spam.

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com