Telecom Industry News - May 2017
The cloud and enterprise communications
It would be hard to over-estimate the benefits provided by the cloud to enterprise communications, especially for small-to-medium-size businesses. Waterloo Ontario-based Fongo launched its free, cloud-based mobile service Fongo Works to provide small businesses and start-ups with feature-rich phone systems normally reserved for larger enterprises. With minimal provider options in the Canadian market, small businesses are suffering with major monthly communications expenses and lack of functionality and flexibility. That explains why Fongo has accumulated over 1 million Canadian registrants for their free mobile service.
Global telephony solutions provider Voxbone announced it is powering Dialpad's Anywhere Workers program that it claims enables global enterprises to replace hardwired phones with a cloud-based solution that includes talk, text, and conferencing using any device anywhere, bypassing traditional telephony. Since 2015, Dialpad has seen a rapidly-growing customer base of more than 35,000 customers adopt the company’s cloud-based solution for business communications, including talk, text, and conferencing from anywhere, using any device.
Cyber and physical security advancements
Comtech Telecommunications Corp. and LaaSer Critical Communications announced they are partnering to deploy an enhanced solution to 911 emergency response for the mobile age. The two companies will deliver supplemental location data and any rich media associated with an emergency call to the correct 911 dispatch center. Comtech and LaaSer claim operators at 911 call centers can see a caller’s location just as quickly and accurately as with calls placed from landlines. LaaSer says its solution requires no overhead in the form of new equipment and is rapidly deployable.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has mandated that all wireless service providers must allow emergency management officials, such as fire marshals and police agencies, to warn Canadians on their mobile devices of dangers to life and property. The CRTC has directed all wireless service providers to implement a wireless public alerting system by April, 2018. The alerts will be sent to mobile devices connected to LTE networks, which are available to over 97% of Canadians. Service providers have also been tasked by the CRTC to work with their federal, provincial, and territorial counterparts to develop an awareness campaign and test schedule.
CellAntenna International announced the launch of a 2G, 3G, 4G-LTE, and 5G cell phone interdiction solution strictly for law enforcement agencies to detect and report illegal cell phone information to carriers for disconnection. The company says the CA-STINGER 5G, a full cell phone control system designed for use only by law enforcement, has all cell phone protocol capability natively installed including GSM, UMTS, LTE, both TDD and FDD, and has technology refresh capability ready for 5G.
Redefining how enterprises and users securely access their apps, mobile phones, tablets, and computers, SensibleVision has introduced what it claims is a virtually spoof-proof facial recognition authentication solution that cannot be fooled with photographs or video. The new approach recognizes the user’s face while capturing another identifier at the same time. That key element can be a gesture, a fingerprint, choosing a secret shape on the screen, speaking a passphrase, or even a GPS location – either something the user knows or another highly personal factor.
SDR threat detection provider Bastille has issued a warning that the recent radio frequency hack on the Dallas emergency system underscores the need for governments and enterprises to protect their radio-configurable critical infrastructure. According to Dallas officials, the hack set off more than 150 weather sirens citywide for more than 90 minutes and was conducted through radio frequencies. As a result of the incident, Bastille is urging governments and enterprises to reassess their current security posture to ensure their radio-configurable critical infrastructure is protected.
