Today the Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau (“EB” or “Bureau”) issued an Initial Determination Order against Veriwave Telco, LLC (“Veriwave”), a voice service provider (“VSP”) that failed to comply with FCC Rule 64.1200(n) which, among other things, requires originating and gateway VSPs to, upon notice by the Bureau, investigate suspected illegal robocall traffic and block any traffic that such investigations reveal is illegal and report the findings back to the Bureau within two weeks of receiving such notice.
In April 2024 EB sent Veriwave a Notice of Suspected Illegal Traffic (”Notice”), informing the VSP that it had information – based on traceback requests from the Industry Traceback Group (“ITG”) – concerning Veriwave’s apparent origination of illegal tax scam calls, and ordering it to: (1) take specific steps to comply with Section 64.1200(n), including blocking the traffic if Veriwave determined it was unlawful; and (2) report the actions taken to EB.
Veriwave ignored the Notice and now the Bureau is demanding a response within 14 days. If Veriwave does not provide an adequate response (including demonstrating compliance) by that deadline, the Bureau will order all downstream carriers to block the VSP’s traffic.
Today’s action underscores the critical importance of strict robocall rule compliance by all VSPs. Veriwave certified in the Robocall Mitigation Database that it is fully STIR/SHAKEN compliant and filed a robocall mitigation plan in which it declared that it “dutifully complies” with the FCC’s robocall rules. All this means little if a VSP does not actively implement sufficient robocall mitigation actions. This is exemplified by Veriwave’s lack of cooperation with the ITG. Before the Notice was sent, red flags were raised regarding Veriwave. The VSP provided incomplete responses to the ITG’s traceback requests and did not deny that it had originated the suspect calls. That information was sent to the Bureau, which then commenced the enforcement action.
The CommLaw Group Can Help!
The CommLaw Group is happy to assist with advising on best practices for robocall mitigation and STIR/SHAKEN compliance, as well as representing clients in FCC enforcement actions. Due to the FCC’s rapidly changing robocall mitigation rules and policies, it is critical that VSPs stay informed of all aspects of the moving target. Accordingly, if you would like additional regulatory updates tailored to the needs of your company, please contact one of our attorneys below, who will gladly provide additional information on signing up for these updates.
CONTACT US NOW, WE ARE STANDING BY TO GUIDE YOUR COMPANY’S COMPLIANCE EFFORTS
Michael Donahue — Tel: 703-714-1319 / E-mail: mpd@CommLawGroup.com
Rob Jackson – Tel: 703-714-1316 / E-mail: rhj@CommLawGroup.com
Ron Quirk – Tel: 703-714-1305 / E-mail: req@CommLawGroup.com
Diana James– Tel: 703-663-6757 / E-mail: daj@CommLawGroup.com
