MTS Defender

The main articles are:

• Antispam technology
• Big Data

2024

Launch the Secure Call feature

PJSC MTS"," the digital ecosystem, on October 24, 2024 announced the launch of the "Safe Call" function, which allows MTS subscribers to receive voice a warning from artificial intelligence possible fraud during a telephone conversation. The voice signal is heard only by the user who received the call. You can connect the service in the Defender service application in My MTS.

The Secure Call feature is designed to reduce the risks associated with fraudulent calls. Artificial intelligence based on Big Data MTS analyzes the conversation, identifying signs of fraud. If the AI notices suspicious activity, it warns the caller by voice notification of a potential threat. Then the subscriber independently decides to continue the conversation. A secure call identifies most scammers within the first minute of a conversation.

We are constantly introducing new tools to protect against spam and fraud. The number of fraudulent calls is growing rapidly, our main task is to strengthen the security of users. We revealed that the highest activity of phone calls from intruders is on weekdays from 14:00 to 16:00. Least often, such calls are received on weekends in the evening. The Safe Call function will stop new schemes of intruders and secure the telephone conversations of our subscribers, "commented Andrey Biychuk, director of the Defender product.

A pilot project of this function was launched in Moscow in May 2024. According to MTS, most often telephone fraudsters are represented by employees of mobile operators (78%), employees of social, pension and tax services (9%), as well as employees of banks (5%) and other departments.

"Secure call" is available in all regions of MTS presence.

Running the "Defender" for subscribers of other operators

PJSC, MTS the digital ecosystem, on October 16, 2024 announced the launch of the function of blocking unwanted calls mobile application in Defender for subscribers of other operators. Previously, the function was available only to MTS subscribers using the Defender service in the application "."My MTS

All incoming calls are highlighted in three colors depending on the threat: red - potentially dangerous, yellow - warn of possible spam, green - reliable calls. If earlier red calls were shown on the screen, now, with the lock function connected, they will be automatically redirected to the bot, which independently speaks with the fraudster. Next, the application receives a notification that the call has been blocked, as well as a complete transcript of the conversation.

The telephone number database is constantly updated using the MTS Big Data technology, based on data in open sources and directories. The average number of active users of the number determiner in the Defender application per month increased by 14% compared to the 1st quarter of 2024. The average number of spam complaints per month increased by 55%, which proves the need for users to block unwanted calls.

We closely monitor the needs of our customers and strive to minimize the number of fraudulent phone attacks. From January to September 2024, we blocked more than 2.3 billion unwanted calls. In order for our product to be of interest not only to subscribers, but also to everyone who values ​ ​ their safety, we have integrated the blocking function into the application for subscribers of other cellular operators, "commented Andrei Biychuk, director of the MTS Defender product.

The functions of the number identifier and complaints about spam calls remain free in the application. The cost of blocking service is 99 rubles per month after the trial period.

Implement Smart Number Locator

PJSC, a digital MTS ecosystem, on August 20, 2024 announced that it had included a free function of a smart number identifier in the Defender service. The function is already available for all MTS subscribers. The system operating on the basis Big Data determines who calls the subscriber, including in, messengers shows the source of the call on the screen, and smartphone marks calls depending on their reliability.

We see that the number of spam calls is actively growing, so we are expanding the list of free functions in the "Defender" for all our subscribers. In the first six months of 2024, we blocked 1.3 billion spam calls, which is 30% more than a year earlier. In order for each of our subscribers to understand how vulnerable he is to spam calls, we launched another free function - a security rating, which is also available for free for all our users, "said Defender product director Andrei Biychuk.

Incoming calls are marked with different colors: green - reliable, yellow - calls that may contain spam, and red those that are most likely undesirable. Also, spam calls are assigned special categories. For example, from January to July 2024, about 61% of spam calls fell on the Advertising and Surveys category, 20% on the Collectors category, 13% on Banks and Finance.

Big Data technologies also help Protector determine the official name of the organization if there is a number in directories and open sources. The user at the time of the call can decide whether to accept the call. The number base is updated automatically.

Implementation of the function of searching for personal data leaks

MTS on August 7, 2024 announced that it had introduced the function of finding personal data leaks into the Defender service. The function is already available free of charge for all MTS subscribers. With it, users will be able to learn about the data that has leaked from credit institutions, online stores and other sources. Also, users of the service will receive recommendations on how to act for the safety of data.

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MTC

Fraudsters can use customers' personal data to get a loan or steal money. According to MTS, in six months 83 million users of Internet services have leaked data at least once, and in almost 20 million - twice. Among the leaked data may be passwords, passport data and other confidential information.

The decision from MTS will notify about leaks from services used by subscribers, show the history of leaks, indicate the source, nature of the data and tell you what to do to protect yourself. The service is available to all MTS subscribers. You can use it in the "My MTS" application in the "Defender" section.

After data leaks, scammers are actively trying to use confidential information about service users. We see that after such cases, the number of spam calls to MTS subscribers increases by 25%. That is why we are developing our security territory, developing new functions for the Defender and making them available to everyone. I note that a set of actions is needed to counter fraud, and timely notification of a leak is one of the important aspects. The sooner the user learns about the leak, the faster he will be able to protect himself, "said Andrey Biychuk, director of the Defender product.

2023

Ability to block spam numbers

On October 11, 2023, MTS PJSC announced that users of the My MTS application and the Defender service will be able to complain about spam numbers in a couple of clicks. Client requests are processed using Big data algorithms, and if the verdict is successful, the number is blocked for several minutes. Read more here.

Start Smart Number Finder

MTS on August 16, 2023 announced the launch of a smart number identifier in the Defender service, which determines who calls the subscriber, even if the organization's number is not recorded in the phone. The system not only shows the name of the company, but also notes the "benefit" of the call in color: green - reliable, yellow - calls that can contain spam, and red, which are most likely undesirable. The analysis is based on MTS Big Data technologies.

When incoming, the information is displayed on the smartphone screen and stored in the call log. MTS Big Data algorithms assign spam category numbers, for example, "Surveys and mailings," "Financial organizations," "Medicine." The technology also determines the official name of the organization if there is a number in directories and open sources. The user at the time of the call can decide whether to accept the call. The number base is updated automatically.

In the settings applications "My MTS" , the client can select categories in which the "Defender" will not block calls, for example, Insurance"" if a person is ready to accept a call from an insurance company. Unwanted calls are automatically redirected to, voice boat after which the service sends a complete decryption of the incoming one. After examining the text, the user can select potentially useful offers for himself.

"The safety and comfort of our customers is one of the key tasks of the MTS ecosystem, and technology is the main tool for solving it. Thanks to the Defender service, last year we saved subscribers from more than 2 billion spam calls. The smart number determiner has become a new stage in the development of the service. Now it gives customers the opportunity to independently choose whether to answer the call or not, focusing on the category and name of the company. So, users will be protected from spam and at the same time will not miss offers that are useful for themselves, "­ ­ ­ said Victor Kantor, director of the Big Data MTS Center.

The number identifier option is free, works as part of the Defender service, which can be connected in the personal account of the My MTS application in the Security section or using the * 885# command from a mobile phone. Defender is a member of MTS Access, Premium and NETARIF Junior subscriptions. With a separate initial connection, the service fee is not charged for seven days, then the cost is three rubles per day. The number identifier does not work on systems below Android 10 and iOS 13.

2022

Blocking 2.1 billion unwanted calls

MTS PJSC analyzed the number of spam calls in 2022: thanks to anti-spam solutions and the Defender service, using Big data analysis, MTS blocked over 2.1 billion unwanted calls in 2022, which is 2.5 times more than in 2021. The company announced this on February 6, 2023.

The total number of recorded calls with signs of spam and unauthorized advertising in 2022 amounted to more than four billion on the MTS network, which is 30% more a year earlier.

Most often, spammer calls are aimed at subscribers living in large cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnodar, Ufa, Kazan, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk and Rostov-on-Don.

In 2022, there were no pronounced seasonal fluctuations in the number of spam calls, except for the decline in early January during the New Year holidays - on the eve of the holidays and during sales, the level of spam rises within 10%. The most popular topics of advertising calls: financial products, insurance, real estate, advertising of various products and services.

Protecting over 5 million subscribers from spam calls

The number of users of the Defender service, which decrypts spam calls using AI, tripled in 2022. If at the beginning of 2022 the number of customers connecting this service was 1.7 million people, then at the end of the year it reached 5.2 million. Users of the Defender service receive SMS messages with the content of unwanted conversations: thus, they do not spend time on contacts with spammers. MTS AI announced this on December 27, 2022.

MTS AI integrated AI-function of decoding unwanted calls to the Defender service for subscribers. MTS"Defender" answers unwanted calls, asks clarifying questions. At the end of the conversation artificial intelligence , decrypts the dialogue and sends its content in the form of SMS. The same message indicates the number from which the subscriber was called, the category of the call (for example, polls, collectors, banks and so on) and the link to, where the My MTS application full ones are contained. data Thus, MTS subscribers can be sure that the important will not information be lost.

The task of MTS AI is to create solutions based on AI technologies that will make customer life easier and more comfortable. Call decryption is one example of the use of artificial intelligence for the benefit of society. MTS subscribers are protected from unwanted contacts, but at the same time they can keep their finger on the pulse, receiving information about who called them and why, "said Ivan Dulov, Audiogram product manager.

To make it easier for end users to perceive messages, the MTS AI team has finalized the punctuation option. Also, artificial intelligence was taught to translate numerals into digital values ​ ​ (for example, three hundred and twenty-five, spoken in words, in 325). In addition, MTS subscribers will not face the rudeness of the spammer, because the MTS AI developers have added the Antimat service, which converts obscene language into special characters.

The call transcription function is based on Audiogram, a speech synthesis and recognition platform from MTS AI. It allows you to automatically convert speech into text in real time, and vice versa, to voice the text with the selected voice, with a certain intonation and stresses.

2021: Service launch

In 2021, MTS launched the Defender service for countering spam calls, which automatically determines the nature of the call using Big data analysis. In case of spam or fraud, the system sends a call to a voice bot and then sends an SMS notification about the received call, as well as decoding the message in the form of text to the My MTS mobile application.