Committee hears calls to force telecoms and platforms to block spoofing, speed fraud ad takedowns

Witnesses at the subcommittee hearing urged stronger obligations for telecom carriers and social‑media platforms to stop scam distribution channels that enable fraud.

Paul Benda of the American Bankers Association told the committee telecoms must “stop criminals from impersonating banks through spoof phone calls and fraudulent texts,” and called for closing loopholes that allow SIM‑box operations that send thousands of scam texts. He said caller ID spoofing makes it easier for criminals to appear to call from a legitimate bank and that telecoms currently lack sufficient incentives to block that traffic.

Witnesses also criticized the speed and consistency of ad takedowns on platforms. Benda cited a Wall Street Journal report and said takedown processes can require many repeat reports before removal. He praised Google’s pilot “priority flagger” program as effective and recommended broader adoption or mandate for platform takedown programs. Ian Bednowitz said platforms’ privacy controls and public data practices increase criminals’ ability to profile victims.

Recommendations included: requiring telecom accountability (FCC action or statute), banning SIM‑box abuse, establishing a searchable spam text and messaging database under FCC, providing legal safe harbors for good‑faith information sharing and takedowns, and mandating quick, free takedown of impersonation accounts with potential liabilities for platforms that knowingly allow impersonation to persist.

Committee members noted jurisdictional limits across committees and agencies (FCC, FTC) but stressed that telecoms and platforms are central to prevention. No new rulemaking was adopted at the hearing; members and witnesses asked for follow‑up documentation and legislative options.