Muscat: The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) today organized a dialogue session with consumers, part of the "Constructive Dialogue" initiative, to discuss the phenomenon of electronic fraud and the challenges posed by the sharing of unlicensed networks.
This initiative aims to enhance direct dialogue with the community, build a more secure and trusted telecommunications environment, and improve service quality by involving the community in formulating regulatory and oversight solutions.
The session addressed the sharing of unlicensed networks, starting with the clarity of the legal definitions for these practices, moving through the adequacy of current penalties and fines, and concluding with the security risks they entail.
Participants also touched upon the impact of these networks on the quality of telecommunications services.
The meeting also covered cyber crimes and modern fraud methods, reviewing the techniques employed by fraudsters to obtain data or deceive users, and discussing expected future patterns in light of the evolution of digital crime tools.
The session further discussed the readiness of concerned authorities to deal with these cases, the effectiveness of current regulatory frameworks in closing loopholes that fraudsters might exploit, and prevention methods and the level of community awareness. Participants debated the capacity of prevailing digital awareness to reduce the number of fraud victims.
It is noted that this meeting comes within the TRA's efforts to enhance direct communication with consumers, understand their views on the main challenges they face, and discuss proposals that contribute to improving service quality and providing a more secure and trusted telecommunications environment.
