Optimized for VoIP providers, ECG, a VoIP network design and integration consultancy, has announced the success of FraudStopper, a new toll-fraud detection system.

When thieves began using the “SIPVicious” security scanning tool to search the Internet for VoIP service that could be stolen, VoIP Toll Fraud became a major issue for many carriers in November 2010.

In the United States, ECG estimates that over US $1M in international termination service has been stolen by criminals targeting VoIP service providers. Some individual incidents have amounted to more than US $160,000, the company stated in a press release.

“FraudStopper learns the normal behavior for customers by analyzing historical billing records to determine what is routine for each individual,” said James Pucket, president of ECG in a company press release. “Statistics are tracked per customer in the User Behavior Database.  When international calling occurs that does not match a customer’s profile, FraudStopper can detect that change and report the risk.”

FraudStopper conducts the alerting through email and SNMP. Apart from the historical profile for the user, the email describes the user suspected of fraud. This allows operations staff to determine the risk and make a judgment.

Integration with Network-Management tools like HP OpenView and SolarWinds (News - Alert) is allowed by the SNMP trap. The Real-Time Call Progress Monitor in FraudStopper can receive input data from practically any source, the company has stated.

In September 2010, the company announced that it was the first firm to offer complete VoIP Architect and Designer services to overcome the challenges being faced by VoIP service providers.

Three main obstacles are prevalent, network development can take months and sometimes even years, the staff is burdened with supporting complex features of SIP trunking and Hosted PBX (News - Alert). Moreover, it’s difficult to find experienced VoIP engineers and technicians, as there are very few options available for in-depth training.