ACMA Research Shows Australians Would Use Mobile Phone Payment Methods

Research undertaken by ACMA has found that Australians would welcome using their mobile phones as payment methods but that current awareness of the possibility is low.

Qualitative research has found that while premium SMS is the most well established mobile payment method it is not widely seen as such. Instead it is seen as a way to purchase digital for example ringtones and mobile phone wallpapers as well as for voting on TV shows and for competition entry

Research respondents felt that “Tweenies” (those aged 8-14 years) were most likely to be targeted and to use premium SMS services. Many consider this age groups to be vulnerable to manipulation using mobile phones for payment methods as most do not have access and control over other traditional forms of payment such as credit cards.

There has been somewhat of a backlash against premium SMS recently. Tales of unexpectedly large bills racked up without the users full knowledge are scaring lots of consumers away from using premium SMS. USA based Telco Exetel has gone as far to protect it’s customers by blocking all premium SMS by default. Exetel claims this simple move has removed up to 90% of their billing disputes.

Looking at alternative payment methods the report has identified a number of new mobile payment technologies to be looked at including contactless or “wave and pay”, “person to person” transfers and payments that are linked to users’ to bank accounts.

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Mobile Cellular Subscriptions Per 100 People by Country – Data Provided by The World Bank

Having trouble convincing the powers that be within your organisation that you should be using SMS as part of your daily customer operations?

It might be an idea to show them this recent data provided by The World Bank. If they still need convincing after seeing the data then don’t despair as they probably won’t be in their job(s) for too much longer!

Mobile cellular telephone subscriptions are subscriptions to a public mobile telephone service using cellular technology, which provide access to the public switched telephone network. Post-paid and prepaid subscriptions are included.

This is the Short Table of Popular Countries

Source: International Telecommunication Union, World Telecommunication Development Report World Bank estimates and the International Telecommunication Union.

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Nice Article: Dark Side Arises for Phone Apps

I have just read a very nice article on the Wall Street Journals web site titled “Dark Side Arises for Phone Apps“.

Here are a couple of paragraphs that really caught my attention,

In one incident, Google pulled dozens of unauthorized mobile-banking apps from its Android Market in December. The apps, priced at $1.50, were made by a developer named “09Droid” and claimed to offer access to accounts at many of the world’s banks. Google said it pulled the apps because they violated its trademark policy.

The apps were more useless than malicious, but could have been updated to capture customers’ banking credentials, said John Hering, chief executive of Lookout, a mobile security provider. “It is becoming easier for the bad guys to use the app stores,” Mr. Hering said.

“Mobile phones are a huge source of vulnerability,” said Gordon Snow, assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Cyber Division. “We are definitely seeing an increase in criminal activity.” The FBI’s Cyber Division recently began working on a number of cases based on tips about malicious programs in app stores, Mr. Snow said.

The cases involve apps designed to compromise banking on cellphones, as well as mobile “malware” used for espionage by foreign nations, said a person familiar with the matter. To protect its own operations, the FBI bars its employees from downloading apps on FBI-issued smartphones.

Click here to read the full article (it’s a good one) on the Wall Street Journals web site.

Cops Bust SMS Scam With Arrest of 26

Just read on article on thestar.com.my about a group scamming money via SMS.

In Kuala Lumpur Malaysia a notorious SMS scam syndicate tricking victims into parting with their money by convincing them that they have won cash prizes has been busted with the arrest of 26 people.

This group is actually part of a SMS scam syndicate we busted last year in Tawau. Police also seized four laptops, 73 handphones, 41 account logbooks, ATM and credit cards and RM6,000 during the raid. Each laptop is able to send out up to 1,000 SMSes a day.

Click here to read the full article.

SMS My Customers – New Aussie 2-Way SMS Gateway Launch Soon

We’ve been given a sneak preview of a new 2-Way SMS Gateway set to launch very soon in Australia. The application is using the CellTrust 2-Way SMS Gateway as it’s delivery platform and having seen the customer web portals for both SMS My Customers and CellTrust I have to say that the SMS My Customers is a breakthrough in terms of end user functionality and ease of use.

The SMS My Customers 2-Way SMS Gateway will be live and available for customers to log on and use within the next two weeks. If you are currently a subscriber of any other Australian SMS Gateways you owe it to yourself to check this one out when it becomes available.

2010 Mobile Merit Award Goes to CellTrust Corporation for its SecureSMS Messaging Solution

The Mobile Merit Awards recognise companies, individuals and technologies that have shaped the way in which the world communicates today and have achieved excellence in the global mobile industry.

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, USA – June 8, 2010 – CellTrust Corporation, the world’s largest provider of SecureSMS for mobile phones (www.celltrust.com), announced today the company has received the 2010 Mobile Merit Award in the Mobile Services, Enterprise Product or Service category, for its SecureSMS solution.The Mobile Merit Awards recognise companies, individuals and technologies that have shaped the way in which the world communicates today and have achieved excellence in the global mobile industry. The Mobile Merit Awards were founded by a seasoned team of mobile industry veterans, consisting of journalists, bloggers, and corporate CEOs.

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CellTrust Corporation Showcases SecureSMS Messaging and Secure Mobile Wallet Solutions at AITEC Banking & Mobile Money West Africa Conference

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, USA – May 12, 2010 – CellTrust Corporation, the world’s largest provider of SecureSMS for mobile phones (www.celltrust.com), announced today the company will showcase its SecureSMS messaging solution in the Mobile Money Hub at the AITEC Banking & Mobile Money West Africa conference, May 11-12, 2010 in Lagos, Nigeria. The company will also highlight the special features of its data-based and menu driven Secure Mobile Wallet.

CellTrust’s SecureSMS platform has gained a strong foothold in Africa. The platform will enable banks and even other payment system providers to meet the stringent, new transmission channel security requirements of the Central Bank of Nigeria. In February of this year CellTrust launched its SecureSMS Mobile Banking and Payment Pilot for the African region through its partnership with Maxim-Pro Ltd. (www.maxim-pro.com), based in Lagos, Nigeria, to provide consumers the ability to make secure mobile cash transfers, payments and securely access other microfinance banking products. “CellTrust’s secure mobile banking platform is gaining significant momentum in Africa, where banks are cracking down on fraud and enforcing new security requirements for mobile financial management,” said Sean Moshir, Chairman and CEO of CellTrust. “CellTrust’s Secure Mobile platform brings significant value to the financial industry, as well as consumers in Africa, providing a secure and simple way to transfer money and make payments.”

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CellTrust Corporation Wins MobileTrax 2010 Mobility Award for SecureSMS Messaging

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, USA – April 21, 2010 – CellTrust Corporation, the world’s largest provider of SecureSMS for mobile phones (www.celltrust.com), announced today the company has received the MobilieTrax 2010 Mobility Award in the Messaging category for its SecureSMS solution.

The 2010 Mobility Awards honour the best mobile computing and wireless data communications products and services introduced to the market during the past year, according to MobileTrax, a leading mobile and wireless industry analyst firm headed by industry veteran Gerry Purdy.

“We are pleased with MobileTrax’s recognition of our SecureSMS technology and the value it brings to the industry,” said Sean Moshir, Chairman and CEO of CellTrust. “This award further endorses our vision to address the gaps that exist with basic SMS by bringing a secure messaging solution to government, healthcare and the financial services industries throughout the world.” Read more

Trojan SymbOS/MerogoSMS Worms

Known as Trojan SymbOS/MerogoSMS worms are currently attempting to spread on Symbian Series 60 3rd Edition devices. Symbian is the most common smartphone operating system in use.

They spread by sending text messages to other phones. The SMS contains a variable message in Chinese with a link to a web site. If  followed the user is prompted to install an application thereby infecting the phone and restarting the whole process of propagation via SMS. These worms appear to have the capability of sending messages to expensive premium-rate numbers.

Here’s the Clever Bit

As unsigned software can not be directly installed on Symbian Series 60 3rd Edition devices by default the installation package for this worm has indeed gone through the Symbian Signing process. According to sources they were submitted using Symbians express signing mechanism. The signed installation files contain additional unsigned SISX files which the host installer deploys. this type of mechanism makes it hard for certification systems to get a complete understanding of what the program being signed really does.

Does Symbian Revoking the Publisher ID Fix the Problem for Everyone?

Symbian Foundation has revoked the publisher ID that was allocated for these packages. But does that automatically fix the problem? No. Another step is needed.

Usually S60 phones are not configured by default to check for certification revocation. This is understandable. If hardware vendors were configuring phones to make data connections by default it would customer service nightmares for the carriers. Hardware vendors just can’t assume that customers will buy data plans so the certification check is off by default.

If you have an S60 phone and a data plan then you should adjust your Application Manager settings as shown below.

FDA ruling on mobile image viewers could shake iPhone app market

In January a moment that all kinds of mobile application developers have long feared finally arrived.

When the FDA decided that an iPhone image viewer from Cleveland-based vendor MIMvista was a class III medical device that requires pre-market approval.

Read the full article here on the Fierce Mobile Healthcare web site.