spam text messages

BURLINGTON, MA, READING, UK and SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- 12/10/07 -- Airwide Solutions, the leading provider of next-generation mobile messaging and mobile internet infrastructure, applications and solutions, and Cloudmark, a global leader in carrier-grade messaging security, today announced an agreement to provide mobile operators with an integrated solution for expanded anti-spam, anti-virus and anti-phishing capabilities.
As the use of mobile messaging continues to surge, frequent users of text and multimedia messaging, as well as mobile e-mail, are beginning to see a corresponding increase in the number of unsolicited messages sent to their mobile phones and devices. To help operators combat this growing problem, Cloudmark will integrate Cloudmark Authority for Mobile, an end-to-end messaging security platform designed to block all categories of mobile threats, with Airwide's AirGuard AntiSpam solution for mobile operators. The combined offering will enable mobile operators to make policy decisions and protect mobile networks from a range of messaging threats, including mobile spam, phishing and viruses perpetrated via Short Message Service (SMS) and multimedia messaging service (MMS).

In keeping with Mobile Messaging 2.0 guidelines that specify an open architecture, the integrated systems will use the Common Open Policy Service (COPS) protocol, which provides an industry-standard interface that other applications can use to connect to policy management services without having to custom code the interface. In addition, the combined solutions will leverage the same content filtering capabilities used for the protection of mobile e-mail, mobile Internet and multimedia messaging services. Therefore, operators will have greater deployment flexibility, which in turn reduces risks and costs down the road as these services grow in popularity. As a result of the Airwide and Cloudmark collaboration, operators will have a more intelligent, comprehensive security solution for messaging and other mobile services.

"As use of mobile applications and messaging skyrocket, we can expect that mobile abuse, whether in the form of mobile spam, phishing or virus attacks, will quickly follow suit," said Jacinta Tobin, vice president of worldwide sales and business development at Cloudmark. "The financial, operational and subscriber satisfaction impact of this problem is expected to be significant. Our customers who offer converged fixed and mobile communications services are telling us that they have an immediate and critical need for anti-abuse solutions tailored to the mobile environment. In response to this growing market demand, we are partnering with Airwide to offer mobile service providers a holistic approach to the expanding mobile messaging abuse problem."

"Providing more network control to operators and preventing SMS spam is quickly becoming a key differentiator for mobile messaging providers," said Kevin Wiant, vice president of business development for Airwide Solutions. "As a result, we wanted to augment our SMS anti-spam solution with content filtering from an Internet anti-spam market leader whose tools easily integrate with Airwide's using standard Mobile Messaging 2.0 protocols. Partnering with Cloudmark demonstrates Airwide's ongoing commitment to providing operators with the best possible anti-spam offering."

Airwide AirGuard AntiSpam

AirGuard AntiSpam provides a comprehensive, integrated set of defenses that enable mobile operators to protect their network, their subscribers and their revenues against numerous forms of abuse, by analyzing and monitoring all messaging traffic in the network regardless of its point of origin. This protects against attacks originating from inside or outside the operator's own home network. Featured protection includes:

-- Source Validation -- providing protection against spoof and fake
fraud, and closing down bypass opportunities;
-- Anti-flooding -- protecting the network from floods of messages;
-- Message filtering -- enabling detection and removal of spam, scam and
OTA messages and helping to prevent the download of viruses to smart
phones.

Cloudmark Authority for Mobile

Cloudmark Authority for Mobile is a carrier-grade solution architected to protect against all forms of current and future mobile threats originating from the Internet or other mobile networks. Based upon a unique and powerful combination of Advanced Message Fingerprinting and real-time feedback from the Cloudmark Global Threat Network, Cloudmark is able to quickly and effectively identify mobile spam, phishing and virus attacks -- regardless of format or language -- before they are transmitted to the subscriber. Because Cloudmark Authority does not rely on heuristics, static rules or message volume thresholds to identify abuse, it offers unparalleled accuracy in distinguishing spam from legitimate SMS/text messages.

Mobile Messaging 2.0

Mobile Messaging 2.0 is a set of design principles that are intended to guide the evolution of the mobile messaging industry. The principles are based on the open computing concepts and are consistent with other industry initiatives such as IMS and OMA CPM. More details regarding Mobile Messaging 2.0 can be found at www.mobilemessaging2.com.

About Cloudmark

Cloudmark, Inc. is a global leader in carrier-grade messaging security, delivering the industry's fastest, most comprehensive and most accurate real-time spam, virus and phishing protection for fixed and mobile networks. Cloudmark solutions combine highly sophisticated Advanced Message Fingerprinting(TM) technology based on innovative, high-performance algorithms and a Global Threat Network consisting of trusted reporters in 163 countries to provide security intelligence and filtering at all points in the messaging infrastructure. Cloudmark solutions currently protect more than 260 million mailboxes and more than 90 of the world's largest service provider and mobile operator networks (including seven of the top 10 in North America), such as EarthLink, Comcast, Cablevision, Charter Communications, Cox Communications, NTT Communications, SprintNextel, Virgin Mobile and Swisscom. Cloudmark is a privately held company headquartered in San Francisco with offices in London, Tokyo,
Beijing and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit www.cloudmark.com.

About Airwide Solutions

Airwide Solutions is the leading provider of next-generation mobile messaging and wireless internet infrastructure, applications and solutions. Its products help more than 120 wireless operators worldwide drive mobile messaging usage and revenues and enables them to leverage multiple delivery channels and next-generation infrastructure in new and more powerful ways. With a history of industry firsts -- including the first text message ever sent, the introduction of the first SMS router, the first A2P MMS push gateway and mobile service control which enables mobile context, personalization and profiling -- the company continues to pioneer new technologies. Airwide's open, tiered Fusion architecture offers mobile operators advanced revenue options, a practical pathway to Mobile Messaging 2.0 and a foundation to bridge mobile messaging and mobile internet.

Airwide Solutions operates globally with offices in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and
Everyday junk e-mail is annoying enough, but SMS spam is far worse. At best, the messages are covered by your text-messaging plan's quota; at worst, each one costs you 10 or 15 cents. Either way, they cause your phone to beep or buzz, and then they waste your time as you read and delete each of these irrelevancies.

But you have recourse. Ask your wireless carrier to waive the charges. You shouldn't have to pay for this junk.

Second, you can limit the kind of messages that reach your phone by logging in to your carrier's Web site and changing your account's text-messaging settings. You can usually block individual subjects or senders -- although, because SMS spam (like e-mail spam) varies constantly, that's unlikely to provide long-term relief.

You can also try to limit how text messages reach you. Most carriers (but not Sprint) let you reject messages sent from e-mail accounts or Web sites, the source of most SMS spam, while continuing to accept text messages from other phones.

If some people regularly e-mail your phone, your best option might be to set up a new alias for it that doesn't feature your phone's number, then only accept messages sent to that address.

(For instance, people would have to send a message to yourname@carrier instead of the more easily guessed address 2025551212@carrier.)

But among the major carriers, only Verizon Wireless offers this option.

If spam texting follows the history of