Media Contact: 
Will Wiquist (202) 418-0509
will.wiquist@fcc.gov
For Immediate Release
CHAIRMAN PAI WELCOMES CALL AUTHENTICATION 
RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE NORTH AMERICAN 
NUMBERING COUNCIL 
Represents Substantial Step Forward Toward Ensuring Calls 
Can Be Authenticated and Verified
  -- 
WASHINGTON, May 14, 2018—Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai 
has accepted the recommendations of the North American Numbering Council (NANC) for 
industry to quickly establish a Governance Authority for implementing the SHAKEN/STIR 
framework.  The SHAKEN/STIR framework is the industry-developed standard for the 
cryptographic signing of telephone calls.  It is intended to eliminate the use of illegitimate 
spoofed numbers from the telephone system.  Illegal robocallers and fraudsters use spoofed 
numbers to hide their identity and prey on unsuspecting Americans.  
“Every day, Americans receive illegally spoofed calls and robocalls, and every day, the FCC 
hears complaints about this problem,” said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.  “We’ve been aggressively 
moving forward on new regulations and enforcement to crack down on the flood of unwanted 
robocalls.  But a critical element of solving this problem is call authentication—essentially, 
creating a ‘digital fingerprint’ for each phone call that scammers can’t spoof or misuse.  That 
would allow any consumer to pick up the phone with confidence.
“The NANC report represents a substantial step forward in ensuring that calls can be 
authenticated and verified.  In addition to being a consumer-friendly solution, call 
authentication can help law enforcement catch scammers and help carriers identify illegal calls.  
I look forward to seeing the industry take the next steps and acting on the NANC 
recommendations.  I thank NANC Chairman Travis Kavulla and the NANC members for their 
contributions towards reducing the fraud and harassment that plague our networks.” 
The NANC Report recommends that industry take the lead in expeditiously selecting a 
Governance Authority that will coordinate stakeholders to ensure that telephone calls can be 
authenticated.  The report also makes recommendations about the Governance Authority’s 
structure, duties, and relationship with a Policy Administrator, which will implement essential 
parts of the call authentication system.  Importantly, the NANC Report anticipates that the 
Governance Authority and Policy Administrator will be operational within the year, and that 
certain providers could be capable of signing and validating SHAKEN/STIR calls in this 
timeframe as well. 
To read the NANC’s call authentication recommendations, visit: https://go.usa.gov/xQQbU 
###
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This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action.  Release of the full text of a Commission order 
constitutes official action.  See MCI v. FCC, 515 F.2d 385 (D.C. Cir. 1974).