CelcomDigi Rolls Out Voice Firewall Across Malaysia, Flags 355 Million Scam Calls in Pilot

TLDR

• CelcomDigi deploys voice firewall network-wide to flag scam calls in real time
• Pilot detected 355 million malicious call attempts including 217 million robocalls
• Suspicious incoming calls now show “Suspected Scam” alerts on customers’ phones
• Complements CelcomDigi’s existing SMS firewall for message-level protection
• Part of broader A.C.T. framework and S.A.F.E. Internet awareness programme

A Network-Level Defence Against Scam Calls

CelcomDigi Berhad has rolled out a voice firewall across its core network, giving the operator a real-time view of call traffic and the ability to flag suspicious calls before they ring on a customer’s phone. The system, which complements CelcomDigi’s existing SMS firewall, adds another layer of protection for the telco’s 20.3 million customers nationwide.

Unlike app-based call screening, the voice firewall lives inside CelcomDigi’s core network and analyses call patterns and risk indicators with high precision. Incoming calls that match known scam or robocall signatures are tagged with a “Suspected Scam” alert on the recipient’s phone, giving them a chance to ignore the call before picking up.

355 Million Calls Flagged in the Pilot

During the pilot phase, the technology detected 355 million malicious and suspicious call attempts, including 217 million robocalls. Since the nationwide rollout in July, the system has been operating continuously, surfacing risk scores on suspicious traffic in real time.

“As more of our daily lives move online, intelligent and secure networks must evolve beyond providing fast and reliable connectivity,” CelcomDigi Chief Technology Officer Kesavan Sivabalan said. “We are continuously building greater intelligence into our network to detect suspicious activity earlier and intervene where possible and help customers make safer decisions.”

Part of a Wider Anti-Scam Push

The voice firewall is one piece of CelcomDigi’s broader A.C.T. framework — building Awareness, driving internal Compliance while supporting enforcement agencies, and leveraging Technology to combat cybercrime. Alongside the technology, the operator continues to run its S.A.F.E. Internet programme and nationwide scam awareness initiatives aimed at equipping Malaysians with the knowledge to recognise fraud attempts.

The telco is also continuing to operate its SMS firewall, which detects and filters malicious and prohibited messages at the network level — meaning that even before scam messages reach a customer’s inbox, they are dropped or flagged.

Our Take

Network-level call screening is exactly the kind of intervention Malaysian regulators have been pushing for, and the pilot numbers — 355 million detections, 217 million robocalls — show the scale of the problem in a way that app-based screening never could. For customers, the practical benefit is straightforward: a “Suspected Scam” tag on incoming calls turns an otherwise ambiguous decision (pick up? ignore?) into an informed one, which is the whole point of the feature.

The limitation, as always with carrier-side filtering, is that scammers adapt. New numbers, new caller-ID spoofing tricks and AI-generated voice scams will keep testing the system’s detection rules. CelcomDigi will need to keep updating its risk models to stay ahead — but the fact that it has now stood up both voice and SMS firewalls in the same network gives it a much stronger starting position than operators relying solely on consumer-side apps.

For Malaysian users on other networks — Maxis, U Mobile, Unifi, Yes — the question is whether they will roll out similar protections, or whether CelcomDigi’s first-mover advantage becomes a competitive talking point.

Source

• CelcomDigi

Baca versi Bahasa Malaysia: Cubatek