CRTC directs public disclosure of some Bell call blocking info

The CRTC directed BCE Inc. to put on the public record responses to a number of questions about the proprietary artificial intelligence-based fraud call blocking mechanism the company began testing in July 2020. In a decision released Tuesday, the regulator instructed Bell to answer questions about the call blocking system by May 7. Specifically, the CRTC wants to know how a customer on another Canadian carrier's network would know that their number might have been erroneously blocked by Bell, whether or not Bell informs other carriers of the numbers that Bell has blocked. It also wants to know, how can other carriers determine when numbers have been erroneously blocked, or how international callers learn that they have been blocked, if Bell is not informing other carriers of the blocking of specific numbers. The commission also wants to know if Bell has undertaken a Privacy Impact Assessment or an Algorithmic Impact Assessment for the call blocking system, and if it hasn't, why the company hasn't done so. Bell first applied to the CRTC to test out the call blocking system in July 2019, redacting from the public the details of the blocking mechanism so as not to alert "to bad actors our detection mechanisms,” according to the original filing. The CRTC approved the 90-day trial for the call blocking scheme in July 2020, but not before a number of intervenors objected, including the Canadian chapter of the Internet Society which at the time said that it “strongly opposes allowing Bell to collect metadata on calls which merely transit its network and in addition block them.” In January 2020, Bell allowed a number of intervenors to take a look at how the call blocking mechanism worked, provided they sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with the company. After signing the NDA and getting a look at Bell's methodology, the Internet Society told the CRTC it still had concerns, saying in March 2020 that “we find no additional information to address our major concerns with this application – notably the issues of network neutrality and competition raised by ourselves and other interveners in this proceeding.” Among those concerns was whether Bell should be able to block calls that merely transit its network, but the CRTC said -- in approving the trial last July -- it accepts Bell’s “submission that it is not technologically possible for them to limit the proposed trial and associated call-blocking system to terminating calls or to implement an opt-in procedure, and that with the exception of traffic terminating on their own networks, they are unable to determine which would be the terminating carrier of a given call.” Applying for an indefinite extension of the scheme in September, Bell said the results of the first month of the trial, from July 15 to Aug. 15, were very encouraging, blocking over 66 million fraudulent or scam calls, without an “identified false positive.” The CRTC granted the extension in October. In the decision released Tuesday, the commission also directed Bell to publicly file abridged versions of the company's monthly trial reports. The commission is also allowing anyone who wants to get a look at the call blocking mechanism -- provided they sign the NDA -- to tell the commission and Bell by May 7. Bell can object to particular signatories by May 17. Responding to concerns about the use of NDAs in CRTC proceedings, the commission wrote in its decision Tuesday that "the circumstances in this proceeding that justify the use of NDAs are unusual, and the use of NDAs in this process will not lead to a new trend," and argued that its legal authority to allow for a company to use NDAs exists under subsection 39(4) of the Telecommunications Act. –Reporting by Michael Lee-Murphy at mleemurphy@thewirereport.ca and editing by Jenna Cocullo at jcocullo@thewirereport.ca.

CRTC directs public disclosure of some Bell call blocking info

News | April 28, 2021

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CRTC directs public disclosure of some Bell call blocking info

News | April 28, 2021

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