The Smartnumbers consortium conference in June brought together industry leaders, customers and partners to share experiences, best practices and fresh insights into the fraud landscape. The event highlighted the power of collaboration – across organisations, industries and even internal teams – in the fight against increasingly sophisticated criminal tactics.
When we first launched our in-person consortium events three years ago, the goal was simple: to bring people together. For our CEO Jamie Melling, these gatherings have always been about more than sharing information – they’re about creating a genuine community.
“I’ve never liked the idea of a ‘run-of-the-mill’ event where we stand at the front of the room and talk at our audience,” Jamie explained. “Instead, we focus on creating interactive sessions where ideas can flow, the data dots can be connected and people can collaborate.”
That approach has proven hugely valuable. The consortium conference attracts both existing customers and prospects, creating a space where organisations can share real-world counter-fraud challenges, learn from each other and take away practical insights. “These gatherings give us the chance to connect not only with our customers – so they can share what they’re doing day-to-day and we can talk through our analysis, reports and insights – but also to invite prospects to hear directly from those customers,” Jamie added.
Our role in fraud prevention has also evolved. From an initial focus solely on contact centre fraud, Smartnumbers is now helping shape the wider agenda. We work with cross-channel fraud teams, contribute to multiple fraud advisory boards and work with the Home Office to inform government policy. “Our role has become one of leadership – bringing together data, insights and organisations from different sectors to align defences and fight fraud more effectively,” Jamie said. “These consortium events are the perfect platform to continue that mission, sparking the conversations and connections that help our whole industry move forward.”
Tim Burton, our Chief Product and Success Officer, highlighted how those conversations translate into value for customers. “The highlight of the consortium event was having conversations with our customers about best practices,” Tim said. “It was great to dive into the details of how they use our products and showcase the value they’re seeing in terms of the KPIs that matter most to them.”
Tim also emphasised the importance of spotting common ground in how organisations approach challenges. “That’s always a good sign when you’re building products,” he noted. He pointed to a 469% year-on-year increase in the number of profiles of known fraudsters updated in the platform and warned that criminals are increasingly focused on using the contact centre to steal information rather than simply cashing out. This shift, fuelled by the use of AI at scale, makes collaboration across and within organisations more important than ever.
That same point was echoed by Pete Moorhead, one of our Account Directors, who noted that the same threats span every sector. “The same criminal gangs targeting banks are also targeting telco companies, carrying out SIM swaps and device thefts… They’re the same gangs going after our airline clients with payment fraud, booking fraud, and loyalty theft,” he said.
Pete underlined the importance of intelligence-sharing across industries. “Because these are the same gangs targeting multiple industries, businesses need to work together rather than fight fraud in isolation,” he explained. “Smartnumbers helps organisations join forces by enabling them to share fraud intelligence through the platform and at events like this, so they can identify new criminal gangs they might not have been aware of before.”
Taken together, the voices of Jamie, Tim, and Pete highlight why collaboration is central to our mission. The consortium is more than just an event – it’s a community where organisations connect, share intelligence, and align their defences. And that’s how, together, we’ll stay ahead of fraudsters.
