For Government

Working with the Industry Traceback Group

The Industry Traceback Group, or ITG, plays a central and ever-growing role in the battle against illegal calls, including illegal robocalls. Relying on the cooperation of thousands of voice service providers from across the globe, the ITG traces back each day numerous examples of the most prolific and harmful ongoing illegal call campaigns, representing millions of illegal calls targeting consumers.

The ITG, designated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as the official U.S. Traceback Consortium, prides itself on its close partnership with government agencies to provide information they need to bring enforcement against the perpetrators of illegal robocalls. The ITG regularly collaborates with dozens of distinct federal and state enforcement agencies, and ITG tracebacks have supported enforcement actions targeting over 100 individuals and entities. The ITG stands ready to assist additional agencies in bringing illegal callers to justice, and increasingly is working with government agencies and voice service providers in jurisdictions other than the United States to identify and stop illegal calls.

How a Traceback Works

The origination, delivery, and termination of robocalls involves numerous voice service providers in a complex ecosystem. Using a secure traceback portal developed by the ITG, suspected illegal calls are traced systematically back through various networks until the ITG identifies the originator of the suspicious calls, where the calls entered the country if internationally originated, and the identity of the calling party. The ITG traces the call back from the recipient to the caller – usually routing through four or more, or sometimes as many as nine or ten service providers (or “hops”) across the globe.

Tracebacks do more than just find out where the calls are coming from. Tracebacks directly disrupt illegal call campaigns as most completed ITG tracebacks result in the caller kicked off of its provider’s network.

The ITG regularly traces back calls based on requests from law enforcement and government partners. The calls the ITG traces back run the gamut from high-volume fraud campaigns to telephony denial-of-service attacks against public safety and other critical entities to spoofed calls posing safety-of-life threats. The traceback process can overcome spoofing to identify the source of illegal calls.

Please note that there are limits to the number of tracebacks the ITG can run, and therefore the ITG cannot guarantee that it will conduct every traceback requested of it. For more guidance on submitting traceback requests, please click the link below:

If you would like to submit a subpoena, civil investigative demand, or other legal process, please send to [email protected].

For all other questions, please complete an inquiry form.