PLDT Enterprise has expanded its SmartSafe authentication and fraud prevention suite with three network APIs designed to help businesses verify customers and assess potentially fraudulent digital activity.
The company introduced GeoCheck, NetIdentity and RoamStatus at its SmartSafe Authentication API Launch in Parañaque City on October 8. The APIs use mobile network signals to provide businesses with additional information when assessing logins, transactions and other digital interactions.
PLDT Enterprise describes SmartSafe as the Philippines’ first telco-enabled digital fraud management API suite to receive global certification from the GSMA.
“Digital security should make people feel safer without making every transaction harder,” said Blums Pineda, chairman of ePLDT and head of PLDT Enterprise’s Enterprise Business Group.
How the new SmartSafe APIs work
The three APIs provide different signals that businesses can use when deciding whether an interaction requires additional verification.
NetIdentity covers SIM and device checks. Its capabilities include SIM Swap and Device Swap APIs, which can indicate whether a SIM associated with a mobile number was recently changed or moved to another physical device. Businesses can use these signals to assess whether a login or transaction warrants further review.
GeoCheck provides network-based location intelligence to help organizations check whether a user is in the general vicinity of a transaction location.
RoamStatus indicates whether a mobile phone is being used domestically or while roaming abroad. PLDT Enterprise said the API provides a roaming-status response without requiring businesses to depend on location information supplied by the user.
Together, the APIs give businesses additional context for evaluating digital activity. They can complement existing security measures by flagging changes in SIM status, device usage, location or roaming activity that may warrant closer scrutiny.
“Fraud continues to evolve, so protecting customers cannot depend on a single signal or a single security step,” said Nico Alcoseba, first vice president and head of Enterprise Product Management and Innovations at PLDT Enterprise.
SmartSafe builds on network-based authentication
The expanded API suite forms part of PLDT Enterprise and Smart’s broader work on network APIs, which make selected mobile network capabilities available to businesses through standardized interfaces.
PLDT Enterprise has also introduced SmartSafe SilentAccess, which uses Smart’s network to verify users without requiring them to manually enter traditional one-time passwords in supported customer journeys. Potential applications include onboarding, logins, higher-value transactions and account recovery, according to the company.
Smart previously became the first Philippine telecommunications provider to receive GSMA Open Gateway API certification for Number Verification. Subsequent certifications and developments have expanded its network API capabilities for enterprise authentication and fraud prevention.
Security without added friction
The SmartSafe Authentication API Launch included a product presentation and panel discussion featuring PLDT Enterprise leaders from its wireless platforms, product innovation and product development teams. Discussions focused on digital trust, enterprise security and the role of network APIs as more customer interactions move online.
For businesses, network-based verification can provide additional signals without relying exclusively on information entered by customers. The new APIs are intended to help organizations make more informed risk assessments while keeping supported digital transactions straightforward.
“Trust is built in the small moments when customers log in, make a payment, access an account, or simply expect a digital service to work safely,” said Josh Montecillo, assistant vice president and head of Enterprise and International Wireless Product Management at PLDT Enterprise.
