STIR: Secure Telephone Identity Revisited
STIR/SHAKEN is the industry framework that verifies caller identity and helps prevent spoofed calls from reaching consumers. For enterprises, this authentication layer plays a major role in call delivery, brand trust, and overall number reputation.
To reduce the volume of illegal robocalls and caller ID spoofing, the FCC mandated STIR/SHAKEN as an industry-wide authentication standard.
This framework verifies the identity of the caller at the point of origination, ensuring traceability and accountability across all carriers.
It also supports law enforcement efforts through the Industry Traceback Group.
The FCC requires voice service providers to either implement STIR/SHAKEN or register an alternative robocall mitigation plan.
If not, your domestic voice traffic may be blocked. Inclusion in the Robocall Mitigation Database is essential for maintaining call deliverability.
STIR/SHAKEN helps shape how caller identity is verified across the voice ecosystem. Understanding what the framework is, how attestation levels work, and why the checkmark appears on certain calls helps clarify how authentication affects enterprise call delivery.
STIR/SHAKEN is a caller ID authentication framework designed to reduce illegal robocalls and call spoofing. It assigns a digital certificate of authenticity to each call as it moves through the telecom network, making call origins traceable and secure.
Originating providers must “attest” a call by assigning it with a trust level based on their relationship with the caller and the call’s origin. These attestation levels are:
Some devices display a checkmark if the call passes authentication:
This visual indicator shows that the call was authenticated under STIR/SHAKEN. However, the display depends on the carrier’s participation and the device’s technical capability.
Numeracle supports the delegated certificate model and can help ensure proper attestation flow once the standards body fully adopts the implementation.
The Robocall Mitigation Database (RMD) is a centralized compliance tool created by the FCC to support the STIR/SHAKEN call authentication mandate.
All voice service providers (VSPs) operating in the U.S. must file in the database to legally originate or carry calls.
Providers must describe how they prevent unlawful robocalls. This includes technical solutions, analytics, traceback participation, and authentication procedures.
What's in a Mitigation Plan?
A plan might include STIR/SHAKEN attestation practices, caller ID vetting processes, and participation in traceback protocols.
If you're a business that places outbound calls — like a call center, BPO, or enterprise brand — you don’t directly implement STIR/SHAKEN. Instead, your voice service provider (VSP) is responsible for authenticating your calls on your behalf.
However, your ability to display Caller Verified indicators (e.g., green checkmarks or branded caller ID) still depends on:
Learn how Numeracle helps enterprises display verified calls
As a VSP, you're on the front lines of STIR/SHAKEN compliance. You must:
Failing to properly identify the calling entity or ensure attestation integrity can result in blocked calls, lower delivery rates, or reputational damage.
Discover how Numeracle enables trusted call delivery for providers
Numeracle, alongside Comcast, Twilio, Everbridge, and NetNumber, made telecom history by completing the first-ever telephone call powered by authenticated Caller ID and Rich Call Data (RCD) using the STIR/SHAKEN framework.
This pioneering proof-of-concept used RCD PASSporT technology to:
