Gold award recognizes First Orion's integrated approach to fraud prevention and trusted business communications
Key Takeaways
- Award recognition: First Orion earned Gold in the Regulatory Tech (RegTech) & Fraud Prevention category of the 2026 Merit Technology Awards.
- Integrated fraud prevention: First Orion combines verified business identity, call authentication, and network-based spoof protection to help financial institutions and other enterprises protect their brands and establish trusted communications.
- Broad carrier protection: First Orion's SENTRY® spoof protection is available across all major U.S. mobile carriers.
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Nov. 10, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- First Orion, a leading provider of branded communication solutions, today announced that it has won Gold in the Regulatory Tech (RegTech) & Fraud Prevention category of the 2026 Merit Technology Awards. The award recognizes the company's work to combine verified business identity, call authentication, and network-based spoof protection to help protect businesses and consumers from fraudulent impersonation.
Financial institutions depend on phone calls to verify transactions, alert customers to suspicious activity, and resolve account issues. Yet phone number spoofing and impersonation fraud can make it difficult for consumers to distinguish legitimate calls from fraudulent ones, creating challenges for organizations that need to reach their customers.
First Orion addresses these challenges through SENTRY Call Blocking, which helps participating mobile operators identify and block calls that fraudulently spoof protected business telephone numbers. Available across all major U.S. mobile carriers, SENTRY helps businesses protect against fraudulent impersonation by blocking calls that spoof their protected telephone numbers.
“Businesses face the ongoing challenge of protecting their customers and their brands from fraudulent impersonation,” said Scott Hambuchen, CEO of First Orion. “Protecting business identity requires stopping fraudulent calls before they reach consumers, not simply helping people recognize suspicious calls after the fact. This recognition from the Merit Awards underscores the importance of stopping impersonation at the network level to better protect businesses and the customers who trust them.”
The Merit Technology Awards recognize technology companies, products, and platforms for innovation, demonstrated impact, and customer outcomes. Entries were evaluated by judges representing industry analysts, technology media, investors, and senior industry practitioners.
About First Orion
First Orion is a global leader in branded communication solutions, helping businesses, carriers, and consumers make every connection more transparent, trusted, and secure. As the pioneer of branded calling, First Orion delivers branded communication solutions that improve engagement, strengthen brand trust, and help combat fraud, spoofing, and unwanted communications. Headquartered in North Little Rock, Arkansas, First Orion serves leading enterprises and mobile operators worldwide. For more information, visit https://firstorion.com/.
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