What Is STIR/SHAKEN?

STIR and SHAKEN are two halves of one idea. STIR, secure telephone identity revisited, defines how a calling number is signed. SHAKEN, signature-based handling of asserted information using tokens, defines how carriers deploy that signing across their networks. Together they let a receiving carrier ask a question that was impossible for most of telephony's history: did the network this call came from actually vouch for the number on the display.

The mechanism is a token added to the call as it originates. The originating carrier signs it using a certificate issued under the governance framework, and includes an attestation level reflecting what it knows about the caller. Carriers along the path can verify the signature and read the attestation, and the receiving carrier folds that into the analytics that decide whether a call is delivered plainly, delivered with a warning label, or blocked.

The Three Attestation Levels

• A, full attestation. The carrier authenticated the customer and confirmed their right to use the number presented. This is the level an established outbound operation dialing on its own numbers should be earning.
• B, partial attestation. The carrier authenticated the customer but cannot confirm the number. Common where numbers were obtained elsewhere and presented over a carrier that did not issue them.
• C, gateway attestation. The call arrived from another network and the signing carrier can vouch for neither the caller nor the number.

What It Does Not Do

The framework is routinely oversold. It does not stop unwanted calls, because a fully attested call can still be unwelcome and a signed number can still be reported. It does not guarantee delivery, since labelling remains an analytics decision made by the receiving carrier and the handset. And it is not universal: its mandatory form comes out of North American regulation, while other markets run their own caller-identity regimes on their own timelines. What it does do is make identity a fact a carrier asserts rather than a claim the calling party makes, which is a meaningful improvement to everything built on top of it.

How DialerBee Works With STIR/SHAKEN

Signing happens at the carrier, so a dialer's job is to present numbers the carrier can confirm you control. DialerBee is built for that. With BYOC you connect your own SIP trunks from any SIP-compatible provider, so your calls originate on a carrier that knows you and issued or registered your numbers. CLI verification in caller-ID pool control includes STIR/SHAKEN attestation where available, and caller ID ownership is exclusive to one tenant, so a number you are answerable for cannot be presented on another tenant's calls.

Around that, the platform gives you the controls that keep attestation worth having: named caller-ID pools mapped to the campaigns allowed to use them, selection modes covering local presence, round-robin, sequential and random, bulk number upload, and manual activation and deactivation. Carrier-level analytics show answer-rate breakdowns by carrier, region and time of day, so you can see how differently your markets treat your traffic. Spam-label behaviour is decided by carrier analytics and reputation providers, not by DialerBee, and varies by carrier, device and jurisdiction. For the outbound team's view of the framework, see our explainer on STIR/SHAKEN for outbound teams.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do the attestation levels A, B and C mean?

Attestation A, full attestation, means the originating carrier knows the customer and confirms their right to use the number presented. B, partial attestation, means the carrier knows the customer but cannot confirm the number. C, gateway attestation, means the call entered the carrier's network from elsewhere and it can vouch for neither. Downstream carriers use the level to inform how they treat the call.

Does STIR/SHAKEN stop spam calls?

No. It is an identity framework, not a blocking system. It lets a receiving carrier know whether the calling number was vouched for by the originating carrier, which makes analytics and enforcement more accurate. A legitimate call can still be labelled, and a signed call is not automatically delivered without a label.

Does STIR/SHAKEN apply outside the United States?

The framework originated with US and Canadian regulation and its mandatory application reflects that. Other jurisdictions have their own caller-identity and anti-spoofing regimes, some modelled on it and some not. Requirements vary by country and change, so confirm what applies in each market you dial rather than assuming one standard everywhere.

Who signs the call, the dialer or the carrier?

The originating carrier signs it. Signing requires a certificate issued under the governance framework and knowledge of the customer and the number, which sits with the carrier rather than with a dialing application. A dialer's role is to present numbers the carrier can vouch for.

How do you get the best attestation for your calls?

Present numbers your originating carrier knows you control, obtained from or registered with that carrier, and route consistently rather than moving traffic between paths. Full attestation depends on the carrier being able to confirm your right to use the number presented, so numbers you own on that carrier are the ones most likely to earn it.

Related terms: caller ID and local presence, DID, SIP trunk, BYOC and answer rate.