IIC USA Chapter – International Spam and Scam Communications Forum

Loyaan A. Egal is Chief of Enforcement at the Federal Communications Commission and also leads the FCC’s Privacy and Data Protection Task Force.

He previously served as Deputy Chief in the Foreign Investment Review Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Security Division where he oversaw DOJ’s interagency role as Chair of the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector (informally known as Team Telecom). Mr Egal was a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern District of New York and the District of Columbia and clerked for U.S. District Judge Alia Moses.

Mr Egal received his undergraduate degree from St. John’s University and his law degree at the Howard University School of Law.

Ivana Kriznic is Verizon’s head of public policy for Canada, Latin America and Emerging Markets. She started her legal career in private practice at the law firm of Morrison and Foerster and worked thereafter in different legal, regulatory, compliance, privacy, government affairs, and policy positions for AT&T, BT and Orange.

Ms Kriznic has been recently appointed Co-Secretary of the Hispanic National Bar Association Corporate Counsel Division. She is also part of Verizon PPLS Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council, co-leading the International Committee and of SOMOS (Verizon Latinx employee resource group) acting as one of the Communications Coordinator.

Ms Kriznic received her LL.M. from Columbia University School of Law and her legal degree from Universidad de Buenos Aires in Argentina. She also holds a master degree in Telecommunications Management, a bachelor degree in International Affairs and she has been certified as an information privacy professional by the International Association of Privacy Professionals.

Jacquelynn (Jackie) Ruff has more than 25 years of experience in global law and public policy around policy frameworks for digital services, Internet governance, digital trade, expansion of broadband connectivity, and women and technology. Since February 2019 she has been a consulting counsel at the law firm of Wiley Rein where she provides legal, regulatory and public policy guidance on international issues impacting telecom, media, and technology industries.

Previously, Ms Ruff was Vice President of International Government Relations and Policy at Verizon Communications. Her responsibilities included leading work in international organisations such as the UN International Telecommunication Union, the OECD, ICANN, and the Internet Governance Forum, and regional organisations CITEL and APEC. She also represented Verizon on federal advisory committees to the US Department of State, the US Trade Representative, and the US Department of Commerce. Ms Ruff was a board member of the US Telecom Training Institute and co-chair of the Digital Trade group of the US Council for International Business, and she participated in the Policy and Spectrum Groups of the GSM Association. She is currently a Director of the International Institute of Communications. She is also a professorial lecturer at the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs.

Ms Ruff joined Verizon in 2004 from the International Bureau of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), where she was Associate Chief and Chief of Staff for the Bureau. Previously she practiced with the communications and Latin America groups of an international law firm and served as staff for a US Senate Committee.

She has a BA from Radcliffe College/Harvard University, MA from Harvard University, and JD from the Georgetown University Law Center.

Jeffrey J. Gee is a partner at Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP, where he advises telecommunications and media clients on regulatory enforcement, compliance, and licensing matters. Prior to joining WBK, Mr. Gee served in the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau for over a decade, including as Chief of the Investigations and Hearings Division. In that role, he led hundreds of investigations and enforcement proceedings across all service areas regulated by the FCC, including s, telecommunications and wireless services, broadband Internet access service, and broadcasting, cable and satellite operations.  Cases overseen by Mr. Gee included precedent-setting matters involvingconsumer protection, broadband transparency requirements, sponsorship identification, indecency, privacy, public safety, and the prevention of waste, fraud, and abuse in federal funding programs. Prior to joining the FCC, Mr. Gee was a partner in a DC area communications law firm, counseling media clients in complex regulatory and transactional matters. Mr. Gee is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center and Syracuse University.

Jeremy Fenton is the Executive Manager for the Consumer, Consent and Numbers Branch at the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). He is responsible for enforcement of Australia’s spam and telemarketing laws, the Do Not Call Register, the regulation of Australia’s numbering arrangements and the ACMA’s phone scam disruption initiatives. He is also responsible for the soon to be launched BetStop – the national self-exclusion register for online and telephone wagering.

Mr Fenton has over 19 years’ experience in the communications and media regulatory environment, spanning unsolicited communications, telecommunications, broadcasting and content regulation, content classification and online child protection initiatives.

Mr Fenton has a BA (Communication) from the University of Technology, Sydney and a Diploma in Government (Investigations) from the College for Law, Education and Training.

Johannes Vallesverd is a Senior Lgal Advisor at Nkom where he works on compliance assessments, anti-fraud, emergency communication and regulations.

Mr Vallesverd has previously chaired the CEPT ECC Working Group on numbering and Networks. He is the chair of the Norwegian national expertgroup against ecom-fraud. He is also active in the creation of Global Informal Regulatory Antifraud Forum, GIRAF.

Bio coming soon…

Lynn Robinson became Director General of the International Institute of Communications (IIC), in March 2020.

Lynn is an experienced senior director and trustee / non exec-director, having held key senior leadership positions in the technology, built environment, regulation, accreditation and dental industries. She has extensive experience of professional membership bodies working within the full spectrum including, Regulatory bodies, Industry associations and Chambers of Commerce. Lynn is a well-known and established ambassador in these areas having led on many strategic programmes to aid engagement, growth, retention, change management, stakeholder and political engagement.

An experienced Trustee / Non-Executive Director as Vice Chair at Arnos Vale Cemetery Trust, a unique heritage site in the heart of Bristol (UK), Lynn is also a Trustee / Non-Executive Director at The Bristol and Bath (UK), Parks Foundation.

Reflecting on becoming Director General at the IIC at the outbreak of a pandemic, Lynn said, ‘these last two years have been like no other we have known, with many challenges coming our way. In 2020 we successfully pivoted the organisation through a digital transformation programme to maintain a full schedule of events and by increasing the outputs delivered. Transforming the programme enabled us to continue to deliver the professional service and increase our engagement with IIC members and stakeholder community to remain connected to them through such a difficult time.

As we move through 2022, I am delighted to return to a combined in-person and online programme and to continue to evolve the IIC in to the next phase, with the vision and strategic focus to deliver our objectives and to build on our growth, engagement and retention’.

Marina Gibbs is a Policy Director in Ofcom’s Network and Communications Group directing projects across the telecoms and postal sectors. Ms Gibbs has led a number of regulatory projects including telecoms market reviews, projects aimed at securing better outcomes for consumers of communications services as well as strategies aimed at ensuring the longer term sustainability of the universal postal service. Since 2022, Ms Gibbs has been leading Ofcom’s strategy for combatting telecoms scams through the use of both formal regulatory tools but also collaboration with stakeholders across the broader echo system aimed at securing a more joined up approach.

Prior to joining Ofcom in 2007, Ms Gibbs was a Partner with boutique strategy consulting firm Spectrum Strategy Consultants focused on the telecoms and media sectors where she advised telecoms operators, the investment community, regulators and policy makers globally on strategic issues ranging from the design and implementation of corporate strategies, to the undertaking of commercial due diligence of opportunities in the telecoms and tech sectors and the development of regulatory strategies for regulated entities and policy makers.

Ms Gibbs is a regular speaker at conferences and events and has had extensive international engagement with stakeholders in the sectors Ofcom regulates.

Ms Gibbs has also served as a lay non-executive director of the Legal Services Board, the oversight regulator for the legal profession in England and Wales and is currently a Trustee for GambleAware a charity focused on research, prevention and treatment of gambling harms.

Ms Gibbs has an MBA from the University of Bradford in the UK and a Bachelors and Masters degrees in applied modern languages from the University of Grenoble in France.

Matt Gerst offers practical and effective solutions to communications and
technology companies facing unique and complex legal and regulatory
challenges. Throughout his career, Matt has helped these companies to enable
and expand communications services and internet access, to advance
innovation and opportunity, and to enhance trust, safety, and security in the
communications ecosystem.

Prior to joining WBK, Matt had a front-row seat to the smartphone revolution
and advocated for policies that helped the wireless industry deliver on the
promises of 4G and 5G as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs for CTIA. Most
recently, he developed consensus-driven policy positions and advocated
before the U.S. government on a variety of issues for internet and technology
companies. Matt has served in leadership roles on several of the Federal
Communications Commission’s advisory committees, as well as the Universal
Service Administrative Company’s Board of Directors.

Peter Moran is the Senior Manager of the Network Operations Unit within the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) in Ireland. He heads up the Network Operations Unit, which is responsible for, among other things:

• evaluating the resilience, performance and integrity of operators’ networks;
• managing and collating the reporting of network incidents across all electronic communications networks and services areas;
• providing technical support to the regulatory activities of all of the divisions across ComReg, relating to all communications network issues, including the access, backhaul and core elements of networks;
• overseeing the implementation of mandated, targeted interventions by the industry to mitigate scam calls and scam messaging; and
• taking an active and enduring role in the mitigation and prevention of scam calls and scam messaging to help restore trust in Ireland’s telecommunications services.

Philippe Millet is the Founder and Chair of the i3Forum, an organization of the international communications industry that he created in 2008 to foster collaboration in the ecosystem. Philippe also led the creation of One Consortium to restore trust in international communications, in 2024, and sits on the Leadership Council of that new organization. He has over 25 years experience in international telecommunications, in various senior executive roles for Orange.

Steven was appointed Chief Compliance and Enforcement Officer (CCEO) at the CRTC in November 2016. He is responsible for the enforcement of the Unsolicited Telecommunication Rules, Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation, and the Voter Contact Registry.

As the CCEO, Steven Harroun’s leadership approach is to promote compliance with the applicable legislation and regulations through education and outreach and, when necessary, encourage and enforce compliance through both traditional and innovative approaches.

Mr Harroun joined Canada’s converged communications regulator in 2002 and has developed his expertise in both broadcasting and telecommunications through various positions of increasing responsibility. As Director General, Strategic Policy from 2012-2016, Mr Harroun led the development and implementation of key Commission policies, including the Wireless Code of Conduct, Video Relay Service, and Broadband Performance Measurement, through his leadership of the Social and Consumer Policy, Network Technology and Strategic Policy and International Affairs teams.

Mr Harroun began his federal public service career in 1999 with the Canada Revenue Agency, following several years in the private sector.

Mr Harroun has a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree (accounting and management double major), Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Nova Scotia.