Chances are, you’ve already heard about phishing emails, what they look like and what to avoid. Well, text phishing – better known as smishing, is the text equivalent. Want to know how to recognise a smishing text and what to do if you get 1? We’ve got everything you need to know.
What is smishing?
Like phishing emails, smishing’s used by scammers to get you to either click on a link – which they may then use to install malware on your phone, enter confidential info or call a premium rate number.
Spotting a smishing message
Smishing messages can be convincing, and it’s easy to mistake them for genuine messages. There are some signs you can look out for though.
Spelling mistakes
Careless spelling mistakes can be a clear sign something’s not quite right – keep an eye out for them.
Claims that your account’s in danger
Smishing messages usually tell you there’s an urgent issue with your account and that you need to act quickly or your account will be suspended or blocked. Scammers like to make you worry, hoping you’ll follow their instructions.
Another smishing example would be a message telling you ‘you’ve won something awesome’ or that you can get something for a bargain price, but only if you get in touch right away. With messages like this, our tip is that if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
What should you do if you get one?
Getting a dodgy-looking message can be worrying but, just receiving the message won’t affect the security of your personal info or phone. For the scam to work, you’d need to follow the instructions given in the message.
Is it genuine?
Contact the company it’s supposed to be from, using contact details from their official website – don’t use any contact info given in the message. They’ll let you know if it’s really from them or not.
Don’t click on any links
If you get a suspicious message, don’t click on any links unless you’re sure the message is genuine.
Think about it
Would the supposed sender really contact you like this? Most companies wouldn’t ask you to confirm sensitive info over text.
Don’t respond
Responding to smishing messages may lead you to being targeted again – it’s best to ignore and delete it.
Forward it to 7726
Forward the message to us on 7726 (free of charge), so we can investigate and act.
That’s everything you need to know about smishing but, if you’re worried about the security of your personal info, you can find out more on our Fraud and Security page.
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Source: Three Mobile Hub
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