SMS may have become obsolete as a form of communication between private individuals in view of messenger services such as WhatsApp or Signal, but for companies the classic short message on the mobile phone still plays a central role because the delivery and opening rates are more than 90 percent.
However, the consumer protection department of the Upper Austrian Chamber of Labor warns that this will also attract fraudsters. While it used to be so-called phishing attacks, i.e. spying out access data via fake websites and e-mails, the focus is currently on smishing attacks.
The principle is similar to that of phishing attacks – with the difference that the attack takes place via misleading SMS. In most cases, anonymous senders send short messages asking them to click on links or provide personal information. However, thanks to special software solutions, it is also possible for SMS to come from known phone numbers and even appear in the official chat history of one’s own bank.
Bank99 currently frequently affected
According to the Chamber of Labor, this is often the case for the Post Bank99. The bank itself points this out on its website and warns customers against clicking on suspicious links in text messages. And: A bank never sends out e-mails or text messages requesting personal data.
Consumer protection advocates advise you to always read text messages received on your smartphone carefully and not to open the links immediately. Be particularly careful with spelling mistakes or anonymous senders. Likewise, users should avoid loading applications from unsafe sources onto their smartphones.
Source: Nachrichten
