CYBERSECURITY | Individual SIMs source of scam text messages — Smart
Smart Communications is committed to keep its customers safe against fraud.
SIM cards
With the recent spate of smishing attacks, Smart has intensified its efforts against malicious text messages that aim to defraud customers. In addition to blocking SIMs that send ‘smishing’ messages, Smart has also blocked Uniform Resource Locators (URL) linked to these illegal activities.
“Our recent investigation bared that these unscrupulous messages are being sent through individual SIMs,” said Angel Redoble, first vice president and chief information security officer of PLDT and Smart. “These messages do not originate from aggregators or their customers. There is no evidence to suggest a breach in our systems that would have given perpetrators access to the mobile numbers and names of our subscribers. Upon scrutiny of these spam messages, we have observed that the format of the names mimics the naming conventions used in popular digital services.”
Smart has beefed up its cybersecurity infrastructure to protect the personal information of its customers and to prevent criminals from breaching its network.
“We continue to work with the National Privacy Commission (NPC), the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), and law enforcement agencies to assist in efforts to identify the perpetrators,” said Leah Jimenez, first vice president and chief data privacy officer of PLDT and Smart. “At this early stage, and pending completion of investigations, we believe it prudent to hold off on any conclusion. Our focus should be on identifying the source of these scam messages.”
“We will also be undertaking public awareness campaigns to equip our texting public with the capability to identify illegitimate messages so that they can protect themselves from being fraud victims,” said Cathy Yang, first vice president and corporate communications group head, PLDT and Smart.
PLDT and Smart have been fortifying their cybersecurity infrastructure, investing nearly ₱3 billion in 2021, to safeguard the public against emerging cyber threats and vulnerabilities, including online fraud and other criminal activities.
Smart’s efforts to detect and block malicious messages, including SIMs and websites tied to fraudulent activities, are part of a much broader program to elevate the quality of customer experience by protecting them from threats and attacks.
