The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Tuesday, Aug. 9, issued another public reminder to stay alert against fraudulent text messages and unsolicited emails, also known as SMiShing which is a variant of phishing.
These malicious texts or emails have links that redirect the mobile user to highly suspicious websites, warned the BSP.
SmiShing is another phishing scam where a fraudster sends a text message to trick a user into clicking on a malicious link. “This malicious link, when clicked, automatically downloads malwares and/or redirects to websites that collect information that may be used for fraud,” said the BSP.
The central bank is again advising the public to protect their personal information and to carefully scrutinize messages even if these appear to be coming from banks, e-money issuers, or known companies or brands.
“The BSP reiterates that legitimate financial institutions will not ask for personal details and/or account credentials (e.g., username, password, OTP or one-time pin/password) from their customers via text messages or by sending links to websites,” said the BSP.
Such websites may have been created by scammers to trick a user into disclosing login credentials, personal data, bank or credit card details or passwords, and to introduce mobile malware, it added.
“While these websites may seem legitimate, fraudulent sites often have errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and grammar. Banks, e-money issuers, and legitimate…
