Smishing, or SMS (text) phishing, is the act of committing text message fraud to try to lure victims into revealing account information or installing malware. A typical smishing scam message may seem like it's from a bank – maybe your bank – and include a link or phone number to bait you into clicking or calling. If you do, you stand a good chance of being hooked. And that's when the scammers get to work, manipulating your personal information, which they can sell and/or use in other scams. Smishers may also try to entice you into downloading malware to your device.
Don’t be misled by smishing scams. Remember the following:
Contact the bank, government agency, or company that the scam artist is impersonating so it can alert others and work with law enforcement to investigate the activity. Forward smishing messages to short code 7726—which spells “SPAM” on your keypad. Doing so allows cell phone carriers to identify the senders of smishing messages and take steps to limit messages from them going forward. File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”). These agencies enforce the laws regarding scam calls and text messages. You may contact the FTC and FCC as follows: Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20580 (877) 382-4357 TTY: (866) 653-4261 www.consumer.ftc.gov Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street SW Washington, D.C. 20554 (888) 225-5322 www.fcc.gov
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