Removal of clickable links seen not enough to curb SMS scams

Despite the blocking of clickable links on SMS (short message service), a cybersecurity expert warned against the “workaround” employed by the hackers to keep on victimizing unsuspecting mobile subscribers.

Palo Alto Networks country manager Oscar Visaya, in a press briefing on Tuesday, said hackers have become more ingenious following the move of telecommunication firms to foil messages containing clickable links and URL (uniform resource locator) shorteners.

Hackers have found a way to evade detection of clickable links, Visaya said.

Such links are being used to trick users into giving out personal information, such as bank accounts and contact details. The hackers do so by offering fake job opportunities or lottery winnings to entice victims into clicking the links.

“Now the scammers are really good that instead of putting in a URL, they will text you and tell you [that] you need to type [the link],” he explained.

“There is an instruction … that you have to type in your mobile phone the URL, which means that within the body of the text message, there is actually no URL,” he added, explaining this was the hackers “workaround” the safety measures by the telco players.

Cybercrime Investigation and Coordination Center deputy executive director Mary Rose Magsaysay, on the sidelines of the same event, confirmed that “some” of the suspects behind the recent text scam surge were funded by foreign syndicates, validating an earlier report by PLDT Inc. She said that the financial loss involved in the text scams could reach “millions of dollars.”

On Tuesday, Palo Alto inked a memorandum of understanding with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to enhance the cybersecurity technical capacity of the country.

Palo Alto and USAID, under this collaboration, will craft programs to develop the local information and communications technology ecosystem through training and certifications, among others.

“Governments are modernizing their networks to take advantage of digital innovations and improve the way they communicate with citizens. As they modernize their IT (information technology) infrastructure, their cybersecurity must keep pace with these developments,” Visaya said.