Unveiling Smishing, the Dark Side of Crypto SMS

In an era
where free messenger apps have almost completely dominated traditional text
messages, it might seem that after over 30 years, popular “texts” have already
become obsolete. Although we do not use them in everyday communication, they
are still willingly used as a common medium for marketing and promotion.
Unfortunately, not only among legitimate businesses but also among scammers.

After conducting
our own analysis and conversations with industry experts Finance Magnates
can clearly confirm that SMS scams are still a common problem, especially in
the cryptocurrency industry. Unscrupulous actors exploit very simple loopholes
in outdated technology by impersonating popular brands, trying to steal user
data. Exchanges, on the other hand, are helpless to stop them and honestly
admit that nothing can be done about it. But, is that really the case?

90% of the
world’s population (over 7 billion people) use mobile phones. And, although the
vast majority of them get some kind of coverage, only half have regular access
to mobile internet.

Statistics
clearly show that in recent years the number of messages exchanged via internet
messengers has outclassed SMS. WhatsApp has 2.4 billion active users every month,
Facebook Messenger 2.1 billion, and WeChat gathers 1.2 billion.

Even with
these huge numbers, traditional texts are still the most common way to reach
the widest possible audience. For the purposes of this article, I specifically
reviewed my SMS history. 90% of them are advertisements or messages with
security codes used for logging into various services and two-factor
authentication (2FA). This is exactly where scammers see their chance. And, as
it turns out, the imperfect technology of sending SMS makes it much easier for
them.