Phones are constantly buzzing, and scammers know the easiest way to you is through your text messages.
Lately, many people are seeing more text messages from unknown numbers, saying things like “Unpaid highway toll detected on your vehicle. Pay now to avoid fines.” or “We’ve detected suspicious activity on your account – verify now”. Be on the lookout: it could be a common scam known as smishing.
What is smishing?
Smishing is a type of scam where fraudsters send text messages pretending to be trusted businesses, government agencies, or even people you know. They try to trick you into clicking malicious links or sharing sensitive information like passwords or credit card numbers. Their goal is to steal your personal data or money.
Warning signs
- Be cautious of text messages if:
- it comes unexpectedly from an unknown number
- it asks for personal info or requests you click a link
- it creates a sense of urgency
- it claims they are from a trusted business or bank to appear legitimate
Protect yourself
Take these steps to prevent becoming a victim:
- Verify the sender by contacting them through another medium, like the phone number on the official website
- Never click on suspicious links
- Delete smishing messages and block the number
- Ignore texts even if they ask to reply with “STOP” or “NO”
- Flag spam texts by forwarding them to 7726 (SPAM), helping your cellular provider investigate further
- Report suspicious texts. If you believe you’ve come across smishing, report it to Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre