OTTAWA, ON- Ontario Provincial Police (OPP)are warning the public to any text based appearing to come from financial institutionsm retailers and others afte cybercriminals began “ramping up text-based scams” in a move to steal personal and banking information. The tactic, OPP say is known as “smishing”, a combination of “SMS” (short message service) and phishing. The tactic relies on “deceptive text messages to trick recipients into clicking malicious links or calling fraudulent numbers”. OPP said the smishing messages often appear to come from financial institutions, courier companies, online retailers or government agencies. Clicking on the links can lead to identity theft, financial fraud or malware being installed on your device. Examples of smishing attempts are available in the additional content section to help Ontarians recognize these scams. In 2024, the…
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