In inviting texts, a subtext of trouble

Nagpur: Imagine getting an SMS from someone saying they are interested in dating you. This text message contains a link to a YouTube video, which further provides a link to a website. If this happens to you, instead of ‘doing as instructed’, report the video as being a spam and potential phishing tool.
While emails have been long used by spammers as a means of phishing, they are now using SMS services and bypassing URL filters under the guise of video links.This trend was discovered by IT security giant Symantec Corporation recently.
“Over the last few years, we have seen SMS spammers looking for new ways to bypass URL filters. However, the SMS message-size limitation doesn’t give much room for spammers to create complex or creative obfuscations. Along with this, if the phone doesn’t recognize the URL in the message, it does not make the link directly clickable, potentially reducing the number of visitors to the site,” observed the researchers who came across this novel phishing method. Evolving SMS spam filter technology has helped avoid many spamming activities over the years, it added.
“While email remains a significant attack vector for cybercriminals, Symantec’s Internet Security Threat Report Vol 20 released recently showed that there is a clear movement toward social media platforms. Social media scams are spreading rapidly and are equally lucrative for cybercriminals. With the rise in popularity of mobile dating apps, we believe more spammers may target mobile platforms with these types of campaigns,” said Ritesh Chopra, Country Manager, India, Norton by Symantec.
Whether cybercriminals are attacking computers, mobile phones or social networks, their ultimate goal is to obtain personal information including bank details, phone numbers and email IDs of friends and business associates, and even steal the target’s identity, he added. Chopra said user discretion and caution were the only ways to counter these.
Researchers believe spammers target users of a classifieds website by creating fake dating ads. Through these ads, they continuously mine phone numbers and email addresses for their future campaigns. Other adult-themed scammers have used this strategy in the past to obtain targets.