Flood of forged packet SMS in circulation
At the moment there are probably more fake packet SMS in circulation than actual packets. Many Salzburg residents receive notifications by SMS on a daily basis. The variants of formulations are diverse, but they all have in common that they try to install malware on the cell phone.
Receiving the message is not dangerous
Receiving such a message is harmless, but it happens again and again that mobile phone users click on the link, for example because they are actually expecting a package or are distracted. In the worst case scenario, this could give fraudsters access to account details. “Android devices are more often affected than iOS devices. If you have an Android device and have clicked on the link, installed the instructions quickly and installed the program, then you should definitely contact the police, ”says Robert Meikl from the crime prevention department of the Salzburg State Office of Criminal Investigation.
Sender numbers are further injured parties
It is also important to switch on flight mode immediately. Finding the fraudsters is difficult, according to criminologists. “The Trojan continues to spread itself. If someone comes to us and has the Trojan on their cell phone and shows us the sender number, then that is not the real sender, but another victim, ”says Meikl.
For SMS: In spam folder and delete
In any case, you do not have to click on any links for actual parcel shipments, if you are unsure because you are expecting a package, you can ask the respective provider where you ordered the goods, but you can use the link included. If you receive such SMS, the messages should be reported as spam and deleted immediately.
Another attempt at fraud: Police officers ask for an account number
But attempts at fraud, such as the one in which criminals falsely pretend to be police officers, are currently appearing more and more in Salzburg. “The fraudsters state that they found account data during the house search and they ask people on the phone to reinstall a program that they can use to attempt fraud again,” says Meikl from the crime prevention department of the Salzburg State Criminal Police Office. In this case, the nearest police station should be contacted at 059-133.
Flood of forged packet SMS in circulation
Consumer advocates are currently warning mobile phone users against fake package SMS. If you click on the link in such short messages, you will install malware on your mobile phone. The experts advise blocking such sender numbers and reporting them to the regulatory authority.