PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY Don’t get smashed by a ‘smish’

Don’t get smashed by a ‘Smish’

PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY

Gene Rubel the Digital Device Doctor, cures digital anxiety for seniors and home/ home-office users. A graduate of Harvard Business School, “Doctor Gene” spent more than 30 years in international business. He can be reached at generubel@gmail.com.

If you’re not familiar with the term “smishing,” it’s time for an introduction.

You may be familiar with the term “phishing,” It refers to a bogus email campaign – a fishing expedition – to get people to open a link that either plants malicious software on a device or gets people to divulge personal information, such as financial or medical info or a Social Security number. The idea is that if a cybercriminal throws enough “click bait” out there, somebody will bite, leading to a payoff.

“Smishing” is a similar tactic that uses text messaging. It gets its name from SMS – Short Message Service – the technical name for a text sent to a mobile device. It’s a term that seniors should get used to because texting has become a default way for many to communicate. That may frustrate those of us who wish our kids and grandkids would just pick up the phone and call, but in today’s mobile world, they text.

The criminals behind the attacks are hoping that you don’t even know the term “smishing” exists and that you are completely trusting of anything that shows up in a text message. With some 3.5 billion smartphones in use worldwide, it’s worth a shot for them. Smishing attacks are up a reported 300 percent in the past two years.

As with email, opening and reading a text message won’t infect your mobile phone. The danger lies in downloading an infected file or clicking on a malicious website link.

Most smishing attacks work like email phishing. The attacker sends a message enticing the user to click a link or asks for a reply that contains the targeted user’s private data. They’re looking for online account credentials, private information that could be used in identity theft, or financial data that can be used in online fraud.

Your best defense against a smishing attack is a deep breath. Give yourself a second or two to take another look. Am I expecting a package? Does this look like a normal tracking number from UPS or FedEx? You can safely check on a delivery notice by writing down the tracking number and then using your browser to go to the appropriate website to enter the number.

Here are some steps you can take: ■ Don’t respond to a phone number you don’t know. ■ Messages received from a number with only a few digits probably came from an email address, which is a sign of spam.

■ Don’t store financial information, such as bank accounts, credit card numbers, etc., on your smartphone or tablet. ■ Consider malware protection software for your mobile device. ■ Keep your phone and tablet operating system software up to date to get security patches and bug fixes. ■ Don’t ever send credit card numbers, ATM PINs, or banking information to someone in text messages – or in emails.

While there’s no need to be paranoid about smishing – or phishing, for that matter – it’s important to be vigilant. As with anything else online, if a message contains something that looks out of line or offers something that’s too good to be true, it’s most likely to be a scam.

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