A new wave of fraudulent activity committed by the Chinese cybercriminal organization known as the “Smishing Triad” gang has been identified by security researchers. The group targets people by using fraudulent SMS messages that pretend to be from the USPS, FedEx and UPS.

Smishing Triad at Work This gang sends an estimated 100,000 messages per day. It starts with a notification of extra fees required to deliver a package and they attempt to represent USPS, FedEx and UPS.

The Smishing Triad gang sends malicious links to victims’ mobile devices over SMS or iMessage. The gang uses URL-shortening services like Bit.ly to hide these linkages. The actual sender of the phishing messages is unknown and may possibly be using Caller ID or underground SMS spoofing services.

Potential victims are directed to a legitimate looking – but fake – website when they click on the malicious links where they can enter financial information to pay the additional shipping fee. Once they have your financial info, the criminals add your details to Apple Pay or Google Wallet accounts on “burner phones” and then go shopping on your dime. They also lease their malware as a subscription service to other cyber criminals.

Take Preventive Actions

• Stop and think: Don’t click links included in bogus messages or answer phone calls from numbers you don’t recognize.
• Ignore the texts: Don’t respond to random texts, even if the message requests you “text STOP” to end future messages. This can alert a scammer you’re a real human, resulting in even more messages. Delete the text and report it as spam.
• Keep Your Devices Updated: Keep your phone’s operating system and any security software you use updated to the latest version.

If you’re concerned that the message might be legitimate, go directly to the source for verification.

USPS: 1‑800‑ASK‑USPS (1‑800‑275‑8777)

FedEx: 1‑800‑GoFedEx (1‑800‑463‑3339)

UPS: 1‑800‑742‑5877

Wired article: https://www.wired.com/story/usps-scam-text-smishing-triad

Bloomberg article: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2024-08-21/chinese-phishing-crew-poses-as-delivery-services-to-steal-data?srnd=homepage-americas

Kim Komando: https://www.komando.com/news/text-scam-chinese-phishing-crew-behind-fake-delivery-notifications/ 

David Snell joins Rob Hakala of the South Shore’s Morning News on 95.9 WATD fm every Tuesday at 8:11
You can listen to this broadcast here: https://actsmartit.com/chinese-scams/