Workers at T-Mobile and Verizon are being approached via text messages on both their personal and work phones with offers of financial incentives to engage in illegal SIM swaps. This method of cyberattack is aimed at manipulating insider access to telecommunications infrastructure to misdirect user data.
Text Messages with Dubious Offers
Screenshots from various employees reveal that the text messages propose a $300 payment for assistance in these nefarious activities. These communications seem to be part of a larger scheme to exploit current and former employees who might still have access to necessary systems for executing a SIM swap.
One recipient shared their experience, saying, “Myself and a group of former employees all got the same message, all from different numbers and with different verbiage.” This indicates a systematic attempt to corrupt network security through internal agents.
The texts often include a claim of having sourced the recipient’s contact details via an “employee directory.” One of the messages reads, “I got your number from the T-Mo employee directory. I’m looking to pay someone up to $300 per SIM swap done, if you’re interested, reply and we can talk.”
T-Mobile Text Message Scam for SIM Swapping (Source: LowkyRep)
BleepingComputer reports that some messages even direct the employees to continue the conversation on encrypted platforms like Telegram. Initially, it was believed that these suspicious offers were only directed at T-Mobile staff, but Verizon employees have also confirmed receiving similar propositions.
Corporate Responses to the Threat
T-Mobile has acknowledged these incidents and is currently investigating the situation. However, they clarified that there has been no breach of their systems.
“We did not have a systems breach. We continue to investigate these messages that are being sent to solicit illegal activity. We understand other wireless providers have reported similar messages,” a spokesperson from T-Mobile explained. Verizon, on the other hand, is yet to comment on this issue.
What is a SIM Swap?
In a SIM swap, criminals deceive a telecom operator into switching a legitimate customer’s phone service to a device they control. This type of fraud can result in significant privacy breaches, financial theft, and personal distress. The FBI has highlighted an increase in these crimes, with substantial financial repercussions for the victims.
According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), Americans reported over a thousand SIM swap cases in 2023 alone, with losses totaling nearly $49 million. Just the year before, the losses from such incidents were estimated at over $72 million, up sharply from $12 million recorded over three years earlier.
Regulatory Measures to Enhance Consumer Protection
To combat the surge in SIM swap frauds, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) introduced stringent rules in November.
The new guidelines mandate that carriers implement robust authentication processes before reallocating subscriber phone numbers and inform customers promptly about any SIM change or port-out requests. These measures are intended to safeguard Americans from the growing risk of this type of cyber fraud.
Final Word
The issue of insider-assisted SIM swap scams is a significant threat in the telecom industry, impacting both employees and customers. With stringent regulatory measures and heightened corporate vigilance, there is hope to mitigate these risks effectively.
Anas Hasan
April 17, 2024
2 weeks ago
