Hong Kong has implemented the "SMS Sender Registration Scheme" since December 2023, under which only certified companies or organizations are allowed to use names starting with "#" to send SMS. However, some members of the public have recently received suspected fraudulent SMS containing phishing websites, but the names of the senders start with the prefix "#"; experts suspect that some people have been using IMSI-catcher ("fake" mobile tower) to push out fraudulent SMS.
Police announced today (Feb. 19) that a 23-year-old local man was arrested on the charge of "conspiracy to defraud" the day before yesterday (Feb. 17). He is suspected of using an illegal wireless jammer, commonly known as an IMSI-catcher, to send out phishing SMS to members of the public by pretending to be an SMS sender whose name starts with the prefix "#", in an attempt to obtain credit card information for use in illegal online transactions.
One of the victims, who opened the link to the phishing website in the SMS and provided his credit card information, eventually suffered a loss of HK$22,000 and reported the incident to the police for assistance.
The police, together with the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA) and a telecommunication service provider, conducted an in-depth investigation and identified a local man who used a "fake" mobile tower to send phishing SMS on February 17 in Mongkok. The Police arrested the man on charges of "conspiracy to defraud" and seized two mobile phones and an operating "fake" mobile tower from his van. The arrestee is being held for investigation and will be prosecuted.
Relevant staff explained that "fake" mobile towers usually pose as 2G base stations, and the 2G standard itself only requires unilateral authentication to successfully trick the network into sending out short messages. He reminded members of the public to be extra cautious if they find their cell phones dropping from full signal to 2G within a short period of time and receive SMS messages during the period.
The police urge members of the public to refrain from clicking on the links in the SMS if they receive SMS from unknown sources or suspected phishing. If in doubt, they can contact the relevant organizations directly for confirmation.
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