If you’ve been getting strange text messages from random numbers lately, you’re not the only one, according to the Competition Bureau.
Canadians are seeing a spike in scam texts claiming things like unpaid tolls or suspicious activity on bank accounts. The messages may look real, but they’re part of a growing fraud trend called “smishing” (SMS phishing).
Smishing is when scammers send fake texts pretending to be from trusted sources like your bank, a government agency, or even a delivery service. Their goal is to get you to click a link or hand over personal information such as passwords or credit card numbers.
In many cases, the messages are designed to create panic so you act without thinking—saying things like “Pay now to avoid a fine” or “Verify your account immediately.”
One of the easiest ways to spot a smishing attempt is if a message comes out of the blue from a number you don’t recognize. If it asks you to click on a link or share personal info, that’s another red flag. Many of these messages try to sound official by pretending to come from banks or other trusted organizations.
If you get one of these texts, don’t click anything and don’t reply—even if it says to respond with something like “STOP” or “NO.” It’s best to delete the message and block the number. You can also report spam texts by forwarding them to 7726 (which spells “SPAM”) to help your mobile provider investigate.
Anyone who believes they’ve been targeted or fallen for a smishing attempt can report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
It’s crazy how many fake text messages come through. A lot of them are just “Hello, how are you?” and other fake non-sense to lure you into replying. On top of not talking to anyone on the phone–now we shouldn’t reply to texts either.
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"You can also report spam texts by forwarding them to 7726 (which spells “SPAM”) to help your mobile provider investigate." lol as if they'd actually do anything.