Text scammers make tens of thousands a month - and spend it on designer shoes and bags
Summary
Text scammers are making large sums of money by sending fake messages, known as "smishing", to people. These scammers spend their illegal earnings on expensive designer items. The police have confiscated thousands of such items while investigating these crimes.Key Facts
- "Smishing" combines the words SMS (text messaging) and phishing (a way to trick people to get personal information).
- Scammers send messages that look like they come from banks or trusted companies to get personal details like passwords.
- Police have collected 8,500 to 10,000 items, such as designer shoes and bags, as evidence.
- Ruichen Xiong, a student from China, was sentenced to 58 weeks in prison for sending thousands of scam messages.
- Xiong made about one hundred thousand pounds a month through smishing.
- A UK survey reported that half of mobile users received dubious messages in a short period.
- Victims often feel vulnerable and cheated after falling for these scams.
- Smishing often involves asking victims to click on fake links to steal their information.
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