According to Proofpoint’s 2024 State of the Phish report, 75% of businesses experienced at least one smishing attack in 2023. This text message based phishing threat is on the rise, becoming more effective every day. Cybercriminals know how to manipulate people into giving them what they want, whether that be money or sensitive information. Don’t fall victim to these sneaky cyberattacks. Continue reading to learn how you can spot and protect yourself and your business from smishing attacks.
How Does Smishing Work?
Smishing, or SMS phishing, is a cybercriminal that reaches out to people through text messages. Cybercriminals will often pose as a trusted source to try to get you to provide sensitive information or money. They know all the tricks to convince you to do so too. Smishing attacks, like all types of phishing, will create a sense of urgency in their messages to get you to act quickly. As a result, you must keep an eye on all your text messages and be skeptical to stop yourself from becoming another victim.
Signs of a Smishing Attack
Smishing attacks are getting better and better at appearing as if they come from trusted sources, so it’s critical to be able to spot the warning signs. Cybercriminals will commonly pose as a financial institution or government agency to pressure you into giving them what they want. They could also send messages announcing that you’ve won a prize and only need to click on their malicious link or provide your financial information to receive it. These cyberthreats will use every trick in the book to convince you they’re someone they’re not and steal your money, information, and peace of mind.
Luckily, perpetrators of these attacks often use the same tactics so once you know what they are these text scams will be easier to identify. Smishing attacks will ask you for sensitive information or money via text. This should be an immediate red flag as legitimate institutions will never ask you to provide this kind of information over unsecured communication methods.
You should also look out for misspellings and poor grammar in these surprise messages as this also indicates the sender isn’t who they say they are. Smishing attacks will often make their requests urgent to trick you into taking immediate action. Even worse, these cybercriminals will likely reach out during major events like elections, natural disasters, and more, trying to steal your money while posing as a charity asking for help.
How to Respond to a Smishing Attack
If a suspicious text message comes from an unknown number, it’s always best to confirm if it’s legitimate or not. Do this by checking the supposed organization’s website and reaching out using their official contact information listed. You should also avoid clicking any links or attachments in a suspicious message as these could install malware on your phone or take you to a fake site to input your credentials. In general, if you think you’ve received a smishing attack, do not engage with the message. Block the number and delete the message thread to prevent accidentally clicking on any dangerous links in the future.
Tips for Protecting Your Business
Responding correctly isn’t the only way you can protect your business from these cyberthreats. There are several proactive measures you can take to prepare for potential smishing scams and boost your business’ overall cybersecurity.
Employee Training
One of the most effective ways to defend your business against smishing attacks is to educate your team. Regular cybersecurity awareness training by cybersecurity professionals like the ones at Strategy IT equips your business with the knowledge to recognize and respond to smishing and all other types of cyberthreats before they occur. In addition to teaching employees about the warning signs of a smishing attack, these training sessions should encourage them to report scam messages immediately. Building a culture of vigilance ensures that cyberattacks can be identified and dealt with before any damage can be done.
Implement Multi-factor Authentication
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a powerful tool that adds an extra layer of security to your business accounts. With it, even if a cybercriminal successfully obtains your login credentials, they can’t access your systems. This is because MFA requires users to provide two or more forms of identification to log in. Even if your password is compromised, the scammer would still need the secondary authentication factor, making it much more difficult for them to gain unauthorized access.
Update Software Regularly
Keeping your software up to date is an absolute must to protect your business from smishing attacks and other cyberthreats. Cybercriminals often exploit vulnerabilities in outdated software to gain access to systems or information. Regularly updating your phones and other devices with the latest security patches can close these vulnerabilities before attackers have a chance to strike at them.
To ensure your mobile devices have the latest security in place, establish a routine for checking and updating them. Consider using mobile device management (MDM) tools to automate this process and enforce regular updates across all devices used by your employees. This proactive approach will help prevent your business from becoming an easy target for cybercriminals looking for outdated security gaps to exploit.
Install Security Software
Don’t just rely on your phone’s up to date software to keep your device safe. Install a trusted security software to further strengthen your defenses against smishing attacks. This kind of added security measure can help identify suspicious messages and block malicious links. Even if you do try to open the unsafe links, a strong security software should warn you that it could be a threat before allowing you to access it.
Best Practices
In addition to the preventative measures listed above, there are several practices you can implement right now to keep your business safe from smishing attacks. Since these cyberthreats target your mobile devices, it’s best not to use your personal phones to store any work data. You should also avoid logging into your business accounts on your phone, especially on public Wi-Fi. Your mobile device is especially vulnerable to all kinds of cyberattacks so it’s best to keep important data on a secure work device.
Keep All Your Devices Safe with Strategy IT!
Cybercriminals are constantly finding new ways to make their smishing attacks more effective so they can steal your information. Don’t wait until you get a suspicious text message to protect your business’ cybersecurity. Strategy IT can help keep your phones and other devices safe from cyberattacks with vigilant monitoring and cybersecurity training. Book a conversation with our team of IT experts today and start protecting your business before cybercriminals strike.
