PLDT Inc.'s wireless unit Smart Communications Inc. (Smart) said on Sunday that its new network firewall has helped strengthen its anti-fraud measures, leading to a significant decline in the number of reported SMShing messages.

The telco said it migrated most of its SMS handling capacity to the new network firewall in the first half of July to clamp down on malicious links often found in unsolicited text messages.

The new network cybersecurity solution is said to have successfully blocked as many as 30 million malicious texts per day, resulting in a notable decline in the number of text scams reported by customers in July this year.

Smart reported that from January to July 2024, the new firewall has helped prevent more than a billion SMShing messages from reaching customers.

The upgraded firewall has also been instrumental in blocking from its network around 770,000 mobile numbers believed to have been involved in illicit activities during the same period.

"Smart continues to upgrade its cyber defenses to further protect customers from text scams. The new firewall blocks malicious text messages from being sent using the network.

This also covers the full cycle of blocking SMShing messages, from both the sending and receiving ends," PLDT and Smart SVP and Chief Information Security Officer Jojo Gendrano said.

SMShing is a social engineering attack that uses fake mobile text messages to trick people into downloading malware, sharing sensitive information, or sending money to cybercriminals.

Criminals who use this method often bait potential victims with promises of financial gain or "too-good-to-be-true" deals to lure them into opening the links that then lead to fake websites.

These malicious websites will then ask their victims to key in personal information, including bank account details.

Smart added that it has also expanded its methods to help combat phishing attacks over Short Message Service (SMS).

Even with the upgraded cybersecurity measures, Smart still urges customers to remain vigilant by sharing tips on spotting SMShing messages and reporting these instances.

Smart advised its customers who receive suspicious messages or calls to report them to cybersecurityincidents@smart.com.ph or to Smart's verified and official social media pages.

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