10 Effective Ways to Prevent Falling Victim to Smishing Scams

Perhaps you are trying to prevent cyberattacks by limiting your interactions online. Unfortunately, with smishing, you don’t have to be online for attackers to reach you—a single text message does the trick.

The rising popularity of smishing means more people fall victim to the text-message hacking technique. So, it’s time to strengthen your texting security.

Read along as we discuss effective tips for preventing smishing attacks.

1. Implement a BYOD Policy

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy permits your team members to use their own devices for work. Since the devices belong to the users, they will most likely create and use strong security practices for accessing your network.

Cybercriminals often use text to acquire email access, phone numbers, addresses, or apps associated with their targets. When users build an effective security force around their devices, they make hacking such devices more difficult.

It also helps to delete unnecessary messages in your inbox and rid your devices of potentially harmful messages.

2. Increase Your Cybersecurity Awareness

Don’t go a day without caution or utmost observance of your network. Hackers often use social engineering tricks to lure victims into submitting confidential details. They could ask you to register for a win. In some cases, all they need is a response from you to penetrate your network.

While email phishing is widespread and users fail to fall for it, smishing is becoming more destructive. It helps to understand the various smishing strategies that cybercriminals may deploy. That way, you can smell a smishing threat from a distance.

3. Be Wary of Messages With a Sense of Urgency

When you see a link or message with a deadline or date of expiration, verify its source before taking action. Smishing is so tricky; it lures you to act according to the hacker’s want subconsciously.

Some cybercriminals will instill fear in you to have you act fast, while a few others will build a wall of excitement. You may rush to give a reply thinking it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but it’s just another smishing tactic.

4. Verify Clickable Links in Messages

Not all links are from illegal sources. Some links are legitimate with genuine offers and verifiable actions. For instance, your bank may text you to request some information.

Double-check links sent to you via text before clicking on them. If you aren’t 100% sure of a link’s authenticity, you are better off ignoring it than taking action.

Make it a rule not to engage unverifiable sources through text. If it takes verifying the message’s source through direct interaction with a known and respected individual in the supposed field, then so be it.

5. Refrain From Sharing Personal Information

Nowadays, prominent organizations are sounding it across every media, telling customers not to share their personal information. Even banks make it clear not to give out such details, or you’ll be responsible for whatever loss you suffer.

No matter the circumstance, don’t be hasty to share personal information with people and third-party apps trying to create a formal approach through texts. Unless you can justify why a source needs certain information from you, don’t give it to them.

Thanks to technology, you can avoid the stress of deleting unwanted messages. Always opt for the best security apps, depending on your needs. While some apps allow you to keep numbers on a blacklist, others prevent calls from a particular number range.

Adopting message blocking tools will help prevent hackers from sending smishing texts, so you don’t have to delete them manually. This is one security technique hackers fear the most, as it helps to reduce the number of cases recorded.

7. Update Your Devices Regularly

Who knows what you might have clicked or how many messages you replied to within the past few weeks? It’s always favorable to update your devices regularly.

Outdated software is vulnerable to cyber threats and attacks. Hackers may use bugs to penetrate your network, enabling them to send you text messages. When you update your devices, you avoid smishing and a couple of hacking attempts.

8. Implement Multi-Factor Authentication

Since the invention of multi-factor authentication, identity thefts have been minimal. Multi-factor authentication prevents hackers from accessing your personal information freely.

Assuming someone lures you through text to submit your email access, this feature prevents them from using it for cybercrimes, rendering the information valueless.

Multi-factor authentication requires individuals to confirm their identity before accessing a particular tool, software, or device. So, if you’re not the one perpetuating an act, it’d be difficult for someone else to go away with it.

Reporting suspicious activities can help mitigate cyber threats and damages. In the case of smishing, it could save you lots of fortune.

Cybercriminals don’t stop at one attempt when planning a smishing attack. They keep messaging you with social tactics and hope for the day you fall victim. Your best bet is to report suspicious activities as soon as you suspect them.

You don’t have to be a cyber expert to report suspected attacks. If someone attempts to gain forceful access to your device, report to your network handler. Have them block such numbers while enforcing more security watch on your device.

10. Continuously Train Your Team on Cybersecurity

As hackers devise more smishing techniques, detecting a smishing attack can be difficult sometimes. There’s a need for continuous cybersecurity training to be abreast with the latest smishing attack methods.

Make provision for a solid cybersecurity program to empower your team with the best security practices. A single crack on an egg could cause the whole shell to break off. While you think you know enough about cyber security, your team might be vulnerable.

Engage cybersecurity experts to expand your team’s knowledge of cybersecurity. Keep a tab on the learning process and test team members’ efficiency to ensure they are advancing in knowledge.

Prevent Smishing With Good Texting Habits

Texting is trendy, and hackers are eager to take advantage of it through smishing. That text message you received may not be as harmless as it looks. It might be an attacker’s tactic to steal your data or compromise your device.

Unfortunately, smishing isn’t going away anytime soon. If anything, it’s on the rise. But the good news is that you can prevent it by paying more attention to your texting.

Verify all text messages before taking action. Delete unnecessary texts and report suspicious messages from impersonators.