Bombarded with spam texts? Stats show the problem is getting worse in Canada
CTV
In particular, messages that involve phishing — an attack where a scammer tries to trick the recipient into clicking a malicious link, downloading malware or sharing sensitive information — are on the rise.
At least once a day, Digvijay Kosamia glances at his vibrating cellphone to check the latest text he's received, only to find a "frustrating" message from an unknown number.
Sometimes it's a notification supposedly from Canada Post about a package that Kosamia didn't order.
Other times, the message informs him a major bank has frozen his card, complete with the first four digits of the account in question. All he has to do to unlock the card is follow a mysterious URL.
"I don't think I have fallen for it," said the Vancouverite, who considers himself pretty technologically savvy.
"But I worry for my wife and my kids. I'm sure they have."
Kosamia's experience — he estimates he sometimes gets up to 15 or 20 spam texts a week — is far from unique in Canada. Many say they're increasingly inundated with spam and fraudulent texts.
The organizations tasked with monitoring spam attempts and enforcing laws against them say the numbers back up that common perception. In particular, messages that involve phishing — an attack where a scammer tries to trick the recipient into clicking a malicious link, downloading malware or sharing sensitive information — are on the rise.