In today’s digital age, phones are no longer just a way to make calls and send messages. Banking, payment, OTP – every small and big work is done on mobile phone. But scammers are using it to steal your money. The case that came to light recently seems like a simple SMS scam, but it is much more dangerous and deadly. Cyber security experts say that fraudsters are now using fake mobile towers and SMS blast technique, which directly redirects your phone’s network to a compromised channel.
Most of us assume that our phone is always connected to a real tower and gets the right network signal. But now, scammers are using small, portable devices that mimic real towers. Cyber security experts call them Fake BTS, i.e. Fake Base Station.
These devices can be easily hidden in the trunk of a car, backpack or on the side of the road. When a phone searches for a signal, it chooses the network with the strongest signal, and sometimes that’s a fake tower. This prevents the phone from connecting to the original network and instead connects to a less secure network where the security level is much lower. Cyber security experts say that these fake towers push the phone from 5G or 4G to 2G or other weak signal, and this is where the scam starts.
SMS Blaster: Block phishing and fraud messages from your phone
The real danger after falling into the trap of fake towers is the SMS Blaster scam.
It doesn’t just send a ransom text; This is a technique of mass distributing SMS messages, where fake links are sent to many people from your number.
The SMS usually looks something like this: “Your bank account is about to be locked, click on this link immediately or update your OTP, otherwise your service will be suspended.”
Many users feel scared and rushed, and that’s exactly what scammers want. That’s why this is no longer just a simple SMS scam; It involves network hijacking and a complicated technical scheme. Scammers are being caught not only in India but all over the world.
This incident is not limited to India only. In Europe, Greek police arrested criminals who had a fake cell tower that connected people’s phones to a fake network by hiding a mobile computing system in the trunk of a car. This means it’s not just a theory; Real cases are coming to light where this process is reconnecting people’s phones and sending fraudulent SMS messages. This whole problem has become so serious that cyber security experts are issuing warnings all over the world, saying that this is a new type of cyber crime technique which spreads fraud by hijacking the network.
Why are common users at risk?
Your phone’s network connects to a fake network instead of the real tower. This results in:
SMS messages and notifications may be sent without your consent.
Fraudulent transactions can be initiated from your number without your permission.
Banking OTP and personal data can be stolen.
It can easily fall into the hands of hackers.
And the most dangerous thing is that the user will not even know that all this is happening at the network level.
It’s not just about scam links anymore. This is a strategy that changes your phone’s basic network from safe to unsafe.
Limitations of network companies
Telecom companies constantly claim to secure their networks, but this scam uses a system that network sectors have not yet been able to fully prevent. It is very difficult to stop fake towers because the primary function of a mobile phone is to connect to the strongest signal possible, whether it is real or fake. And scammers are taking advantage of this rule.
What could be the next step?
On one hand, cybersecurity experts and governments are constantly trying to understand this technology, but on the other hand, it is also clear that preventing network-level weapons is not easy. This problem is not limited to India alone; It is spread internationally. Some experts say that network companies will have to develop new security protocols so that phones can connect only to genuine towers. However, there is also the question of how to explain this technology to common users so that they can protect themselves.
