SMS phishing

noun

: the practice of sending text messages to someone in order to trick the person into revealing personal or confidential information which can then be used for criminal purposes : smishing

This technique can theoretically be used for SMS phishing, a type of attack where users are asked for sensitive information or to subscribe to paid services through rogue SMS messages that appear to originate from a trusted source.

—Lucian Constantin

The SMS phishing scam is alleged to have started in 2018 to target customers of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank and Telstra, among others.

—States News Service

Examples of SMS phishing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s because the phishing, smishing (SMS phishing), and vishing (video phishing) attempts now sound far more credible and can be replicated across many targets with minimal effort. —Kal De, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2024

For more tips, check out our guide on how to spot email and SMS phishing attempts. —Michael Kan, PCMAG, 1 Apr. 2024

To defeat targets’ defenses, the group resorts to a host of techniques, which, besides social engineering, includes SIM swaps, SMS phishing, and live voice calls. —Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 27 Oct. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

2006, in the meaning defined above