14 DAY TRIAL // Experts from Scambook report that a new type of smishing scam has hit Australia in the past few months. Shady text messages – apparently coming from a hitman - notify recipients that they will be killed unless they pay $5,000 (4,000 EUR).
Potential victims are asked to send an email to a Yahoo! email address for further instructions on how to wire the money.
In this weekly update, Spambook's Kevan explains how these scams work and how users can avoid falling victim to them.
For now, the scam has only been reported by Australians – mostly elderly citizens – but considering its high success rate, it could be picked up by crooks from the US or other countries as well.
In case you get one of these messages, don’t be afraid since this is clearly a scam. No one hired an assassin to kill you and whatever you do, don’t pay up. Instead, file a report with the police.