SMS Containing Phone Numbers To Be Blocked By Telcos Starting 2 July

In a move to combat the increasing rate of scam spam messages in this country, telecommunication companies (or “telcos”) will begin to block SMS containing phone numbers beginning next month, starting 2 July.

Some users have already started receiving messages from their respective telcos regarding the change in preparation for the implementation date.

The initiative to block SMS with phone numbers attached was first revealed by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), where it was announced back in February that this change will take place in the coming months.

It is also worth noting that this move is not limited to phone numbers, as any SMS that  requests for personal information such as names, IC numbers, and bank account information will also be flagged and blocked immediately by the telcos.

This latest move to combat the ever increasing rate of spam messages sent by these scam syndicates follows hot on the heels of telcos blocking SMS containing URL links just last month.

This move will also likely see the scammers migrate to messaging applications such as WhatsApp and Telegram for their operations and scams in the near future, hence it will be important to still remain vigilant at all times. In fact, the editor has even noticed an uptick in scam messages this month on their own WhatsApp account (5 so far in June alone).

Finally, it is important to note that this will also likely affect existing 2FA and OTP verification methods via SMS by legitimate businesses and companies, and they will likely announce their own alternative measures for user verifications in the near future, with app-based verifications likely to be the solution moving forward (which will require a good wireless connection and a new-enough phone that can allow for the latest version of the app).

Ultimately we do hope that this move will reduce the rate of scam and spam messages being sent to the public, which has seen a huge uptick ever since the COVID19 pandemic. Hopefully this will also reduce the amount of unsuspecting people falling prey to scammers, which has been happening again, again, and again. 

Source(s): Lowyat.net

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