Cyber & Technology

SMS Phishers Pivot to Points, Taxes, Fake Retailers

January 22, 2026 at 00:47Z
BIAS: Center
RELIABILITY: Very High

Political Bias Rating

This rating indicates the source’s editorial stance on the political spectrum, based on analysis from Media Bias/Fact Check, AllSides, and Ad Fontes Media.

Far Left / Left: Progressive editorial perspective
Lean Left: Slightly progressive tendency
Center: Balanced, minimal editorial slant
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Right / Far Right: Conservative editorial perspective

Current source: Center. Stories with cross-spectrum coverage receive elevated prominence.

Reliability Rating

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Current source: Very High. Higher reliability sources receive elevated weighting in story prioritization.

Krebs on Security
23:02Z

China-based phishing groups blamed for non-stop scam SMS messages about a supposed wayward package or unpaid toll fee are promoting a new offering, just in time for the holiday shopping season: Phishing kits for mass-creating fake but convincing e-commerce websites that convert customer payment card data into mobile wallets from Apple and Google. Experts say these same phishing groups also are now using SMS lures that promise unclaimed tax refunds and mobile rewards points. Over the past week, thousands of domain names were registered for scam websites that purport to offer T-Mobile customers the opportunity to claim a large number of rewards points.

The phishing domains are being promoted by scam messages sent via Apple’s iMessage service or the functionally equivalent RCS messaging servi

Source Assessment

Political Bias
Center
Reliability
Very High

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