Cyber criminals using NT network to send fake SMS

KATHMANDU, JUNE 18:

Umesh KC, an inhabitant of Imadol-1, Lalitpur received a SMS describing he won $ 2,000,000 (Rs 184,794,550) from International Mobile Festival. He was surprised wondering who had send it. "I read thoroughly and found it fake," university graduate KC said.

Thanks to his education. He knew it was a fraud plotted by 2013 AIS 12Call Inc — a fake company operated by cyber criminals.

However, many Nepalis believe in such fake SMS. Growing SMS frauds have cheated many Nepalis lately as they become greedy to win prizes worth millions.

Recently, Central Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police had rounded up four persons, including two foreign nationals, for operating a fraud racket via SMS. The arrested were Ikechukwu John Dike, 22, of Nigeria, Ernest P Kamara, 25, of Sierra Leone and Samjhana Pariyar, 27, of Shankhupatichaur-5, Kavre.

Most SMS scams are plotted abroad. Cyber criminals have been using Nepal Telecom as a tool to send fake SMS to Nepal. "The criminals have been using network of our roaming partners to enter into our gateway," said spokesperson of Nepal Telecom Gun Keshari Pradhan.

According to her, Nepal Telecom is regularly blocking such SMS working together with roaming partners. "We have closed our door to cyber criminals from Papua New Guinea and Germany recently," she said.

"Our engineers have been identifying the source to block their activities." Thousands of NT mobile subscribers have been getting SMS under Pepsi and Coca-Cola lotteries. A SMS with 'you won $ 1,000,000 (Rs 92,601,166) from worldwide SMS lottery' is common lately.

The sender requests to send personal details — name, mobile number and email — of recipient to claim the money.

However, the multinationals — Pepsi and Coca-Cola — say that they have not launched such lotteries across the world. Coca-cola has submitted their authorised promotional programmes to Nepal Police to help in the investigation of such frauds. "We have written about it last week to Nepal Police. There is no SMS lottery in our network across the globe," said an officer at Bottlers Nepal.

Varun Beverage — the bottler of Pepsi products in Nepal — said they also do not have such promotional programmes anywhere. "It is totally fake lottery. Pepsi do not have such programmes," said an officer at the company Govind Poudel. According to him, Pepsi launches promotional programmes according to local market and there is no global campaign as claimed in the SMS sent by cyber criminals.

Source: THT